Are any words of Jesus better known than these: "You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free." (John 8.32 KJV)? This ringing declaration holds a prominent place in Western thought, and has exerted a powerful and even prophetic influence upon the American way of life in the last two centuries. Incised on our hallowed U.S. Supreme Court Building in Washington, it express the best of our ambitions and ideals as a nation "under God."

The view that "The truth shall set you free" seems entirely consistent with our Western disposition and Greco-Roman heritage. After all, did not the Greeks esteem truth above all else? "The True, the Good, the Beautiful" - were not these the triune object of Greek philosophy's holy quest? But consider this: Jesus was not Socrates. He was a Jewish sage, not a Greek philosopher. His world, his values, his quest were intrinsically and unequivocally Hebraic, not Hellenistic, in character.

In Jesus' world, the pursuit of truth was not the highest ambition so much as the doing of truth. Truth was a given - in the self-disclosure of the Holy One who is ever "Faithful and True." The chief task of the Jewish sage, therefore, was to rightly interpret this Divine revelation, preserved in Holy Scripture, and to teach his disciples, by word and example, how to obey the Divine will. Thereby would he bring them into the fullness of life and liberty intended by God.

Shortly before his death, the exemplar Moses reminded Israel that the Torah's guidance and instruction "are not just idle words for you - they are your life. By them you will live . . ." (Deuteronomy. 32.47 NIV). The ancient rabbinic adage, "The more Torah, the more life," emphasized this truth. To study God's word so as to obey it was the greatest joy and chief duty of any son of Abraham. Study was supremely important because Torah (Teaching) was supernaturally given. The process of diligently engaging and wrestling with the sacred text enlivened and sanctified all of one's existence. Learning was for life and life was for learning.

Because the Hebrew scriptures were considered "God-breathed," study was seen as a high form of worship that honored God (who delights in obedience more than sacrifices) and that prospered and strengthened the student (cf. Joshua 1.8). Talmud Torah, the study of God's word, formed the distinctive religious basis of all Jewish life. Study-leading-to-obedience was an act of devotion that engaged the whole person - heart, soul, mind and might - not just the intellect. Unlike the Greeks, who studied to comprehend, the Hebrews studied to revere, as A. J. Heschel has noted. Jewish learning was more than a holy pursuit, it was a pursuit of the Holy.

Within this Jewish frame of reference, the famous saying of Jesus, "You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free," takes on quite a different emphasis. This is evident in its fuller context: "If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free" (John 8.31-32 NRSV). Note that this is not an abstract precept. It is a conditional promise and a covenantal invitation. In other words, the way to the truth that fully liberates, saves, and enlivens is found on the path of discipleship to Jesus! To "know the truth" is be in an intimate, master-disciple relationship with the one who can liberate us into God's life.

This commitment to "walk after" Jesus and to learn of him is so important that it must take precedence even over our most cherished relationships with "father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, even life itself." (Luke 14.26 NRSV). Yes, discipleship is costly, but the rewards are priceless - righteousness, peace and joy in the Kingdom of God. Non-discipleship to Jesus is costlier still: we miss out on the fullness of God's intended life.

Shortly before his ascension, Jesus imparted to his disciples a perpetual obligation. They now were to make disciples of him. Jesus commanded and empowered them to teach the nations all that he had taught them, so that the nations, too, might obey and be liberated. That perpetual obligation rests on those who follow Jesus today. If his "Great Commission" has become our "Great Omission," let us resolve anew, individually and corporately, to give rightful precedence to God's word and the highest priority to being and making disciples after the likeness of Jesus.

As a start, I would suggest the following.

1)	Develop an appreciation, even a love for the Bible of Jesus - Torah, Nevi' im (Prophets) and Ketuvim (Writings). Read, study and memorize the Hebrew Scriptures that inspired and instructed our Lord, and that Paul declared to be "God-breathed and profitable for teaching ..." (2 Timothy 3:16).
2)	As part of your on-going study of Scripture, read the weekly Torah portion on the schedule followed by the Jewish people around the world? In the course of every year, you will share in the adventure of hearing once again God's spoken word through Moses, revelation so familiar and important to Jesus.
3)	Get yourself haverim (companions) in study. To follow Jesus is to be joined to his community of faith - to learn, to love and to serve one another in committed Christian relationships. By twos and threes the disciples gathered together to study his words. By twos and threes they went out to serve his Kingdom. Hebraic biblical study flowers best, not in the soil of "private interpretation," or autonomous independence, but in the "garden of the Lord," in nurturing covenantal interdependence.

Yeshua, the teacher-sage from Nazareth, embodied the best of the Jewish worldview regarding the significance and sanctity of learning. As his followers, may our lives of learning bring credit to our Lord and honor to our God.