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Youth to lead services - John 7:53-8:11
What was Jesus writing?
John 7:53-8:11
The gospels record a single occurrence of Jesus writing, and even that is missing from the earliest manuscripts. The religious authorities had caught a woman in the act of adultery and dragged her before Jesus to lay a trap.
Having broken one of the Ten Commandments, this woman deserved a death sentence according to the Law of Moses. She was to be stoned. On the other hand, the Romans forbid Jews to exercise capital punishment. What would Jesus say? As it looked, Jesus would either need to break the Law of Moses by letting the woman go free or condemn the women to death and in the process lose credibility for being inconsistent in his teaching about love and forgiveness. Either way that he answered the Pharisees they had him caught.
With impure motives these men had unearthed the problem of all problems in respect to ones relationship with God. How can God show love to sinful people without being unjust? Or as Paul states the problem: How can God be both just and the justifier of the ungodly (Rom. 3:26)? From the human point of view this was unsolvable.
Jesus said nothing, but instead bent down and wrote on the ground. It is interesting that the only time we see Jesus writing he is using the medium of sand so that the words would soon be blown away by wind or washed away by rain. Frustratingly, John does not bother to tell us what Jesus wrote. There have been numerous books and commentaries written on these verses trying to determine what Jesus said. All of them are speculation. The reality is we do not know what Jesus wrote. We do know that Jesus had a purpose for everything he did – even writing in the sand.
When Jesus finally spoke he said, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” The trap sprang back on the accusers. And the one person who was without sin, who clearly had the right to exercise judgment, declined. The reign of grace was underway. At the heart of this passage is a story of forgiveness. Jesus often taught on the subject but now he provided an object lesson for the crowd to experience first hand what God’s forgiveness meant. It meant four things:
1. Forgiveness of sin is not based on innocence.
Whenever we are caught in the act, there is no point arguing. The evidence is there. The witnesses can testify to the fact of our guilt. There is no use trying to blame someone else. The guilt is ours, and we must deal with the consequences. This woman was caught in the act. She was guilty of the crime. Her accusers were right. She didn’t put up any defense. The only thing still to be decided was her penalty. What would it be?
Do you remember your first big mistake? I apologize because you may have tried to repress this memory. I can remember mine. I was in middle school riding home on the bus. We had assigned seats and because I was one of the good students the bus driver assigned me the very back seat in the bus – the one where only one person can sit. All students were required to face front with our feet on the floor and our hands in our lap. We could only talk if it was in a hushed tone. I don’t think prison guards were as strict as this bus driver. Maybe she missed her calling in life!
As usual, the bus was silent. One of my friends leaned over to pick something up from the floor and the bus driver responded by humiliating him. I felt horrible for my friend. Months of frustration boiled over and so I responded by taking a thick rubber band and shooting it at the bus driver. I can still picture the flight of the rubber band sailing through the air so gracefully; hitting the bus driver right in the back of the head.
I couldn’t believe it actually hit her! Apparently she couldn’t either. Immediately, she pulled over the bus and stood up and demanded to be told who had just shot her. I remained silent for fear of my life. No one on the bus ratted me out. After a few minutes of silence and evil stares she announced that we would be driving back to school until someone confessed. When we arrived at school she left the bus and promptly returned with the principle. The principle informed us that we could not go home until someone confessed. Once again, I sat in silence. Not only was I convicted by my irresponsibility and impulsiveness, but I also imagined what it would be like to be tortured by the principle. After fifteen minutes I stood up and I walked the green mile to the front of the bus and turned myself in. I was escorted into the principles office. The principle sat me down in a chair, he sat behind his desk. He looked me in the eyes and said, “Nice shot”! Forgiveness was granted by Mr. Delich. I was told I could leave as long as I behaved on the bus. I learned that day that forgiveness is not based on innocence. I was caught in the act. I was guilty of my crime. I had no defense.
The Bible records that when it comes to guilt or innocence, all of us are guilty of sin. (Romans 3:23) From the time of Adam and Eve until today - every person that is born will be born a sinner. We are all in the same category; sinful. The forgiveness that Jesus offers to us is not because of our innocence. Jesus didn’t forgive the woman caught in adultery because she was innocent. Jesus forgave her because she recognized her guilt.
When it comes to sin, some of us take the posture that I took on the bus many years ago. We know we have done wrong in God’s site, yet we refuse to admit it; believing the lie that we are better off not owning up to our mistake. In fact, the opposite is true. According to the Bible, admitting our guilt is a requirement to receiving God’s forgiveness. I John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” The first step to receiving God’s forgiveness is recognizing our guilt. The story of the woman caught in adultery is a reminder that when we are confronted by our sinfulness and we taste our depravity, it has left us naked, bleeding and wounded and we crawl into God’s presence; we are forgiven by God. There is no limit to His forgiveness.
There are three types of people in this story: (All of them responded to God’s forgiveness differently)
1. There is the crowd who stood watching. They witnessed forgiveness, but they did not enter into it.
2. There are the Pharisees. They were sinners. They knew it, but they walked away from Jesus without experiencing His forgiveness.
3. There is the woman who gladly received Jesus’ forgiveness. Which are you?
Until we are convinced that God’s forgiveness is not dependant on what we do we will come strolling into the presence of God on the basis of our actions. We do this all the time. We come with confidence into the throne room of grace because we had a good quiet time, because we gave sacrificially, or because we didn’t lust today. We feel more welcomed, more accepted by God when we have had a good day than when we have had a bad day. Our flimsy actions, do not have a bearing on God’s forgiveness.
2. Forgiveness of sin is not limited by the severity of sin.
This woman, who stood before Jesus and the crowd of her accusers, had just committed the act of adultery. The sin that she committed was a serious crime. It is not considered a bad crime in our day, but it was then. It was one of many crimes that carried the death penalty. It was ranked right along with murder, kidnapping, witchcraft, and offering human sacrifice.
Jesus was in the middle of teaching a group of people who were gathered around Him. He is interrupted by a group of men and one woman. It would be comparable to a prostitute being dragged in here by a group of police right in the middle of this message. All the woman wants to do is to crawl into a corner and hide. The last place that she probably wants to be is near the temple. I am sure she felt ashamed and guilty. This woman is forced to stand in front of the crowd so that everyone can stare at her. There she is standing there for all to see her and the wickedness of the crime that she had committed. She knew what she had done. And she knew that it was a sin deserving of death. But what she did not yet know was that no matter how severe her sin was, Jesus could still forgive her.
Have you done something that you feel like God cannot forgive? I think most of us have done a few things in life that we are really ashamed of and regret.
No matter how severe our sin might be, God’s grace and forgiveness is always greater. Some people will not come to Jesus because they think that they have gone beyond the scope of God’s forgiveness. If God can forgive that woman, and if He can forgive those who put Jesus on the cross, then He can forgive anyone. If we are alive, we are not outside the reach of God’s forgiveness. God making the way for us to be forgiven is at the very center of the bible. It is why he came to earth as a baby and why he suffered and died on the cross.
Is there a regret that you have or a sin that you have committed that you need to allow God to forgive? The woman caught in adultery didn’t need to be convinced of her sinfulness. She already recognized that. What she needed was to understand that God’s forgiveness was stronger than her sin.
3. Forgiveness of sin requires that we forgive others. (Lay down ones stones)
Christians are the most forgiven people in the world. Therefore, we should be the most forgiving people as well. Colossians 3:13 tells us, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”
Either intentionally or unintentionally many of us withhold forgiveness because we believe the person who hurt us must earn our forgiveness. When someone hurts us we want to punish them. Like the Pharisees we are ready to pick up stones and make them pay for their action. These attitudes are inconsistent with the command that God gave us to forgive others as he has forgiven us. There is no way we can earn God’s forgiveness, which is why he gives it to repentant people freely. What would happen if God forgave you how you forgive others? That is a humbling thought.
Eph. 4:32 states, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Believing in forgiveness is one thing. Living it is another. God has forgiven us when we did not deserve it and he wants us to pass his grace on to others even though they may not deserve it. God has given us a very high standard to live by. But he has also given us his grace and love in order to succeed. The reality, we cannot forgive others in our own strength especially when we have been deeply wounded.
I have found the book Peace Maker by Ken Sande to be very helpful on the topic of forgiveness. He offers three thoughts:
1. Forgiveness is not a feeling. When we do not forgive others because we do not feel like it; we behave as though others’ sins against us are more serious than our sins against God. Forgiveness is an act of the will. It is an intentional decision we make to give grace to others.
2. Forgiveness is not forgetting. Forgiveness is an event and process. When God says, he “remembers our sins no more” he is not saying that he cannot remember them. He is choosing not to remember them. When others have hurt us we must draw on God’s grace not to mention or think about their painful actions against us. To forgive someone means we release him or her from liability to suffer punishment. Jesus released the woman from her penalty. Mr. Delich released me from my penalty. Forgiveness is undeserved and must be granted. If we are holding onto a sin that someone has committed against us then we have created a debt they cannot pay. We must release the person who has wronged us. Forgiveness is a series of four decisions
a. I will not dwell on this incident
b. I will not bring up this incident again and use it against you
c. I will not talk to others about this incident
d. I will not let this incident stand between us or hinder our relationship
3. Forgiving is not excusing. Excusing says that you couldn’t help what you did. Forgiveness is the opposite. The fact that forgiveness is needed is evidence that what someone did was wrong. Forgiveness says, “we both know what you did was wrong and without excuse. But since God has forgiven me, I forgive you.” Forgiveness does not automatically release us from all the consequences of sin. Although God forgave the Israelites who disobeyed him in the wilderness, he declared they would die without entering the promise land.
If we find ourselves having a difficult time forgiving someone it is helpful to look at the enormous debt for which God has forgiven us. When we focus on how much God has forgiven us it is much easier to forgive others. We can rejoice in the wonderful promise of Psalm 103:8-11, “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love…He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him.” The more that we understand God’s love for us the more we are willing to forgive others.
4. Forgiveness of sin does not give us permission to remain in our sin.
Before Jesus and the woman parted ways, He gave her one instruction, “Now go and leave your life of sin”. Jesus told her to stop making sin the habit of her life. In forgiving her that day, Jesus faced the danger that she we would abuse His forgiveness and return to a life of sin.
An obedient posture on our part should result from being forgiven by God. We cannot be forgiven by God and continue to do as we please. We must stop sinning. At the same time we can rejoice. If Jesus had said, “Sin no more; and I will not condemn you”, what hope would there be? Jesus is not forgiving us on the basis of our obedience to him. Instead he forgives on the basis of his death. It is appropriate for us to understand his statement as “now, because you are forgiven, stop sinning.”
Origen, an early church father, offers clarity for what it means to remain in sin. “Just as living for God means living according to God’s will, so living for sin means living according to sin’s will. To live to sin means to obey the desires of sin. If someone dies to sin, it is through repentance that he dies and a refusal to obey sinful desires.” Once we have been forgiven, our goal and our all-consuming passion is to live holy lives out of love for the one who gave so much for us. Let me ask two questions. First, like the adulterous woman, is there a life of sin you need to leave behind? Second, “Do you love God more than sin or do you love the sin you return to more than you love God?”
How long has it been since you have not just said, “for all have sinned” but since you have said, “for I have sinned”? How long has it been since you have tasted your depravity? How long has it been since you have been immobilized by your sin? I bet for some of us it has been a while. I ask those questions not to shame, but to help us recognize our guilt; when we are broken by our sin we can follow in the footsteps of the adulterous woman. We walk away freed from the bondage of sin. Imagine how freeing it must have been for that woman to be forgiven by Jesus. That same freedom is offered to us.
Let’s pray:
Dear Father, we stand in your presence guilty of sinning against you. We realize the depth of our depravity and as a result we are amazed at the power of your forgiveness. Thank you for loving us despite our sin. We stand in awe of your grace and mercy. We can connect with the adulterous woman, for at times all of us have been unfaithful to you. We thank you that you have pardoned us, set us free, and made us part of your family. What a great God you are.
We pray for our brothers and sisters who are unwell at this time. We lift up Sandy Cookman’s brother Eric Danwich as well as Sally Hemenway, who are recovering from surgery. May you heal their body and restore them to full health.
We pray for 4 month old Jacob Berreth who is experiencing colon and GI issues. We ask that you extent your grace to him at this time and touch his little body. We pray for Joe Werre and family at the death of his great niece. May you be their rock, their comfort, and a constant source of life in this sad time.
We rejoice that young Isabella Gerdts surgery was successful and that she came home last week. Thank you for your healing touch. We celebrate with Karen Anderle at the birth of her new grand daughter Keira and with Andre and Sherrie Schmidt on the birth of their daughter Daisy.
We thank you for multitudes of students who are giving of themselves to serve you this summer. We pray for safety as they travel. Please grant them unity between team members. Open many doors they may plant seeds in many lives. May these students be forever changed as a result of these trips.
We ask yo blessing on today’s offering. May you use these gifts to further your name and draw many people to yourself.
In your powerful name we pray, Amen.
This morning is a special morning for middle and high school students at ARC. Over 100 students have decided they want to serve God this summer on a short-term mission team to Rochester, Minneapolis, Chicago, or the Dominican Republic. I commend these students for giving up a week or two of their summer to share God’s love and forgiveness with others.
On these mission teams students will be trained how to develop their testimony, how to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others, how to interact with different cultures, and they will be given a different perspective on many topics such as materialism and consumerism. It is exciting to see students grow in confidence that they can be used by God, to see them lead people to Christ, and to make a difference in their world.
I want to invite all the students that will be participating on Team Rochester this summer to please join us on the stage. Team Minneapolis, Chicago, D.R.
Many of these students stepped out in faith when they joined a mission team. The financial cost of these trips is a large hurdle for these students to overcome. Minneapolis costs $375. Chicago $525. The Dominican Republic $1500. For a 7th or 8th grader that receives an allowance of $5 a week and doesn’t have a job - $375 is a lot of money. For a junior or senior who is trying to save for college $1500 is a lot of money.
I want to invite you to partner with us by contributing financially to student missions. We estimate our total cost is $75,000. For me, I view my time and money given to student missions as an investment into the lives of these young people. This is a training ground for them, a chance to experience God, and an opportunity for them to see God work through them.
In your Ridge Lines you will find an envelope. If you feeling the Holy Spirit tug at your heart and would like to give, please clearly mark “student missions” on the envelope and drop it in the offering as it comes by. If you do not have a checkbook with you and would like to give, feel free to mail it in or drop it off at the church office. Let’s pray for these students and today’s offering:
Benediction:
May you experience God’s forgiveness afresh this week and may you forgive others as God has forgiven you.