Day 17: The Woman Caught in Adultery (John 8: 1-11)
Early one morning Jesus was walking by the temple and entered. He sat down and began to teach those who had already gathered there for the morning teaching. Commotion filled the air outside, and the sounds of a struggle could clearly be heard. The voice of a woman crying caught Jesus’ attention over the angry, loud words of the men with her.
“Rabbi, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the VERY act!” the Jewish leaders cried. Filthy, humiliated, and ashamed, the woman stood in the center of the entire gathering. The eyes of the crowd burned holes in her heart. Anger welled up inside of her as she considered the injustice of this law. “Where is the man who was with me?” her thoughts screamed out. “Isn’t he just as sinful as I am? Have I been set up? How did the religious leaders know? They didn’t just “happen” by that early in the morning, did they?”
Her thoughts were interrupted by, “Our law says such a woman must be stoned!” It was then that all attention turned toward the Teacher. It was the first time the woman had taken notice of Him. It seemed like hours passed while He wrote in the dirt. She wondered if He would condemn her. Her eyes dropped to the ground as she realized she had no hope of forgiveness.
Jesus answered the Pharisees who had brought the accusation against the woman. “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” Her eyes still cast downward, she heard the murmurs, then the shuffling of feet, and when she dared to look up, she met the eyes of her Savior. Turning to where her accusers stood she discovered that not one of them remained in the street.
Do you run in to be the first to accuse, judge, and condemn when someone has been caught in a sin? Or maybe you are the “adulteress”—caught and in need of repentance. Either way, we must know who we are……SINNERS, all of us! Jesus told the woman, “From now on, sin no more.” It applied to both the woman and the Pharisees in this story. It applies to us as well. Which sin do you relate to? Stop sinning now, if you are. Or begin now to be the first to love and restore the sinner.
No comments:
Post a Comment