Discover His heart: He “came to seek and save those who are lost.” (Luke 19:10)
There are some really great questions out there that will never make it into a Trivia game mainly because we don’t know the answers. Why does the Mona Lisa smile? What does she see or know that we don’t? Why is there a crack in the Liberty Bell? Or like the question from our reading today, what did Jesus write in the dust in front of the adulterous woman and the Pharisees? The answers to these and so many other questions remained locked in time, but we sure do have a good time speculating their answers.
@ John 8
“Teacher,’ they said to Jesus, ‘this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?’ They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger.” (4-6) I’ve heard a lot of theories on what Jesus wrote that day. Some believe that Jesus was writing down all the sins of the religious leaders standing there. Others think He was writing the Ten Commandments, and still others believe He was stalling to answer because that was the custom for men of wisdom, pondering the best answer. After considering all the options, I’ve come to the definite conclusion that I don’t know for sure what Jesus was writing.
More important for us than what He wrote is what He said, “They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, ‘All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!’ Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one.” (7-8) Of course, the only one qualified to throw any stones that day was Jesus, but He was not there to accuse or condemn the woman. He was there to save her.
The entire scenario was a set up to trap Jesus into either saying she should be set free which was against the laws of Moses or saying she should be stoned which was against Roman law. For most of us, this could be a sticky situation, but Jesus had it covered. If we share our testimony at all, we will encounter those who want to argue about the Bible or excuse their disdain for Christianity because of all the hypocrites in the church. I’ve always said that I’d rather spend a few short years with a hypocrite or two in church than all of eternity with them in hell. Just as Jesus had the perfect response to the Pharisees, the Holy Spirit will direct us in our response to the questions we face.
This story makes me want to be more like Jesus. Besides the thrill of having the right answer at the right moment, I want to be the one who desires that a life is saved rather than condemned. I’ve found it impossible to lead others to Jesus for the forgiveness of sins when I’m too busy judging them for their sins. “Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, ‘Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?’ ‘No, Lord,’ she said. And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I. Go and sin no more.’” (10-11) What a great story! What a great message for us!
Moving Forward: No stone throwing, no judging, just the message of a Savior who is willing to forgive our sins.
Tomorrow @ 2 Timothy 1-2
Phyllis Benigas 