"When All You See Are the Stones" (John 8:1-11)

“WHEN ALL YOU SEE ARE THE STONES”

“Neither do I condemn you . . .

Go now and leave your life of sin” John 8:11, NIV

The Bible is filled with people who suffered guilt and shame, both private and public. There is in the Bible one woman whose story embodies them all. It’s a story of failure, a story of abuse, a story of shame, and a story of grace. We discover the torrid tale in John 8:1-11 (You can read the entire passage below) where “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees [have] brought in [to the temple courts before Jesus] a woman caught in adultery” (8:3).

The question they asked Jesus was carefully chosen for maximized deception. “In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” (8:5). If Jesus sides with the law (their version of it) then there will be little hope for her or for anyone else who is hurting. In other words, “there’s gonna be a whole lot of rocks flying.” If He sides with the woman, He will appear to be soft on sin and in opposition to the Law.

Instead of condemning the woman Jesus did something that even astonishes us today – He pronounced her not guilty (8:11)!  She probably expected a sermon or at least a good tongue lashing but she got none of that. Instead of justice she was given mercy. Instead of a guilty verdict she received the gift of grace!

If we’re honest with ourselves this story disturbs us. How could Jesus proclaim that the woman was not guilty when all of us (the people’s court) know she was guilty? Guilty as sin! This story is a stark, in your face, reminder that sin (all of it, what we consider the “little” and the “big” sins) is ugly and dark and that God’s grace is not for people who think they are good but for those who know they are guilty.

Come here the rest of the story of this amazing and life-changing encounter with Jesus this Sunday, January 24^th at Carrollwood Baptist Church where all are welcomed. This Sunday could be a life-changing experience for you. Worship begins at 10:30 a.m. and we are conveniently located one mile east of the Veterans Expressway at 5395 Ehrlich Road. For more information, check us out online at carrollwoodbaptist.org.

Looking forward to a great day of worship!

Pastor Joe

John 7:53-8:11, NIV

⁵³ Then they all went home, 8  but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

² At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. ³ The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group ⁴ and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵ In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” ⁶ They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. ⁷ When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” ⁸ Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

⁹ At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. ¹⁰ Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

¹¹ “No one, sir,” she said.

“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”