You are of your father the devil: and the desires of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning: and he stood not in the truth, because truth is not in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof.
John 8:42 Jesus therefore said to them: If God were your Father, you would indeed love me. For from God I proceeded and came. For I came not of myself: but he sent me.
John 8:43 Why do you not know my speech? Because you cannot hear my word.
John 8:44 You are of your father the devil: and the desires of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning: and he stood not in the truth, because truth is not in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father thereof.
John 8:45 But if I say the truth, you believe me not.
John 8:46 Which of you shall convince me of sin? If I say the truth to you, why do you not believe me:
The verse centers on "father", "devil", "desires", "murderer", "beginning", "stood", and "truth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "father" and "devil", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 43's "Why do you not know my speech..." into verse 45's "But if I say the truth you...", so "father" and "devil" belong inside that flow. In John context, the local focus is the identity of Jesus, new birth, eternal life, and belief and unbelief.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "father" and "devil" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.