God's Truth
Notes
Transcript
I can remember one night when I was a teenager being out at night coon hunting. We had turned the dogs loose in a cornfield and heard the dogs strike up on a chase. In a few minutes, we could kind of tell which way they were heading, so we went across the fence into the woods where we thought they may come. As we could hear the chase getting closer, we heard the rustling of leaves and something ran into our friends leg. It was only a few seconds later that the dogs came through in hot chase! Now, why did we not turn a light on and SEE what was coming towards us? Was it because we didn’t want to see what was coming? We didn’t want to know the truth?
Is it possible that we sometimes don’t want to see the truth, even when it is in front of us? Or, are we afraid the truth may cause conflict with what we want to believe? Might it be that we have differing opinions in public than we do in private? There can be times when our private and public truths conflict. For example, I read an illustration that stated the law on drunken driving in Louisiana is now one of the toughest in the nation. There is a mandatory prison sentence for anyone convicted of driving while intoxicated. Getting it passed was a major victory for various groups against drunk driving. They could not have gotten it passed it if were not for the help of one particular state legislator who sponsored the bill.
Not long after the new law took effect the first person to be arrested for DUI was brought before the judge and found guilty. He was sentenced to a prison term. Who was he? The same legislator who sponsored the bill! Jesus said, “For the way you judge, you will be judged, and by your standard of measure it shall be measured to you.”
Today we will look at the standards of measure in which the Pharisees judged the adulterous woman. Leading up to this, Jesus has been teaching that He was sent from God, to do the Father’s Will. His integrity was challenged, wanting to know how He could have such a deep theological understanding without having been taught. He had been accused of being demon possessed. Others, though, had a life changing experience where they perceived what He was saying, what He was doing, and they pondered on whether He truly was the Christ, the Messiah. His passion challenged the very fiber of Jewish custom, tradition, and at times their law. The Pharisees and other religious leaders would try to have Jesus arrested for His teaching and preaching. They intentionally created a division among the people, and they tried to find a way to discredit and ultimately cause Jesus to say something they could call blasphemy. The Pharisees find someone who has been caught in a sin, one we would even today view as a major sin, and ask Jesus what HE would do with her, hoping He would say something that could be used against Him.
Jesus Teaches Again
Jesus Teaches Again
1 but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
2 Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them.
After Jesus has taught in the temple, all the people went home, but Jesus chooses to retreat to the Mount of Olives. This seemed to be a place he frequented for time alone with the Father.
39 And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him.
For someone who was constantly being bombarded with accusations, lies, and turbulence how is it that Jesus could remain quiet and focused? Could it be that He constantly sought the Lord? Not only did He seek the Lord, He got ALONE with God! He went to His favorite place, alone with God and His disciples, a place where He could get face-to face with the Father, and He found strength and encouragement!
Jesus faced the next morning calm, cool, and collected because He had been alone in the presence of the Father.
I think this is a wonderful picture of what we, as Christians have to do today also. Often we allow ourselves to get so caught up in the “things” that are going on that we get overwhelmed and we want to run around like our feet are on fire. Instead, shouldn’t we be following the example of Jesus by getting alone in a place where we can get face to face with the Father and be renewed, strengthened, and receive the encouragement we need to face the next day?
Why did He need encouragement? Because the religious leaders opposed Him but the people kept coming to Him, and He kept teaching them. It wasn’t the ministry that burdened Him as much as it was the people complicating the ministry! His very mission in life was that of worshipping God and teaching and ministering to people. By this He demonstrated how all men should walk through life: worshipping God, teaching and ministering to people.
We have to also recognize we live in a lost world, the same as in the days of Jesus. There is no less need to teach and minister to people, but to do that well we have to also get alone and seek counsel from the Lord.
Guilty!
Guilty!
3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst
4 they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery.
5 Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?”
6 This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.
Interestingly, adultery is defined by Jewish law as a sexual act between a married woman and a man not her husband. Now, notice the definition closely. But there was an issue with what they were doing. Again, according Jewish law there had to be more than one witness to bring charges against someone. So, it makes me wonder who saw the act, and why a second witness was not present.
15 “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.
I have often wondered, why adultery? Why did they bring this case before Jesus? Wasn’t there other things that were going on that He could have been tested with? But I think part of this was due to the nature of punishment Levitical law brought upon adulterers.
10 “If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.
Even in Deuteronomy we see the same sentence emphasized.
22 “If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman. So you shall purge the evil from Israel.
They were calling out a sin that they considered to be one of the most serious, and prohibited in the 10 Commandments to Jesus, putting here in the middle of the crown and in front of Jesus. They even put out the question to Jesus in a way that makes one think they are looking for an honest answer.
“Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?”
I know in my mind what I would have said… the scripture says BOTH shall surely be put to death, but they ONLY brought the woman. Where’s the man, is he not just as guilty?
Why was this brought in front of a crowd? Why could it not have been dealt with in private since it was so private in nature? Where were the witnesses? The religious men would not have been seen in a place where this sin was taking place, so where were those who were accusing her?
Where was HE? As the law states, they BOTH had to be present as they both were to be put to death.
The Pharisees and scribes were breaking laws, just as the adulteress woman did, so why were they not concerned with their own sins? You see, it is very easy for us to justify our own sin, hide our own sin, even try to nullify our own sin while wanting to call out and look for some punishment when someone else sins, or at least does something we don’t agree with and think it “should” be a sin.
The religionists saw a chance to test Jesus, so they took the woman before Him, hoping to discredit Him.
If Jesus said she wasn’t guilty, He would be breaking Jewish law and could have been seen as being too lenient on sin. If Jesus said she was guilty and should be put to death, then he could have been viewed as breaking Roman law which said adultery was not a sin that was punishable by death. He could have also been seen or accused as having no mercy, compassion, or forgiveness. The religious leaders had put Jesus in a no-win situation and used it in a way to discredit Him and bring charges against Him.
There was a lot wrong with this scene. The religious leaders and the crowd had a sinful spirit. They lacked forgiveness, they didn’t show compassion, they were condemning and lacked sympathy, they were seeking punishment and not restoration.
Jesus Passes Judgment
Jesus Passes Judgment
7 And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”
8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground.
9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.
They continued to ask. To me, this means Jesus ignored them for a little while. Maybe He was hoping they would see the gravity of their own sin, maybe He was waiting for them to repent, maybe He was giving a dramatic pause for an effect...
PAUSE ...
Regardless of the reason, Jesus calls out the religious as sinners. Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her. He proved this point; all mankind are sinful and guilty of serious sin. It didn’t mean she was not guilty of her sin. It didn’t mean that they were not legally justified in seeking the death penalty. What it did mean was that every person standing there knew they were just as guilty of sinning as she was. Just in a different form. No man is without sin.
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
When they recognized just how sinful they truly were, they all started to leave. One...by...one. I know we all wonder what Jesus wrote on the ground. The older ones left first. Was this because they had more wisdom and understood what Jesus was trying to say? Was it because they had more sin and felt the conviction a little more personally? Could it be they realized they had just been put into a no-win situation? Whatever the reason, they all left and now Jesus was alone with the woman.
The only truly righteous judge amongst them all had not withheld the sentence. He told them they could stone her. But the only truly righteous judge also passed sentence on the religious leaders. Casting stones is not based on how much Scripture a person knows, nor on how great a person’s calling and gifts are, nor on the position a person has. It is based upon moral goodness and perfection, and no man has achieved that.
You see, Jesus looked past the sin to see the needs of the sinner, while the Pharisees focused on the sinner and wouldn’t look past her sin.
Jesus Forgives
Jesus Forgives
10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”
As the only truly righteous judge, Jesus not only has the right to condemn, but He can also forgive. The picture of this woman standing before Jesus is a picture of each and every one of us. As we stand before Jesus alone, lost in our sin, having been prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced for execution. There are no accusers, we are guilty. We have no excuse, we are guilty. We have no plea, we are guilty. The only righteous and perfect One stands before us,and no longer condemns us but instead offers us a second chance.
Closing
Closing
1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
Jesus, while He could have given the punishment chose to forgive. “Neither do I condemn you”. But notice closely, there is a command that is given also. “Go, and sin no more”. While we are all guilty of sin, Jesus calls us to stop sinning, showing us why repentance is essential for forgiveness. You see, we can’t ask for forgiveness, and keep on living our sinful lifestyle. Now, this doesn’t mean we will never sin again, but it means we should not desire to sin or stay in a state of sinfulness.
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.
But my question to you today is simple. Who are you most like? The religious leaders who were quick to condemn even while living in their own sins, or like the adulterous woman, standing before Jesus a sinner, condemned, unclean. Today, he says to us the same as He said to her. Believe in me, repent of your sins, and sin no more.
Have you ever done that? Have you ever asked Jesus to forgive you of your sins, believed on Him as your Savior, and repent of our sins, seeking Him daily? If not, today you can do just that.
