Moments with the Master Series
A TERRIFYING MOMENT
John 8:1-11
Intro
On March 22, 1824 an incident took place in Madison County, Indiana, which came to be known as the Fall Creek Massacre. Six white men murdered nine Seneca and Miami Indians and wounded another. Among the nine dead were three women and four children. The six men were apprehended and tried and some were executed. One of the men named John Bridge Jr. was sentenced to death by hanging for his part in the massacre. He was to be executed on June 3, 1825. His father, John Bridge Sr. and another man named Andrew Sawyer, who was John Bridge Jr.’s uncle, were also to be executed that day.
John Bridge, Jr., along with a large crowd, witness the hangings of his father and uncle as the crowd waited expectantly for a pardon from the governor. With no sign of a pardon, a sermon was preached as the crowd waited expectantly. Finally, John Bridge, Jr. was lead to the gallows and the rope was lowered over his head. But as the men waited for a signal, a cheer arose from the back of the crowd.
A stranger rode forward and looked the condemned man in the face. "Sir, do you know in whose presence you stand?" Bridge shook his head. "There are but two powers known to the law that can save you from hanging by the neck until you are dead, dead, dead; one is the great God of the Universe, the other is J. Brown Ray, Governor of the State of Indiana; the latter stands before you…" Handing over the written pardon, the governor announced, "you are pardoned."
In an instant, what had looked like a hopeless situation became a door of hope. John Bridge Jr. went back home, settled down, opened a dry goods store and died peacefully, fifty-one years later!
I told that story to ask this question: Can you imagine the fear that must have gripped the heart of that young man as he watched his father and his uncle die, knowing that he was next. Can you imagine the terror as he was led onto the gallows and that noose was placed around his neck? It must have been a moment of terror like few have ever experienced!
But, I know one person who had experienced that feeling. This poor sinful woman, whose story is related in this text, she knew that kind of fear. As she is led trembling into the presence of Jesus, she knows in her heart that she is about to die a horrible death by stoning. However, her path had led her into the presence of “the great God of the universe”. And, when she met Him, everything changed, forever!
I would like for us to look in on this Moment with the Master today. Because I want you to know that what Jesus did for this poor, wretched women, He will also do for you. You see, she came into His presence as a condemned sinner, but she left His presence a changed woman with a new lease on life. Let’s take a few minutes today to look at this passage as I share with you A Terrifying Moment.
I. A CONDEMNED SINNER (v. 3)
A. Her Sin
• According to our text, she was caught in the very act of adultery.
• She was guilty before the face of the Lord and before the world.
• We are all as guilty as this woman, our problem is that we simply won’t admit to it - Pro. 28:13.
B. Her Shame
• In their haste to bring this woman to Jesus, her accusers probably didn’t give her sufficient time to get properly dressed before they brought her into public.
o However that may have been, she was certainly humiliated by the public accusation and disclosure of her sin.
• Sin is a shameful thing!
o No matter how skillfully it is hidden from the eyes of men, Jesus knows all about it and one day it will be revealed before all - Luke 12:3.
o Saddest of all, the truth about your profession will also be made public one day - Matt. 7:21-23.
o Wouldn’t it be far better to get everything right with the Lord and have nothing to fear out there?
C. Her Sentence
• Her accusers were absolutely correct!
o According to the Law, she deserved to die - Lev. 20:10; Deut. 22:22.
o There was one small problem here: Where was her partner?
o Both were supposed to die for this sin!
o The man may have been part of this scheme to attack Jesus.
o He may have been allowed to slip away. Nevertheless, this woman was guilty and she deserved to die.
• Nobody gets away with sin!
o The penalty of sin always comes due - Rom. 6:23; Eze. 18:4.
o There will come a payday someday!
o The only hope any sinner has is to flee to the arms of Jesus, to receive the ultimate pardon.
o He offers the only hope anyone has in this world or the one to come.
o He is the only way - John 14:6; Heb. 2:3.
• In their effort to humiliate this woman and to discredit the Lord, they brought her to the best possible place.
o They brought her to the very man who could deal with her past and her problems and who could make it all right.
• Never think that Jesus doesn’t care for you.
o He is the sinner’s Friend!
o Even in His day, He was known to hang out with notorious sinners, Luke 7:34; Luke 15:2; Luke 19:7.
o Jesus proved His love and His friendship when He died at Calvary - John 15:13!
• Jesus isn’t concerned about His reputation; He is only concerned with your eternal soul!
II. A CRUEL SCHEME (vv. 3-9)
A. The Plan
• These men were attempting to pin Jesus on the horns of a dilemma.
o If Jesus simply let the woman go, then He would be seen as being easy on sin and could have been arrested for being in violation of the Law.
o If, however, He gave permission for the woman to be killed, He could then be accused before Rome as an upstart, and He would have destroyed His reputation as being the "friend of publicans and sinners".
o They felt that no matter what Jesus said, He had no wiggle room.
• These religious men are just like legalists in today.
o They couldn’t have cared less about this woman, her sin, her soul, or her eternal destiny.
o All they cared about was pressing their agenda, and their brand of righteousness.
o Thing haven’t changed! All Pharisees are the same!
B. The Problem
• Their plan might have succeeded with an ordinary man, but they were dealing with Jesus Christ, and He simply refused to play by their rules!
o When they tried to stump Jesus, They discovered that they had met their match.
o Notice how He responded to their arguments.
1. Jesus Ignored Them (v. 6)
• While they were talking to the Lord, He just knelt down and began to write on the ground.
o He had no use for their pettiness and lack of love for sinners.
• What did Jesus write?
o Well, for 2,000 years, men have tried to solve that little mystery.
o Today, I am going to give you a deep theological answer: I don’t know!
o And, neither does anyone else!
o However, let me give you a little food for thought in this matter.
• Maybe He wrote:
a. The Ten Commandments. After all, it was his finger that wrote
them the first time!
b. Maybe He wrote out Lev. 20:10 and Deut. 22:22.
c. Maybe He simply wrote the names of their girlfriends in the
sand.
d. Maybe He simply wrote the word "Forgiven"!
• Whatever the Lord wrote on the ground, it surely got their attention.
o By the way, He knows how to speak to your heart as well!
o How much better it is to come to Him by faith and miss all that exposure and punishment!
2. Jesus Exposed Them (vv. 7-9)
• When Jesus did speak, He said, "He that is without sin among, let him first cast a stone at her."
o Jesus wasn’t requiring that any judge be sinless.
o If that was the case then no human would ever be able to render judgment in any matter, even in a court of law.
o I think what Jesus may have been saying to these hypocrites was, "He that is free from this particular sin, let him first cast a stone at her."
o You see, adultery can be committed with the head and the heart just as surely as it may be committed with the body!
o At this point, all the shouting came to a stop and all that could be heard was the dropping of their rocks and the shuffle of their sandals as they slipped away.
o You see, these men had been exposed before their fellow man, the accused lady and most importantly before the Lord.
• Let’s at least give them credit for the fact that when they saw themselves as they really were, (Perhaps the most painful realization of all), they stopped calling for the death of this woman.
o I want you to know that one of the hardest things you can face is yourself as you really are!
o However, when you see yourself as being sinful, then you can do something about it.
o Paul would have went to Hell had he not been brought face to face with himself on the road to Damascus - Acts 9.
o When we are convicted of our sins, then is the time to come to Jesus.
o After all, He is the only One who can deal with Man’s sin problem!
III. A COMPLETE SALVATION (vv. 9b-11)
A. Jesus Faced Her (vv. 9b -10)
• Only Jesus could have cleared the Temple after that fashion, and when the last rock had hit the Temple floor, Jesus stood up and faced this sinful woman.
o As He stood before her, He stood as the only one qualified to take up the first stone.
o When she faced Jesus, she was facing the ultimate judge!
• She had reached a place in her life where it was just her and Jesus.
o It always comes down to that!
o Eventually, somewhere, someday you are going to have to face Jesus and bow to Jesus.
• Oh, I am sure that He has given you opportunities in this life to come to Him.
o What have you done with them?
o You will either receive Jesus at one of life’s encounters, or you will face Him on judgment day.
o Which would you rather it be?
o In the end, it always comes down to just you and Jesus.
o And, what you do with Him will determine where and how you spend eternity!
B. He Forgave Her (v. 11)
• The only One qualified to throw a stone refused to!
o Jesus dealt with her on the basis of grace.
o The religious men had condemned her and considered her as good as dead, Jesus however, saw someone worthy of His love and worth salvaging.
o When she came to Jesus, she received A New Lord –
o That is all there is to being saved!
o Rom. 10:9 says, "That if you will confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and you believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved!"
It doesn’t get any easier than that!
• What about you?
o Have you taken this step of faith?
• Anyone who wants to be saved can be saved through faith in the shed Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ!
o Notice what Jesus said to her: “Neither do I condemn thee.”
o When a sinner comes to Jesus by faith, they receive forgiveness for all their sins and absolute liberation from all condemnation.
C. He Freed Her - She got a New Life
• All of her life, she had been subject to the god of this world, Satan.
o She had been a prisoner of her own lusts and desires, Eph. 2:1-3.
o Jesus, however, came and unlocked the shackles that held her bound in sin and He set her free!
• Jesus specializes in taking wasted, ruined lives and saving them by His grace and restoring them to usefulness.
o Every person who comes to Jesus for salvation receives this new lease on life.
o We get a chance to begin again, and this time, we actually have a chance of making something out of our lives.
• Friend, life doesn’t have to remain like it is today for you.
o It can be better and it can be new, if you will come to Jesus!
o But, it takes a real man and/or a real woman to live for Jesus!
• Jesus doesn’t pardon sinners to leave them as He found them.
o He pardons them to change them forever!
o He won’t save you and leave you in your sins.
o Along with His salvation comes a new life and liberty from sin’s dominion, Rom. 6:14.
Closing
Maybe, like this woman, your life has been wrecked and ruined by sin. Maybe you have been hurt by religious people. Maybe you are looking for a compassionate Savior, One who will make everything right. I want to invite you to come to Jesus. He cares about you just like you are. He loves you and wants to save you. He wants to deliver you from your bondage. He wants to set you free. Therefore, He invites you to come to Him today.
George Wilson was sentenced to hang after he was convicted of killing a guard while robbing a federal payroll from a train. Public sentiment against capital punishment led to an eventual pardon by President Andrew Jackson. Unbelievably, Wilson refused to accept the pardon. Can one do that? The case became so legally confusing that the Supreme Court had to rule on it. Chief Justice John Marshall delivered the verdict: "A pardon is a parchment whose only value must be determined by the receiver of the pardon. It has no value apart from that which the receiver gives it. George Wilson has refused to accept the pardon. We cannot conceive why he would do so, but he has. Therefore, George Wilson must die." Consequently, Wilson was hanged. God’s grace becomes a pardon from sin only to those who receive it.
Friend, if you have never been saved, in a spiritual sense, you stand condemned before God. You are on the gallows and the noose is around your neck. At any moment, you could find yourself dead and lost forever in the fires of Hell. Don’t let that happen to you! Jesus is standing ready to pardon and to receive you if you will come to Him.
Is He calling you to come? If so, then come to Him for salvation today! If there are issues in your life that need to be settled, this altar is the place where they can be taken care
