Gtcotr/ss062815
John 8
1 ¶ But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.
2 Now early
in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him;
and He sat down and taught them.
3 Then the
scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they
had set her in the midst,
4 they said
to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.
5 "Now
Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You
say?"
6 This they
said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But
Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did
not hear.
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could simply avoid answering those who only
want to tempt us, trick us and try to trap us into answering in such a way that
they might gain public support to accuse us of being ungodly and crucify us … but alas – we may not be given the
luxury of being silent on some issues. Therefore we must study to answer and be
wise and deliberate in our response.
The scriptures admonish us to be slow to speak
and to avoid questions which gender strife. Proverbs tells us to not answer a
fool according to his folly and then again to answer a fool according to his
folly – whatever do these two
statements mean? That we should choose our words wisely when we are approached
by fools with foolish questions. Again, foolish questions gender strife and do
not cast your pearls before swine lest they turn on you and devour you with the
very things you say.
At any rate Jesus was not quick to answer even
though He had a clear word for everyone in the picture. God’s word and will is never ambiguous on the truly important matters
such as those dealing with such sexual conduct as had been described concerning
this woman. Nonetheless there was something more sinister on the minds of these
people than simply wanting to know what the Word of God says about adultery.
This was more about the temptations, tricks and
traps of the enemies of God, not the friends of God wanting to know what to do
with this girl. Their were laying a trap in attempts to discredit Jesus in a
public setting. And as they persisted Jesus realized that He could not avoid
answering.
Before Jesus addresses the adulterous woman and
gives her the Word of God for her life and the situation she has gotten herself
into, Jesus decides to address the hearts of those scribes and Pharisees who
really think they know more about God and are more godly than Jesus but who are
actually lost as a goose in this matter.
John 8
7 So when
they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who
is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first."
8 And again
He stooped down and wrote on the ground.
9 Then those
who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one,
beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the
woman standing in the midst.
Having dealt with the accusers and their
temptations, tricks and traps … Jesus turns His attention
to the sinner and the sin of adultery. Jesus by no means intended to make light
of the sinful acts of the woman – He calls it what it is then acted exactly like God in this
matter. Even though she should be stoned according to the law, grace was going
to give another chance … not to continue in sin or
make excuses for sin but a chance to repent and choose a lifestyle pleasing to
God. God does this for us everyday ...
In fact those who were trying to trick Jesus
didn’t know the half of it – not only should adulterers be stoned – they should then be cast into hell! Jesus came to save sinners
from that eventuality. But no one is going to get saved through the
condemnation of others … but only through the love
and forgiveness of God which comes through repentance and acceptance of God's
will as my way ... Embracing Jesus as both Savior and Lord.
John 8:10
When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said
to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned
you?"
Sin is a personal matter but not a matter of
personal interpretation. Sin can only be dealt with between the sinner and
Jesus alone. You see, Jesus was at that time and still is today in love with
sinners and the He is the only forgiveness for sin. It’s just like Jesus to give everyone another chance. It is His hope
and the hope of all who follow Him that those who are living in sin will stop
it and begin to live a life that is pleasing to God.
This is
the Gospel of Christ:
John 3
16 "For God so loved the world that He gave
His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life.
17
"For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world through Him might be saved.
Jesus posed the question and she answered …
John 8:11
She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither
do I condemn you; go and sin no more."
This is the Good News and God is moving by His
Holy Spirit in the hearts and minds of men and women throughout the United
States and around the world today encouraging them to simply repent of their
sins and live a lifestyle which is pleasing to Him.
As Christians we follow our Savior’s teachings therefore we do not condone sin and neither do we
condemn sinners. Golden Triangle Church On The Rock holds to the doctrines of
Christ as taught in the Holy Bible which define sin as a departure from that
written will of God.
Don’t be tempted, tricked or trapped … Sin is Sin and Unless we all repent, we shall all perish! Neither
the Church nor the Christian has the authority to decide or otherwise determine
what sin is and is not. It is the duty of the Church to teach sinners and
saints alike to identify sin in accordance with the Bible and not according to
the current cultural opinion or world view. So as not to be ambiguous about
sexual sin and leave anyone wondering what the Bible, define as sexual sin,
allow me to speak plainly.
Any and all sexual conduct which occurs outside
of the marriage covenant between a man and a woman as defined by the Bible as
sin. According to both the Old and New Testaments:
• Pre-marital sexual conduct
is sin
• Extra marital sexual
conduct is sin
• Homosexual sexual conduct
is sin
• Sex includes and
encompasses the way one person thinks about another person sexually; talks to
or about another person sexually; looks at another person sexually; touches
another person sexually; or allows another person to talk to or touch or look
at them sexually.
• Irrespective if it occurs
online or by way of text or magazines or TV. Just because it is legal and or
socially accepted does not exempt it.
• Adultery is sin
• Prostitution, although
legal in some places, is sin
• Pornography, although legal
in most places, is sin
• Pedophilia, although not
prosecuted in some countries, is sin
• Same sex sex, although
approved of by the US Supreme Court, is sin
It is important you know these things because of
the power and the potential of sin. However, it is also important for you to
know that you have not been given the right nor the responsibility to condemn
the sin of others nor do you have the authority to condone those things God
says are wrong.
Don’t fall for the temptations, tricks or traps coming your way. If
you feel the need to accuse others of being either too pious, as the Pharisees
did Jesus, or being too sinful, as the Scribes did the adulterous woman, I
encourage you to hear the admonitions of Jesus:
• Those of you without sin
may cast the first stone
• Those of you in sin, Go
your way and sin no more
Have you recognized your need for a Savior?
When given the opportunity encourage others to
recognize, repent, receive Jesus as Lord and then to live a lifestyle pleasing
to our Heavenly Father by following the Biblical guidelines, especially when it
comes to matters as impacting as sexual conduct can be.
