SERMON
March 1, 2026
John 8:1-12
- INVOCATION
- OPENING PRAYER
- “STICKS AND STONES MAY BREAK YOUR BONES…BUT NAMES WILL NEVER HURT YOU!”
- YOU AND I KNOW THAT’S NOT THE TRUTH…NAMES REALLY “DO” HURT!!!
- I’VE OFTEN HEARD THAT THE TONGUE IS THE MOST POWERFUL MUSCLE IN THE BODY…IT MAY ONLY WEIGH ABOUT ½ POUND…BUT IN A SINGLE MOMENT…IT CAN DESTROY A PERSON’S REPUTATION
- BASICALLY THIS IS THE STORY….CAUGHT IN THE ACT OF ADULTERY…DRAGGED NAKED BY FORCE INTO A PUBLIC GATHERING PLACE…HUMILIATED BY HER SIN…SEPARATED FROM ANYONE OR LOVER TO PROTECT HER…ALREADY JUDGED AND SENTENCED TO DEATH ACCORDING TO OLD TESTAMENT LAW WITHOUT TRIAL BY A BUNCH OF SELF-RIGHTEOUS LEADERS…AND BROUGHT BEFORE THE KING OF KINGS
- THIS IS HOW THE APOSTLE JOHN DESCRIBES THE OPENING SCENE OF ONE OF THE MOST POIGNANT AND THEOLOGICALLY SIGNIFICANT PASSAGES IN ALL OF SCRIPTURE.
- IT SOUNDS LIKE THE SCRIPT OF A MODERN DAY SOAP OPERA
- AT THE CORE OF THIS INCREDIBLE STORY IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A SINNER IS PLACED AT THE FEET OF JESUS
- THIS IS THE PLACE WHERE WE CAN ALL IDENTIFY WITH THIS WOMAN
- BUT IT IS ALSO THE PLACE WHERE EVERY ONE OF US WHO ARE SINNERS MUST GO TO EXPERIENCE THE INCREDIBLE PROMISE OF FORGIVENESS OF SINS AND ETERNAL LIFE.
- THERE ARE TWO DIFFERENT VOICES THAT ARE SPEAKING TO US TODAY IN THIS TEXT
- THERE IS THE VOICE OF THE “CRITICS…THE” ACCUSERS”
- THEN THERE IS THE VOICE OF JESUS.
- THE VOICE OF THE ACCUSERS…THEY “CONDEMN..CRITICIZE…DESTROY… MOCK…AND HUMILIATE
- I THINK IT IS SAFE TO SAY THAT THIS INCIDENT JUST DIDN’T HAPPEN…IT IS OBVIOUS THAT THE PHARISEES HAD THIS AS A PLANNED ATTACK TO DESTROY HER LIFE…LITERALLY…AND CREATE THE PERFECT TRAP FOR JESUS.
- THIS WAS THE TRAP…THEY WANTED TO CREATE A “PUBLIC EVENT” WHERE JESUS WOULD HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN HIS MESSAGE OF FORGIVENESS AND OBEYING THE OLD TESTAMENT LAWS HANDED DOWN BY MOSES
- SO RATHER THAN GETTING CAUGHT UP IN THE WEEDS OF THIS SCANDAL…LET’S LOOK WHAT JESUS DID
- JUST IMAGINE THIS SITUATION…YOU’RE IN THE TEMPLE…JESUS IS TEACHING…WHEN THIS ALL TAKES PLACE…DRAGGING THIS WOMAN WHO WAS CAUGHT IN ADULTERY…PROBABLY DIDN’T HAVE A CHANCE TO GET DRESSED…DRAGGED THROUGH THE STREETS BY FORCE…THROWN DOWN IN FRONT OF JESUS TO BE USED AS A SO-CALLED “OBJECT LESSON!”
- THEY THEN TRY TO FORCE JESUS TO MAKE A CHOICE…STONE HER OR FORGIVE HER…NOW WHAT DO YOU SAY???
- THEY WERE DOING THIS TO “TEST” JESUS…AND TO BRING ADDITIONAL CHARGES AGAINS HIM
- THEN THIS IS THE AMAZING PART OF THIS STORY…JESUS BENDS DOWN…HE SAY’S “NOTHING!”
- HE DOESN’T ASK FOR MORE INFORMATION BEFORE MAKING HIS DECISION/ANSWER
- HE DIDN’T PUT UP HIS HANDS AND SAY…:”WHOA…LET’S SLOW DOWN!”
- HE DIDN’T BEGIN TO PREACH OR SAY ANYTHING….
- WE WOULD HAVE EXPECTED HIM TO TALK…TO SAY SOMETHING…TO SAY ANYTHING!!
- BUT WHAT DID JESUS DO???? WE ARE TOLD THAT JESUS BENT DOWN AND WROTE WITH HIS FINGER ON THE GROUND
- THE PHARISEES KEPT BADGERING HIM WITH QUESTIONS…AND FINALLY JESUS STOOD UP…
- ONLY DELIVERS ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS LINES IN ALL OF SCRIPTURE
- “LET ANY OF YOU WHO IS WITHOUT SIN…BE THE FIRST TO THROW A STONE AT HER!”
- THEN HE BENDS DOWN AGAIN..AND CONTINUES TO WRITE ON THE GROUND…
- AND HE CONTINUES TO KEEP WRITING ON THE GROUND TIL EVERY ACCUSER HAD LEFT.
- WHAT WAS JESUS WRITING ON THE GROUND??? WE WILL NEVER KNOW
- BUT MAYBE WHAT WE CAN LEARN IS SOMETHING ABOUT HIS SILENCE IN THE MIDST OF THE TRAGIC AND STAGED EVENT
- NOTICE JESUS DOESN’T RESPOND VERBALLY OR EMOTIONALLY
- WE CAN LEARN A LOT FROM HIS SILENCE
- FIRST LESSON WE CAN LEARN IS THAT “JESUS STOOPED DOWN”
- SECOND LESSON WE CAN LEARN IS NOTICE THAT JESUS DOESN’T EVEN MENTION HER ALLEGED SIN OF ADULTERY
- IT SEEMED THAT HE WAS ACCEPTING OF HER SIN OF ADULTERY…
- BUT AT THE END…WHEN ALL HER ACCUSSERS HAD LEFT…WHAT DOES JESUS SAY TO HER…” GO YOUR WAY…AND FROM NOW ON DO NOT SIN AGAIN!”
- WHAT CAN WE LEARN??? THAT JESUS DOESN’T LOOK PAST SIN…BUT IS WILLING AND READY TO EXTEND MERCY AND FORGIVENESS TO THE UNDERSERVING?
- DID SHE DESERVE MERCY AND FORGIVENESS? SHE WAS CAUGHT IN THE ACT OF ADULTERY….
- THIS IS THE KEY FOR ALL OF US…”WE DO NOT DESERVE MERCY AND FORGIVENESS….BUT IN SPITE OF OUR SIN…JESUS COMES TO US AND OFFERS IT FREELY TO HER AND TO US
- LESSON #3…I THINK IT IS INTERESTING THAT JESUS DID NOT SPEAK TO THE WOMAN UNTIL THE PHARISEES’ AND THE CROWD HAD DISPERSED.
- I CAN ONLY IMAGINE ALL THOSE WHO HAD STONES IN THEIR HANDS READY AND WILLING TO CAST STONES AT HER AND KILL HER…AND THE SOUNDS OF THOSE SAME STONES HITTING THE GROUND ON THE TILES OF THE TEMPLE COURT…ONE BY ONE
- IT IS ONLY THEN THAT JESUS AND THE WOMAN WERE LEFT ALONG
- THERE WAS JESUS STOOPING DOWN WRITING ON THE GROUND…THE WOMAN MOST LIKELY IN A FETAL POSITION OUT OF FEAR AND EMBARRASSMENT…
- SHOULD SHE GO? WAS SHE ALLOWED TO? SHOULD SHE SAY, “THANK YOU TO JESUS FOR LITERALLY SAVING HER LIFE?” OR SHOULD SHE SIMPLY BACK AWAY QUIETLY??
- BUT BEFORE SHE COULD SAY OR DO ANYTHING…JESUS STOOD UP AGAIN AND ASKED HER, “WOMAN…WHERE ARE THEY> HAS NO ONE CONDEMNED YOU?””
- SHE SAYS…PROBABLY BARELY WHISPERING…”NO ONE…SIR!”
- AND THEN JESUS SAYS TO HER…”NEITHER DO I CONDEMN YOU…GO ON YOUR WAY…AND FROM NOW ON DO NOT SIN AGAIN!”
- THIS IS WHAT WE NEED TO REMEMBER…REGARDLESS OF HER STORY AND HOW SHE CAME TO BE AT THAT UNFORTUNATE SCENE OF THAT DAY…JESUS’ RESPONSE IS NOT TO “REBUKE HER…OR HUMILIATE HER.”
- THAT IS WHAT JESUS DOES TO AND FOR US…WE ARE SINNERS…WE ARE CAUGHT IN THE ACT OF OUR SINS MAYBE NOT BY OTHERS BUT JESUS KNOWS WHO AND WHAT WE ARE….BUT THEN HE TELLS US…
- I DO NOT CONDEMN YOU…AND FROM NOW ON DO NOT SIN AGAIN!
- THE FOURTH THING WE CAN LEARN FROM THIS TEXT TODAY IS THIS…
- WE SEE THAT JESUS FORGIVES OUR SINS…AND THIS FACT ALONE IS SCANDALOUS
- WE DO NOT DESERVE FORGIVENESS…WE ARE REMINDED THAT THE WAGES OF SIN IS WHAT?? DEATH!!
- YOU SEE THIS IS WHAT MAKES JESUS “SCANDALOUS.”
- STORY OF THE WOMAN WHO HAD MIGRATED TO THE U.S. FROM CUBA…BEING A DEVOUT ROMAN CATHOLIC…SHE WANTED TO ATTEND CONFESSION AND SHE WANTED TO CONFESS HER SINS IN IN ENGLISH TO THE PRIEST.
- SHE HAD A FRIEND TRANSLATE HER LIST OF SINS IN ENGLISH BY WRITING THE WORDS OUT PHONETICALLY…SO SHE COULD SAY THEM USING HER LIMITED KNOWLEDGE OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
- TAKING HER PLACE IN THE CONFESSION BOOTH…SHJE SAID THE FIRST PHRASE THAT SHE HAD MEMORIZED.
- WITH A THICK SPANISH ACCENT, SHE SAID, “FAHTER, FORGIVE ME FOR I HAVE SINNED.”
- THEN SHE LOOKED DOWN AT THE LIST…BUT IT WAS TO DARK IN THE BOOTH FOR HER TO READ IT…SO SHE SAID AGAIN, “FATHER, FORGIVE ME FOR I HAVE SINNED.”
- THEN IN OBVIOUS FRUSTRATION…SHE SAID IN SPANISH..”I CAN’T SEE ME SINS.”
- TO WHICH THE PRIEST SAID “IN SPANISH”…”YOU ARE FORGIVEN…GO AND SIN NOR MORE!”
- STORY OF REV. DR. ROBERT SCHULLER….SPEAKING AT A BLACK CHURCH ON THE ANNIVERSARY OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN’S “EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION” FREEING THE SLAVES FROM THEIR BONDAGE AS SLAVES.
- STEPPED INTO THE PULPIT TO PREACH…LOOKED OUT OVER A SEA OF BLACK FACES…MANY OF WHOM HAD BEEN ABUSED AND HUMILIATED AND EVEN KILLED…THOUGH HE TRIED TO SPEAK…THE WORDS WOULD NOT COME OUT…HE BEGAN TO CRY AND WEEP…SEVERAL MOMENTS WHEN BY…
- FINALLY THE HOST PASTOR WALKED UP TO JOIN DR. SCHULLER AT THE PODIUM…WHO ALSO BEGAN TO CRY…
- THE AFRICAN AMERICAN PASTOR PUT HIS ARMS AROUND DR. SCHULLER AND SAID, “DR. SCHULLER…IN THIS CHURCH…NO ONE WEEPS ALONE!”
- THAT IS COMPASSION…THAT IS TENDERNESS AND THAT IS THE GOSPEL.
- THE STONES THAT YOU ARE HOLDING NOW…BOTH REAL AND IMAGINED HAVE BEEN TARGETED FOR SOMEONE
- THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE NEVER SINNED…YOU MAY TAKE YOUR STONE WITH YOU…
- THE REST OF US…WE ARE INVITED TO LAY OUR STONE AT THE FOOT OF THE CROSS AT THE END OF THE SERVICE AND WE ARE REMINDED BY JESUS HIMSELF…WHEN HE SAYS..
- “GO YOUR WAY…AND FROM NOW ON DO NOT SIN AGAIN!”
- (WALK OVER AND PLACE STONE AT THE CROSS)
(FOR THOSE WHO ARE ABLE STAND AND JOIN NOW IN SINGING, #