John 7:53-8:11 - What a Savior!

Pray

Father, thank you for the opportunity to hear from you, to learn from you in your Word.

I pray that you would speak through me, that you would convict and encourage our hearts to be more like your Son.

Because, Father, I confess that I am unable to even change my own heart, I need you… we all need you.

I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Intro

We’re continuing our series through the gospel of John, and today we have a bit of a break in the flow of the narrative.

We’re going to be looking at one of the most controversial passages of Scripture today, John 7:53-8:11.

It’s not controversial because of what it says or how it’s interpreted.

It’s controversial because of whether it belongs here in the gospel of John or not.

Your Bible probably has a bracket around this section or something setting it apart from the rest of the text.

And it probably has a note that mentions something about this passage not being in some manuscripts.

I’m not going to get into all the details of the evidence for and against this passage being included in John’s gospel.

If you want that information you can ask me after the service.

But regardless of all the evidence and all the arguments…

It’s not up to us to determine what belongs in the Bible and what doesn’t.

We simply recognize what God has breathed out through the physical writing of men.

2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”

And we can recognize that he has, without a doubt, written this passage in his Word whether it was originally supposed to be in this place or somewhere else.

I personally think that this passage might fit better somewhere else because it breaks up the flow of John’s narrative.

But we are going to look at it now because this is where it is in your Bible.

Please, do not let this cast doubt on the accuracy of your Bible.

You can trust your Bible.

The events we are going to be looking at today really happened.

And God wants to change you into the likeness of his Son as we behold him in this passage…

As we see what a perfect savior we have in Jesus.

So, as we look at John 7:53-8:11 in detail, I’m going to show you Jesus…

What a savior we have in Jesus in his humility, wisdom, and compassion..

Jesus pronounces no condemnation because of who he is and what he has done.

Every one of us has felt the shame and condemnation of our sin in varying degrees.

Some of you may even be feeling that right now.

But our humble, wise, and compassionate Savior, Jesus Christ has pronounced no condemnation for those who have placed their faith in him.

Let’s read our passage, John 7:53-8:11, and then look at what a savior we have in Jesus.

John 7:53–8:6 ESV

They went each to his own house, but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, “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?” 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.

John 8:7–11 ESV

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.” And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. 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. Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”

So, the first way that we see Jesus as our perfect savior is as…

Our Humble Savior (7:53-8:2)

Jesus shows his humility in his humble way of life.

In 7:53 we read that each person went to his own house, but then in 8:1 it says that Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

Regardless of whether this takes place after the Feast of Booths or after some other incident in Jerusalem…

Jesus spent the night under the stars because he had nowhere else to spend the night.

This may have been a conscious choice to camp out on the Mount of Olives or not.

But the point I want us to see is that Jesus was not pompous, arrogant, prideful, or aloof.

He was down-to-earth, approachable, and identifiable with those he was ministering to.

If you ever find yourself homeless, guess what… Jesus was homeless for a time as well.

In Matthew 8:20 and the parallel passage in Luke 9:58 Jesus explained to a man who said that he would follow him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

If Jesus is your savior, then this earth is not your home.

You may have a roof over your head while you are here, but just like Jesus, this is not your home.

Heaven, in God’s very presence for eternity…

That is your home.

Well, Jesus also shows his humility in his humble way with people.

In verse 2 we read that the next morning he went back to the temple, and all the people at the temple came to him and he started teaching them.

Notice that he didn’t gather the people, they came to him.

There were many times that Jesus called out a proclamation of the gospel.

We saw that in the previous chapter, and we are going to see it again in the passage for next Sunday.

But here, Jesus’ humility is on display as he goes to the temple and the people draw near to him without being corralled or called to listen.

Jesus didn’t have a clever marketing strategy.

His only strategy was humbly going where people needed him.

And the people came to him because they needed to hear him teach.

Now, there were probably a mixture of believers and skeptics among the people coming to Jesus here.

So, it also shows his humble way with people that he taught them all without distinguishing between those who believed and those who didn’t.

He took the opportunity to teach regardless of who he was teaching.

Why does Jesus’ humility matter?

How does Jesus’ humility make him our perfect savior?

Would you rather have a savior who is aloof, unapproachable, and distant because he’s Almighty God, because he’s infinite but we are finite, because he is as different from us as creator and creation?

Or would you rather have a savior who is meek, approachable, and real because he’s human?

Jesus is both God and human, but the humbleness of his humanity is what makes him accessible to us.

Hebrews 4:15 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.”

Jesus knows what you are going through.

And some of us are going through quite a lot!

Jesus knows, but not in some distant analytical way, but in a very real way because he has experienced just as much temptation, sorrow, and pain, if not more.

He also knows the joys of life that make you smile and laugh.

Also, because he’s experienced those same joys in life.

Jesus knows what you are going through, and he is humble enough that you can run to him, and cry on his shoulder or laugh and rejoice with him.

Jesus’ humility means that he knows you, and you can know him.

So, we saw how Jesus’ humility is part of what makes him our perfect savior, now let’s see how Jesus is…

Our Wise Savior (8:3-9)

The Scribes and Pharisees try to trap Jesus, but it doesn’t work as Jesus shows his wisdom in the law and his wisdom in addressing people perfectly according to their needs.

Jesus first shows his wisdom as he gives the Scribes and Pharisees a chance to abandon their plan to trap him.

In verses 3-5 these Scribes and Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery before Jesus and the crowd he was teaching and they asked him to make a judgment about whether or not to kill her for her sin.

Then in verse 6 the author tells us that this was a plan to try and trap Jesus to bring a charge to arrest him.

You see, the Law stated in Leviticus 20:10 and Deuteronomy 22:22 that adultery was a sin punishable by death.

But there’s a problem with their charge against this woman.

The religious leaders only brought the woman to be judged by Jesus, and they said that Moses commanded such women to be stoned.

But Moses really commanded both the man and woman involved in the adultery to be killed.

At best, this shows an ignorance of the Law on the part of the Scribes who were supposed to be experts in the Law.

At worst it shows a willful misinterpretation of the Law to suit their own ends.

Well, their question was intended to put Jesus in a pickle, forcing him to choose between two options, both of which would be grounds to arrest him.

They wanted to trap Jesus in either going against Roman law or going against the Law of Moses.

The Law of Moses said that this woman should be killed for her adultery.

But the law of Rome said that capital punishment could only be dealt out by Roman officials.

So, if Jesus agreed with the Law of Moses he would be guilty of going against Roman law…

And if Jesus kept to the Roman law, then he would be guilty of going against the Law of Moses.

Either way Jesus would be guilty, and they would have a charge against him to arrest him.

But Jesus initially refuses to acknowledge their question.

He did NOT rudely ignore them, but he DID wisely give them the opportunity to retreat before he answered.

He bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.

We don’t get to know exactly why he was writing or what he wrote in the dirt.

That’s not important to the story.

What IS important is that, in Jesus’ wisdom, he knew that this trap was foolish, and he gave them an opportunity to avoid this foolishness from the start.

Then Jesus shows his wisdom as he answers by turning their trap on them.

The Scribes and Pharisees persist, so Jesus answers them by citing a different, but related portion of the Law.

He famously answers, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Jesus’ famous response came from Deuteronomy 17:7 that the witnesses to these sins were to be the executioners.

But the specific context of Deuteronomy 17 is idolatry.

And often in Scripture God likens Israel’s idolatry to committing adultery against him, religious adultery.

And Jesus ties these two sins together in his statement.

He knows that these religious leaders are really idolaters, idolizing their position of prominence, not willing to risk losing it by going against Roman law.

But Jesus describes the witnesses here as those who are without sin.

We read in Romans 3:23, “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”

But Paul got that idea from a whole list of Scripture references in Romans 3:10-18, citing the Psalms, Proverbs, and Isaiah to prove his point that every person on earth, whether Jew or Gentile, is sinful and in need of justification before God.

Romans 3:10–18 “as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.” “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.” “The venom of asps is under their lips.” “Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” “Their feet are swift to shed blood; in their paths are ruin and misery, and the way of peace they have not known.” “There is no fear of God before their eyes.””

Surely Jesus and these religious leaders knew these Scriptures like Paul did.

So, who could be worthy to condemn this woman?

If all have sinned, then no one could condemn her… except Jesus the Christ, the sinless Son of God.

And as we’re going to see later, not even he condemns her here.

But the amazing thing about his response is that it effectively put the Scribes and Pharisees in the same position they tried to put Jesus in.

He put them in the same pickle they tried to put him in.

Now THEY had to choose whether to uphold the Law of Moses and stone this woman or ignore the Law and let her go without punishment.

Jesus UNO Reversed them!

They said, “Jesus, you’ve got to choose between Moses and Rome.”

And he said, “No U!”

Jesus, again, shows his wisdom as he gives the Scribes and Pharisees a second chance to abandon their plan to trap him.

One by one the accusers leave starting with the older ones after Jesus bends down to write in the dirt again.

Now, it’s commonly assumed that the reason these religious leaders left was that they knew they were sinners, especially the older ones who had more time to accumulate sin in their lives.

But that misses the point.

Jesus had successfully evaded their trap by turning it on them; their plan backfired.

This was a tactical retreat, not an act of conviction.

A tactical retreat initiated by the religious leaders of higher rank, the elders.

Think about it…

Paul was a Pharisee before his conversion, and he thought of himself as blameless according to the Law.

Philippians 3:6 “as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.”

He didn’t even feel convicted about imprisoning and killing followers of Jesus before his conversion.

He thought he was doing God’s work by cleansing the evil from among them.

It’s more probable that these religious leaders actually thought of themselves like Paul did, as blameless under the Law, as without sin.

So, when Jesus says, “Let him who is without sin,” it’s like he’s calling them out for their self-righteousness.

He knows they think of themselves as sinless, but he also knows the sin that’s in their hearts.

That’s why Jesus called them out for their hypocrisy so much.

He said in Matthew 23:27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness.”

They act like they are sinless, and they are self-deceived into believing that lie, but they are just as sinful as the rest of humanity.

Jesus is speaking tongue-in-cheek when he says, “him who is without sin,” and I think the Scribes and Pharisees knew that’s how he was speaking.

And it unnerved them as Jesus turned their trap back on them.

The only reason they brought this woman to Jesus was to trap him.

They didn’t care about her or her sin.

They didn’t even consider their own sin.

And they certainly didn’t care about upholding the Law.

All they cared about was trapping Jesus.

And once he evaded their trap and turned it on them, it was time to retreat.

And Jesus, in his wisdom, gave them that opportunity like he had done previously, and this time they took it.

But why does Jesus’ wisdom matter?

How does Jesus’ wisdom make him our perfect savior?

Well, in his wisdom, Jesus knows exactly what the Law requires, and he knows exactly how to give us what we need to avoid and repent of our foolishness and sin.

The Law requires death for all who break it.

And as we read in Romans 3, all of us have broken God’s Law.

All of us deserve death like this woman who was caught in adultery, and like the Scribes and Pharisees, though they denied it.

But in all of his wisdom, God, through Jesus Christ, has given us a way to avoid that death penalty.

Jesus, God’s Son, took our punishment on himself when he went to the cross.

But we still sin…

Even though we no longer have to bear the penalty of sin, we still have to deal with its presence in our lives.

And in his wisdom, Jesus knows how you are tempted to sin, and he gives you exactly what you need to avoid falling to that temptation.

1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

Jesus, our wise savior, is our perfect savior because in his wisdom he paid the price to free you from the power of sin, and he has given you all that you need to escape your temptations to foolishness and sin.

So, we saw how Jesus’ humility and his wisdom are both part of what makes him our perfect savior, now let’s see how Jesus is…

Our Compassionate Savior (8:10-11)

Jesus shows his compassion by addressing the woman after her sin has been exposed.

The Scribes and Pharisees dragged this woman before Jesus and the crowd he was teaching, exposing her sin to the public, increasing her shame exponentially, and when their plan failed… they just left her there.

But in the face of their cruelty, Jesus shows his compassion to this woman.

Her sin has defiled her, and in that society, she would have been shunned and ignored… like the homeless guy with a cardboard sign at the intersection…

Even after her accusers have left, society would still ostracize her because of the shame of her sin now made public.

She was defiled by her adultery.

But Jesus had such compassion for her that he goes to her and addresses her when no body else would.

He sees her, and he loves her so much that he talks to her when anyone else would ignore her.

And the way he talks to her is so compassionate.

He asks her a question.

He doesn’t recite the ways she’s broken the Law.

He doesn’t tell her how she ought to have known better.

He doesn’t dwell on her sin at all.

He simply asks her where her accusers are.

His question causes her to look up and see that her accusers are gone, that no one is condemning her anymore.

Imagine the relief in her heart as she realizes that her worst nightmare has dissipated like a bad dream.

She truly believed that her life was over.

If she was not condemned to be stoned right then and there, then she would be an outcast of society for the rest of her life.

But her accusers are gone, she is not going to die for her sin.

And the man who saved her life is talking to her, she’s not being treated as an outcast.

She’s not only been given salvation from the penalty of the Law, but she’s also been given hope.

And then Jesus shows his compassion again by not condemning the woman for her sin.

He says “Neither do I condemn you!”

Now, when Jesus says this he does not mean that her sin is without consequence.

He also does not mean that her sin is without ultimate condemnation before the judgment seat of God.

What he means is that he would not condemn her for her sin because that is not why he came.

He told Nicodemus back in John 3:17 that the Father did not send him to condemn the world, but to save the world.

The Law provides all the condemnation because we have all broken it.

Jesus came to bring salvation from sin and death by taking the penalty for breaking the Law on himself.

But when Jesus returns again, he will come as a righteous judge and conquering king.

Finally, Jesus shows his compassion by encouraging the woman toward righteousness.

The reality of Jesus’ second coming to judge and rule is why he says to her, “go, and sin no more.”

This is the same thing that he said to the invalid after healing him on the Sabbath in John 5, “sin no more.”

Jesus knows the weight of sin better than anyone.

He’s God, the one being sinned against, but he also took the full weight of that sin on the cross.

So, when Jesus pronounced no condemnation to this woman, it was not downplaying of the weight of her sin.

It was either a transfer of that infinite weight from her to himself…

Or it was postponing her condemnation to the final judgment.

All sin is judged and condemned either at the cross or at the final judgment.

If the woman obeys Jesus, believing in him as the Christ, submitting to him as Lord, and repenting of her sin, then she will not be condemned because Jesus will take that condemnation for her on the cross.

But if the woman does not obey, refuses to believe in Jesus, keeps living for herself, and keeps on sinning willfully, then she will take her own condemnation as Jesus judges her righteously when he comes back.

Under the old covenant, everything looked forward to the coming Christ.

Even the Law that commanded capital punishment for things like idolatry and adultery.

Every time God commanded capital punishment it was to purge the evil from their midst.

The purpose was the cleansing and sanctification of God’s people as a nation set apart from the other nations.

And that looked forward to the cleansing and sanctification offered in Christ.

Here, Jesus gives a glimpse of what it’s like in the new covenant.

The cleansing and sanctification of God’s people is found in Jesus Christ because of what he did on the cross.

Although the woman had sinned, if she repented believing in Jesus as the Christ, then she would not suffer condemnation for her sin, she would be cleansed and sanctified.

But why does Jesus’ compassion matter?

How does Jesus’ compassion make him our perfect savior?

Well, without compassion, our salvation would be the cold outworking of God’s sovereignty.

But that’s not how God works… that’s not how his sovereignty in salvation works.

In Deuteronomy 7:7, God explained his sovereign choice to save Israel and make them his people.

He says through Moses, “It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the Lord set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples.”

God “set his love” on them just like he sets his love on all he chooses to save.

It’s not a cold outworking of his sovereignty.

It’s a white-hot love and compassion that drove him to give his own Son to pay your penalty and save you from sin and death.

Jesus has compassion to meet you where you are in your sin.

Jesus has compassion to pronounce no condemnation on your sins because he took that condemnation for you on the cross.

And Jesus has compassion to encourage you to fight against sin.

Conclusion

Jesus is your perfect savior.

He’s humble, approachable, accessible, he knows you and you can know him.

So, you can bring your sin and pain or even your joy to him knowing that he understands what you are going through.

He’s wise to know exactly what’s required as the penalty for your sin and how to save you from it.

And he’s wise to know exactly how to give you the way to escape your temptations to sin and foolishness.

And Jesus is compassionate to meet you in your sin, to pronounce no condemnation because he loved you enough to take your condemnation on himself at the cross, and to encourage you to fight against sin moving forward.

That’s the kind of Savior we have in Jesus.

When you sin… remember who your perfect savior is.

Yes, sin is terrible, but Jesus is humble, wise, and compassionate.

He’s interceding on your behalf before the Father right now!

He sees your sin, he knows your sin, but he turns to the Father and says, “I already paid for that.”

You’re not condemned!

As the song, “And Can It Be” says,

“No condemnation now I dread

Jesus and all in him is mine”

So, when you sin remember who your perfect savior is and what he did for you on the cross, but also remember to be encouraged and empowered to go and sin no more.

Jesus has given you the Holy Spirit.

He’s given you the ability to fight against sin… a way to escape your temptation to sin.

So, fight it in his power, not on your own.

Now, if you’ve not yet put your faith in Jesus, then now is the perfect time to do so.

All throughout the gospel of John, Jesus is proven over and over to be the Son of God who came and lived a perfect life, and then he died for the sins of the world and rose again on the third day.

If you will believe in him, repent of your sin, and submit to him as Lord, then your sins are paid for by Jesus on the cross.

That’s why we who believe are not condemned for our sin anymore.

Not because of our own righteousness, but because Jesus took our condemnation for us.

I beg you to believe in him so that you will not be condemned either.

We have a perfect savior, Jesus Christ.

And what a savior he is!

Pray

Father, thank you for giving us such a perfect savior.

Thank you that he knows us, and we can know him, and we can know you through him.

Thank you for being so wise to know exactly what we need to be saved from sin and death.

And thank you for loving us so much that you would give your Son to reconcile us back to you.

We have such a wonderful Savior… thank you for showing us how wonderful he is in your Word.

I pray that you would bring these truths to our minds when we find ourselves tempted to sin or even after falling to temptation.

And I pray that you would help us to live more like Jesus in humility, wisdom, and compassion for each other.

When others sin against us, I pray that we would forgive like Jesus rather than condemn.

I pray that we would humbly remember our own forgiveness, that we would wisely remember your commands to forgive, and that we would compassionately offer that forgiveness from our heart.

Father, we thank you, and we ask all these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.