John 1:8, 1-12

Encountering Jesus Series

Okay so Not much introduction to this passage because we are going through the gospel and from my understanding Mr. Stead wanted us to look at some examples in the new testament about encountering Jesus

So today I don’t remember what he said he went through last week but today we are going to take a shorter time and look at John ch 8:

Jesus encountering an adulteress woman

yes a woman who was a cheater

she was caught in the act of Adultery

So if you have your bibles , turn with me over to John chapter 8

but before we actually read through the 12 verses

lets see from the previous chapters what Jesus was doing

In chapter one He makes his first disciples

in chapter two He turns water into wine

in chapter 3 Jesus explains to Nicodemus that spiritual rebirth is Necessary to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven

in Ch 4 which is another encounter that at some point you will go through; A Samaritan woman Meets Jesus , the messiah , and Jesus continues on His ministry healing people

In chapter 5 Jesus Heals a man at the Pool of Bethesda (BETH-ZAY-DUH)

In chapter 6 Jesus Feeds 5 thousand with nothing more than 5 loaves of bread and two fish

(IN CH6 ^) Jesus walks on water showcasing what it means to have faith and to follow Him

In chapter 7 Jesus promised the Holy Spirit

and then at the end of ch 7 leading into chapter 8 we see Titled

An Adulteress faces the light of the world

So Jesus was here on Earth and He was a living example to those around him and he was carrying out His life the way he was suppose to

He was living out the Gospel performing miracles and turning ordinary people into Godly people

He was creating disciples all by being the ultimate example

So lets begin @ the end of ch 7 leading into chapter 8

John 7:53 “53 And everyone went to his own house.”

so just before this, important men had been arguing about who Jesus was and why He had been speaking the way he was speaking

they were in disbelief of the prophecy that was being fulfilled before their eyes

the messiah couldn’t come from Galilee , he is suppose to come from Bethlehem the line of David

He was suppose to of been from royalty , not some normal dude !

Some wanted Jesus arrested because they didn’t believe that he was the messiah

but he was

Back in Chapter 3 A pharisee named Nicodemus , a ruler of the Jewish people . Turn to ch 3 AND READ A LITTLE

Nicodemus knew that Jesus was at the very least a teacher sent from God

He had come to Jesus in the night admitting that Jesus was a man/ teacher from God

then when we read in vs 50-51 that nicodemus kinda sticks up for Him

so theres this argument about Jesus and then everyone disperses (READ )

John 7:50 “50 Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them,”

John 7:51 “51 “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?”

He kinda sticks up for Jesus by at least being Fair to Him

Lets begin vs 1

John 8:1 “1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.”

Jesus didn’t have a home to go to so instead he goes the mount of olives , probably to pray

John 8:2 “2 Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them.”

Again Jesus being a perfect example of a Leader , the messiah to be specific

goes to the temple to find people who were seeking after Him

WORD had traveled and now people wanted to see Jesus

Jesus when he enters into someones heart , creates a desire in them for him

Proverbs 8:17 “17 I love those who love me, And those who seek me diligently will find me.”

what better place to go than the temple to teach people who were willing to be taught

now of course anything good that happens always comes at a price

the enemy is always lying and waiting to strike and thats what we will see next

John 8:3 “3 Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst,”

John 8:4 “4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.”

of course this would happen as Jesus is teaching people peacefully

this woman caught in the act of ADULTERY cheating on her husband

now remember our whole purpose for reading this passage is because we are going to see what it was like to encounter Jesus

John 8:5 “5 Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?”

Adultery in this time period was a big no, no

it was an offense punishable by death

but there were strict rules that came along with proving the act actually took place

but if it was proven right , the woman would be stoned to death

Leviticus 20:10–11 “10 ‘The man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death. 11 The man who lies with his father’s wife has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them.”

again cheating on your spouse was not allowed and the pharisees knew this

but Jesus being wise knew that they knew this

lets keep reading !

John 8:6 “6 This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.”

The pharisees were experts in the Law

Jesus came to conquer the Law

but they tested Him , why ? because they were looking for reasons to discount who he was

to them he wasn’t the messiah

to them he was of the devil performing miracles and things that were not from God

so this opportunity to them was one that could throw Jesus in prison and get him the death penalty

so lets look at Jesus response to these guys

John 8:7 “7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.””

Instead of Jesus taking on God like power and punishing all these men for being stupid

He uses this opportunity, to be an encounter that they couldn’t forget

instead of Killing this woman and following the Law of the Land

Jesus took the opportunity to show her mercy , and grace and love

His encounter not only affects this girl but it also humbles these pharisees

It realigns their thought process and forces them to understand that they are no better than the adulteress

they are forced to admit that they too are sinners , even with all of there religion

after all they orchestrated this whole thing and that in and of itself was sin !

so who is going to be the one guy that throws the first stone ? Crickets

no one was justified to kill her

John 8:8 “8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground.”

John 8:9 “9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.”

None of the men had the guts to actually chuck a stone at her

Jesus defused their anger that was built up inside from their Legalism

one by one each man walked out ashamed and without Justification to Kill this woman

something we can see in this is that Sin is Sin

wether sin is on the surface or hidden deep down in your heart, it is still sin and we are all sinners

religion doesn’t cleanse us and neither does a law

the law was made to expose our sin to us not to condemn us

but Jesus flips it on them leaving Just Him and the woman alone !

John 8:10 “10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”

John 8:11 “11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

No man had the authority or the justification to condemn this Woman

the religious men were equally sinners

but Jesus uses again His encounter with this woman to show her mercy,

not only mercy but love and grace as well

He simply forgave her and gave her one command

Go and sin No more

Yes it was that easy because Jesus chose to forgive her and give her another chance

that was a loving thing to do and it was something these pharisees didn’t understand

John 8:12 “12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

then Jesus ends the conversation with these men by talking to them again and explaining that those who follow Him do not walk in darkness but are the Light

So what I want to talk to you guys or briefly talk about with you Guys is Encountering Jesus

As believers today its so easy to end up like these pharisees

and its so easy to become legalistic

its so easy to become a robot that knows the word instead of being the encounter that God needs you to be

its so easy to elevate someone else’s sin over our own sin

its so easy to forget our sin because someone els’s sin is more evident in their life than in ours

but guess what we are all jacked up sinners and none of us will get away with it !

the pharisees were wrong to try and publicly humiliate this woman

their sin was just as bad as her sin

As believers like it said in that Last verse , God allows us to be the light

now that light shines in darkness

so we are quite literally the light to this dark world and the world sees it

So for us to be this bright shining light , we also gotta have our hearts prepared for worldly encounters like this woman

We believers could possibly be the only Encounter someone has with Jesus

when you think about that that Kinda changes the way you think

What if you are someones only encounter with Jesus ?

What would you do ? how would you act ?

You’ll never know thats why its important to always act and behave christ like, to Display the love of christ !

Jesus had the opportunity to have this woman killed but instead he turned it around and saved her life

Jesus had the opportunity to make the Pharisees look like fools but he politely didn’t

what opportunities do you have in your life to display christlike behavior ?

why is it important to display christ like behavior ?

What affect does christ like behaviour have on non believers living in the world ?

1 John 2:6 “6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”

to walk just as He walked has a look to it

to be an encounter that The lord needs you to be it has a look to it

Galatians 5:22–23 “22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”

People who encounter Jesus through us are going to see the fruit

what does this look Like ?

Love - being a loving encounter to someone who has only experienced hate

Joy - being a joyful encounter to someone who has only encountered misery

Peace- being a peaceful encounter to someone who has only encountered conflict

Long-suffering- being Patient to someone who has never experienced patience

Kindness - being kind to someone who has never experienced Kindness

goodness - being christlike to those who don’t understand what its like, morally good to those who don’t have morals

faithfulness- being loyal to those who have only experienced disloyalty

gentleness - being tender to those who have only experienced unkindness

self control- having the ability to control your emotions around others

Imagine if every encounter we have is a display of christ in our life ?

My challenge to each of you is to think before you speak and think before you act

ask yourself , is this encounter with this person displaying the life of christ in me?

Jesus nailed it with the woman caught in adultery and he nailed it with the self righteous men

either way with a believer or a non believer , we have the ability to be a christlike encounter

Use those opportunities !