Are You A Stoner?

Intro: The Gospel of John is a book about life. You say what? I thought is a book showing Jesus in all His glorious power as the Son of God. But what do we find the purpose of the book to be?

John 20.31 “These have been written (miracles and signs) so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.”

Not just ordinary life but abundant life John 10.10

The apostle’ primary purpose was to evangelize. His goal was the preaching of the Gospel so that others would come to know God! (Church growth strategy of the apostle’s.)

In this gospel we find the Greek word Zoë, is found 36 times in the gospel of John. Life through Christ is the focus of their evangelism.

It is life real and genuine, a life active and vigorous, devoted to God, blessed, in the portion even in this world of those who put their trust in Christ, but after the resurrection to be consummated by new accessions (among them a more perfect body), and to last for ever.

How sad it is that we see in John chapter 8 the Pharisees bringing a woman to Jesus so that he would either condemn her or Himself.

In this story we see the devils devices to destroy us as Christians and discredit Christ himself.

I. The Stoners strategy

A) To Trap Him with a technicality

1) Woman caught (displayed and humiliated)

2) Law requires stoning

a) If he does not condemn her then he disregards the Law of Moses.

b) If He does condemn then He disregards His own

teachings of mercy and grace.

How often it is that even other Christians would rather catch us in legalism instead of the liberty of Christianity.

John N Darby

“It comforts and quiets the depraved heart of man if he can only find a person worse than himself: he thinks the greater sin of another excuses himself; and while accusing and vehemently blaming another, he forgets his own evil, He thus rejoices in iniquity.”

B) To turn Him over to the authorities

1) Only the Romans had the authority to execute criminals in Jesus’ day.

2) If Jesus said stone her then they had Him. (Wasn’t about the woman’s sin it was really about their hatred for Jesus)

They were willing to sacrifice her to get to Him.

Are Christians today willing to sacrifice others?

Testing Jesus shows their lack of a real relationship with God.

II. The Redeemer’s Response (3 Stages)

A) Indifference (to their accusations not their sin)

1) Jesus stooped to the ground and with His finger wrote on the ground. 8.6

a) Pharisaical schools either used wood and wax to write or they wrote in the dirt.

b) Jesus was showing them His authority

2) What did He write?

a) Many interpretations

b) Best two I have found.

1) One Scholar: If Jesus was seated he could only write 16 Hebrew characters without moving.

Exodus 23.1 “You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness.”

23.8 “Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent or the righteous, for I will not acquit the guilty.”

a) It is thought that the girl was probably only 12 or 12 ½ year old.

b) Probably married, 2 witness say the scholars means he woman was probably set up to be used against Jesus. (Frame Job)

2) Jer 17.13 “O Lord, the hope of Israel, All who forsake You will be put to shame, those who turn away on earth will be written down, because they have forsaken the fountain of living water, even the Lord. (The Pharisees may have thought of this)

3) Two: A Russian Orthodox Church Bishop

Nikolai Velimnowich St. Vladimirs (Church tradition)

a) With Jesus’ fingers he wrote their secret sins

M (estulan) has stolen treasure from the treasuries

A(sher) has committed adultery with his brothers wife

S(halum) has committed perjury

E(led) has struck his father

A(marich) has committed sodomy

J(oel) has worshipped idols.

4) The Lord knows our sins.

a) They were condemning He was redeeming

b) If he had uttered their sins they too would have been sentenced to death by stoning.

B) Indignant– Angered at unfairness (no biblical evidence my OP)

1) Why only the woman and not the man.

a) The Law said both would die.

b) Where was the man?

2) Who is worthy to sentence her

a) After writing on the ground

1) 8.7 “he who is without sin among you, let him be the first one to throw a stone at her.”

2) exit stage right.

3) book of revelation

none are worthy except the lamb to open the scrolls of judgment.