Welcome to Day 2150 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom

The Gospel of John – 18 – Letters in the Sand – Daily Wisdom

The Gospel of John – Part 3 Authentication of the Word – Letters in the Sand

Today we continue our series, the Good News according to John the Apostle. Last we saw that the religious leaders in Jerusalem had enough of Jesus, and as He is teaching in the temple, we saw Jesus in the Lion’s Den. Today, our scripture is John 8:1-11. John 8 contains one of the most recognizable stories in the Bible: the woman who was caught in adultery and brought before Jesus. It is a powerful story. You will resonate with this story if you have ever felt condemned, ashamed, or exposed as a failure. However, we must address several other things before looking at the account. First, most newer Bibles have a note before the text: The most ancient Greek manuscripts do not include John 7:53-8:11. This troubles many people. Some feel these versions are trying to edit the Bible or engage in what we call today “revisionist history.” However, that is not what is happening at all. These scholars are not guilty of not respecting the Word of God. This note is there because they absolutely respect the Bible as the Word of God! As archaeology continues to unearth more and more copies of the Bible, some of those copies are earlier manuscripts (or copies) than previously existed. Generally speaking, the older the manuscript, the closer it is to the original that God Himself inspired. In this case, the oldest manuscripts are missing this account, indicating the story was added later. However, other early manuscripts do have the story in John. Therefore, the note on the text warns us: Be careful about holding this text above other texts because it may be a later addition. These verses are equal to the rest of the gospel account. We know it was an early account, which seems consistent with the character we see of Jesus throughout the rest of the Bible (and John’s gospel). So it is consistent with the rest of the scripture. And we do not have any reason to discount the story other than that it is not in the earliest manuscripts. So, though it is important to be cautious, we can approach this story as genuine history, not a later fabrication. Then they all went home, but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. At dawn, he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now, what do you say?” They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time,/ the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” There are some questions we have about the details of this story. In Deuteronomy 22:22, we read, “If a man is discovered committing adultery, both he and the woman must die. In this way, you will purge Israel of such evil.” One expert in Jewish legal procedures states, “The actual physical movements of the couple must have been capable of no other explanation, and the witnesses must have seen exactly the same acts at exactly the same time, in the presence of each other, so that their depositions would be identical in every respect.” This raises three questions. First, where was the man who was involved in this adulterous relationship? Scripture is clear…BOTH parties were to be killed. If only one party were brought before the court, it would be the man who might take advantage of a woman and force her into a relationship she did not desire. So something is “fishy” here. Second, how is it that these people were caught? If they were in a room, the witnesses would have had to be looking in the window…at the same time! This leads us to believe the whole thing was a setup. Perhaps the woman was an unknowing pawn who was seduced. The man may have been part of the plot to get Jesus trapped. If that is the case, the people behind the plot are actually worse than the woman accused of adultery! In our permissive age, one might think the punishment here was excessively harsh. However, God established these penalties because marriage was meant to be the home’s foundation of our society. Therefore, God takes marital faithfulness seriously. Third, what did Jesus write in the dirt? There are as many opinions on this as there are people. We could speculate what he wrote, but it is only a guess, so it wastes time. It appears Jesus does use this to buy time and allow His words to sink in. Let’s look at what happened and draw some principles I hope will help us.

1. Check Yourself Before Condemning Others

These religious leaders believed they had Jesus in a no-win situation. If Jesus said, “Let her go!” He would be castigated as one who did not believe in the Law of Moses. On the other hand, if he sided with her execution, he would undermine His reputation as the Savior for the broken and hurting. This would alienate Him from the very people who were drawn to Him. It might also put him in the sights of the Roman government, who alone had the right to execute him. As on so many other occasions, we see the wisdom of Jesus superior to the schemes of men. Jesus wrote in the dirt as if He was ignoring them entirely. But, because they kept pushing, he responded, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” The principle is simple: we need to examine our own lives before condemning the sin of others. Jesus said this very thing in Matthew 7:2-5. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First, get rid of the log in your own eye; then, you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. Some have taken these words of Jesus to mean we should never say any behavior is wrong. But that is not what Jesus was saying. The Bible clearly shows that the Lord wants us to be holy rather than compromise with evil. He is clear in calling some behaviors “sin.” So, Jesus is not condemning judgments, (He commands them just a few verses later in Matthew 7.) He is condemning hypocrisy. These accused men condemned this woman while plotting against Jesus and possibly even entrapping the woman to do so. They were using the Word of God to destroy people (even willing for this woman to be killed) to pursue their agenda. It is, sadly, a common problem. We can beat people up with righteous indignation while neglecting our sins. As believers, we must not call what God calls evil, good. However, we should be eager to point people to the transforming grace of God. We do that by extending kindness and personal care, even when we may have to oppose their behavior. Unfortunately, this is where the church has gotten a bad reputation with the non-Christian world. They have watched as Christians have condemned various actions and behaviors (which God condemns) with a hatred that makes us seem mean and uncaring and more like bullies than ambassadors of Christ trying to love and win those who are lost. If you ask a non-Christian friend to describe a “typical Christian,” They may describe one who stands in judgment over them, or people who are stern and sour. God does not call us to be the policemen of the world. He calls us to be ambassadors of grace. It is the Holy Spirit’s job to convict people of their sins. It is our job to show people a better way. It is interesting that after the challenge of Jesus, the older people slip away first. Perhaps it was that they realized Jesus had defeated them. To throw the first stone would be to make a claim of sinlessness they would not dare to make. It would be an act of blasphemy. The older men knew there was no sense in looking for a loophole. They conceded defeat. The younger people quickly followed.

1. Understand that Jesus Forgives You and Others

Harboring sin is like having a chain around your neck and shoulders, shackled by that chain. After the mob dissipated, Jesus was with the disciples (we assume) and this woman. Surely, she was embarrassed and ashamed. Jesus asked if anyone was left to condemn her, and she replied there was no one. Then He said something amazing, “Then neither do I condemn you.” He extended grace and forgiveness to this broken woman who perhaps was headed down a very destructive path. I suspect His words and the look of kindness and compassion in His eyes changed her life forever. The God who wrote the law she broke had every reason to condemn this woman as a sinner. The Holy One was well within His rights and authority to send her to Hell. But He did not. Instead, He gave her a new start. Forgiveness is powerful. It is like someone taking their foot off your neck (allowing you to breathe again) and then wrapping their arms around you as a friend. It is like the cancer Doctor coming into your room to tell you, “We got it all.” It is like being on death row and suddenly being completely pardoned. Romans 8:1-2 says, “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.” Ponder those incredible words: “No condemnation.” Nothing! The worst of our sins is pardoned because of Christ. The woman standing before Jesus had her life altered by these few words. She was facing death by stoning, and now she was going home forgiven. The shackles of guilt had been taken off. She had a fresh start. Here’s the hard part: we are told to forgive as He has forgiven us. Forgiveness is letting go of the hurt. It is determined that the offense committed will no longer be a barrier in our relationship. It is not “letting someone get away with what they did,” it is putting the hurt into God’s hands to address it appropriately. When we forgive, we stop using past failures as a club to beat up someone whenever there is a conflict. It is not so much that we forget what happened…we choose not to remember! Instead, we choose to turn it over to Him. It is no longer an issue between us and another. Forgiveness is one of the costliest gifts we can give to another. Yet, it is a life-changing act of love. Jesus forgave this woman and asks us to forgive each other. We never show more faith than when we dare to entrust our hurts to the Lord/ and replace our anger and hurt with grace. We are given the privilege to pass on the grace we have received. It is our chance to demonstrate that we trust Him…even with our hurts.

1. Jesus Called Her and Called You to a New Life

Jesus told this woman, “Go now and leave your life of sin.” These words are important! Jesus does not deny the woman’s sin. He did not say it did not matter or was not important. It is sin, and sin destroys our lives. We need to see the destructive power of sin before appreciating the gift of grace and forgiveness. Jesus freed this woman from her condemnation and encouraged her to head in a new direction. He faced the sin, rather than trying to redefine it like so often happens today. Calling sin virtue is like painting the walls of a prison. It doesn’t change the fact that you are still in prison. In the Romans 8 passage, Paul says we are freed from the power of sin that leads to death. The goal of God’s forgiveness is not for us to be able to sin without feeling bad; it is so we can pursue holiness and godliness. We are freed so we can move in a new direction…the direction we should have been going, to begin with. God wipes our slate clean so that we can travel in a different direction. He died for our sins to break the power of sin over us! /The person who rejoices at forgiveness and then continues to willfully sin again and again should question whether they have really understood and received the gospel. The person who goes back to beating themselves up with their failures does not understand the real gift that our Lord has given. There is now no condemnation! Jesus opened a door to this woman to a new life. I want to believe she embraced the opportunity she had been given. The real takeaway of this message is the realization that we are this woman! Her story is our story. We deserve condemnation. We have often ignored His commands and disregarded His character. Our hearts have become hard, and our minds dull. When we take an objective look at our lives, it should stagger us at ease we justify our sins. Yet, we have an uncanny ability to keep telling ourselves that our bad, destructive, and hurtful choices are “not that bad,” or “everyone else is doing it.” For most of us, we are haunted by past mistakes and failures. We carry scars that make us hesitant in our lives. Some have self-esteem issues and feel the world looks at them and talks about them. Some stay away from the church and any hope of having a relationship with Christ because they believe they are “too far gone” to experience salvation. The truth is, such people are closer to forgiveness and new life than those who condemned this woman and wanted to condemn Christ. They were religious and thereby believed they “deserved” eternal life. They saw the sin in others but could not see it in themselves. You have met the first qualification if you recognize your need for forgiveness. If you regret and mourn your sin, you fulfill the second requirement: repentance. Next, you must see that while others point their boney fingers at you with anger and condemnation, Jesus holds His arms open. He does not say your sin doesn’t matter. Of course, it does! Sin destroys people and keeps them from a genuine relationship with God. But, if you run to His open arms, He will tell you what He said to this woman: “Then neither do I condemn you.” He has paid the price so you can be forgiven and free from the enslaving power of sin and have the opportunity to live a new life; to walk with Him; to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God, and to know you have a place in Heaven reserved for you. We must believe His voice more than we do the voices of the crowd /and even the voices in our head or our disappointment and Satan’s accusations. Hear and embrace the voice of the One who reigns supreme and loves us more than we can comprehend. Listen carefully as He says, “We are set free!” We are no longer defined by our failures but by his mercy and grace. I am sure many need to hear this and long to hear it, but it seems too good to be true. This is what grace looks like! I hope this message is also for us when tempted to be the person pointing the boney finger, the one quick to condemn. Remember the words of Jesus: “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Remember His words in Matthew 7:2, “The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged.” We have a choice: we can be agents of condemnation/ or agents of grace. We can beat others up or pick them up off the ground. We can adopt a posture of superiority or proceed as one who has received undeserved mercy. We can be like the teachers of the law or pass on the grace that has been extended to us. Forgiveness is not easy. But it is EASIER when we remember the magnitude of the grace WE have received. When we are willing to forgive another, we show that we appreciate the grace He has given to us. You can dismiss this story because it is not found in some of the earliest manuscripts. But you cannot dismiss the message because it is repeated in God’s Word. This is not just a story about a woman caught in sin. It is OUR story. It is a picture of God’s amazing grace that sets us free from condemnation /and frees us to extend that grace even to those who have hurt us. Next, we will return to the temple where Jesus continues to teach and discover “Reasons for Rejection.” Please read John 8:12-59 in preparation. Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and, most importantly, your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal. As we take this trek together, let us always:

1. Live Abundantly (Fully)
2. Love Unconditionally
3. Listen Intentionally
4. Learn Continuously
5. Lend to others Generously
6. Lead with Integrity
7. Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

I am Guthrie Chamberlain reminding you to Keep Moving Forward, Enjoy Your Journey, and Create a Great Day Everyday! See you next time for more wisdom from God’s Word!