INTRODUCTION
• SLIDE #1
• As we live life, we are constantly facing situations that require us to think, make decisions, and then act upon those decisions.
• Making that process more difficult for us is the fact that we live in a world that is highly polarized.
• We are Democrat or Republican, conservative or liberal.
• We want everything to fit into box a or box b, fight or flight!
• SLIDE #2 FIGHT OR FLIGHT PICTURE.
• The fight-or-flight response, also known as the acute stress response, refers to a physiological reaction that occurs in the presence of something that is terrifying, either mentally or physically.
• The response is triggered by the release of hormones that prepare your body to either stay and deal with a threat or to run away to safety. https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-the-fight-or-flight-response-2795194
• In his book, The Hidden Option, author Jonathan Malm explains the concept of fight or flight.
• When confronted with a survival emergency, people default to one of two responses: either they run away, or they stand their ground to fight.
• This is a great survival instinct. Unfortunately, many of us carry that same fight or flight response to more complicated problems we encounter.
• When we face stressful problems, many of us tend toward this fight or flight mentality.
• So, when things get tough, we can revert to the flight or fight mode.
• Therefore, flight or fight leads to bad choices.
• We feel trapped, hopeless, caught between a rock and a hard place.
• What if there were more choices, though, that you’re unable to see right now? What if there are hidden options to the complex problems you face?
• Today, we’re beginning a two-part series called “The Hidden Option” where we explore God’s creative solutions to our most impossible problems.
• To start the conversation, let’s look at a story where Jesus found himself in what appeared to be an impossible situation.
• Jesus is reported to be at the temple, people noticed Him, and He began to teach them, when all of a sudden the Scribes and Pharisees appear before Jesus bringing along with them, a woman caught in adultery.
• Let’s turn to John 8 together to see how Jesus handles what looks to be a no-win situation.
• Let’s begin with verses 2-6
• SLIDE #3
• John 8:2–6 (CSB) — 2 At dawn he went to the temple again, and all the people were coming to him. He sat down and began to teach them. 3 Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, making her stand in the center. 4 “Teacher,” they said to him, “this woman was caught in the act of committing adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” 6 They asked this to trap him, so that they might have evidence to accuse him. Jesus stooped down and started writing on the ground with his finger.
• SLIDE #4
SERMON
I. There is always a hidden option. (2-6)
• Jesus is spending time teaching the people, He is not looking for any drama or trouble, but here it comes.
• As Jesus is teaching the Scribes and Pharisees were up to no good. They brought a woman that was caught in the very act of adultery.
• The phrase CAUGHT IN THE ACT here means an undeniable act.
• I wonder who caught her and how? Anyway, we know these religious leaders were disingenuous with their anger.
• Verse 6 tells us that these men were there to trap Jesus more than they were concerned with this woman.
• These leaders thought they could trap Jesus because their way of thinking was linear. They thought there were only two possible answers that Jesus could offer, and both of the solutions would not be good for Jesus.
• The first option was for Jesus to suggest they execute the woman by stoning her. It was what many people believed God’s law demanded. Unfortunately, that made Jesus the executioner.
• That sentence would seem to contradict Jesus’ recent teachings on love and forgiveness.
• The implied second option was for Jesus to say she shouldn’t experience the consequences of her sin. That would put Jesus in opposition to the law of God. Neither option was good.
• The religious leaders thought they had Him, take choice A, and then Jesus just undermined His own teaching. Take choice B and disrespect the Law of Moses.
• The accusers are not seeking to debate the woman’s guilt or innocence (no one questions her guilt). They are attempting to thrust Jesus into the role of the sentencing judge.
• Did you know that everything you see on your computer and everything you do on your smartphone comes down to just two numbers? This two-number system is called binary, and it’s how computers think. By processing a series of ones and zeroes, it knows where your mouse is, what text it should put on the screen, and colors to show.
• Here is what the name of our Church would look like in Binary according to Bagnill’s Text converter.
• SLIDE #5. BINARY
• They remind him of the ancient and powerful legal code that Moses commanded us to stone such women.
• Presumably, the reference is to Leviticus 20:10, which decreed death for both the man and the woman judged to be guilty of adultery. Bryant, B. H., & Krause, M. S. (1998). John (Jn 8:3–6). Joplin, MO: College Press Pub. Co.
• This text, however, did not prescribe the method of execution. Their demand for stoning betrays their bloodlust, for stoning was little more than mob lynching during this period of Roman occupation.
• The Roman overlords did not permit the Jews the legal authority for execution (John 18:31). Stoning was community justice at its worst, with too many executioners for the Romans to take effective action against the perpetrators. Bryant, B. H., & Krause, M. S. (1998). John (Jn 8:3–6). Joplin, MO: College Press Pub. Co.
• Imagine being in a position where you feel trapped, you are in what looks to be an impossible situation, it does not look like you have a good option, both A and B seems dreadful.
• What do you do?
• When we're confronted with complicated problems, it's easy to fall into the trap of thinking there are only bad options available to us—the most obvious possibilities. But the same creative, hidden options that were available to Jesus are available to us.
• We just have to believe they exist and look for them.
• So what will Jesus do? How will He get out of this tough situation?
• Let’s look at verses 7-9.
• SLIDE #6
• John 8:7–9 (CSB) — 7 When they persisted in questioning him, he stood up and said to them, “The one without sin among you should be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Then he stooped down again and continued writing on the ground. 9 When they heard this, they left one by one, starting with the older men. Only he was left, with the woman in the center.
• SLIDE #7
II. Some hidden options can only be found through God. (7-9)
• Until Jesus came along, we had two options available to us, follow the Law (the 10 Commandments, as well as the rules of the Old Testament) perfectly every moment of our life so we could live, or we could disobey the Law and be separated from God for eternity.
• In reality, the first option is one many try on some level and fail miserably, it is impossible, so we were left with option 2.
• Jesus, then comes along and offered a hidden option—it was revealed since Genesis, but humanity, for the most part, missed the revelation—through His death and resurrection on the cross.
• No longer did we have to perfectly obey the Law (we couldn't, anyways), and no longer did we have to die, separated from God. Jesus fulfilled the Law for us, and His righteousness now applies to our lives.
• The religious leaders thought they had backed Jesus into a corner, I mean, if you were in His position, what would you have done, especially if you did not know how Jesus handled it?
• Would you say, well, she broke the Law, lets stone her, or would you say, everyone makes mistakes, and therefore disrespect the Law?
• I love the drama, Jesus when pressed just stooped down and wrote in the dirt.
• Jesus’ offers up an ingenious way to deal with the leader. What an answer!
• The one without sin among you should be the first to throw a stone at her
• I bet they never dreamed He would give them the answer He did!
• 9 When they heard this, they left one by one, starting with the older men. Only he was left, with the woman in the center
• How many situations have you faced where it looked like no matter which option you chose, it was not going to turn out well?
• When we get to that point, we tend to hunker down and rely on our own ingenuity to try to work out of the problem, or we will run, flight or fight.
• It is rough when you feel like you are caught between a rock and a hard place!
• The Martian, a book and movie about a man stranded on the surface of Mars, is a brilliant story about problem-solving.
• Mark Watney, the main character, is constantly faced with life-and-death situations that require science and creative problem-solving to survive.
• Through his ingenuity, he is able to survive on Mars by growing four years’ worth of potatoes inside his habitat, using chemistry to extract water from rocket fuel, and harnessing a plutonium battery to provide heat in the deadly cold of Mars.
• Ultimately, his efforts could only take him so far. It required outside help if he was going to make it off the surface of Mars.
• The same is true of our lives. We can only get so far on our own.
• We couldn’t save ourselves. God intervened to offer us redemption.
• That was the first and most important of God’s provisions for us, but He also provides options for us when need them. We have to learn to look to Him for direction.
• When we look to Him in life, we will be able to see the hidden option!
• Let’s look at verse 10-11 for a final thought.
• SLIDE #8
• John 8:10–11 (CSB) — 10 When Jesus stood up, he said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 “No one, Lord,” she answered. “Neither do I condemn you,” said Jesus. “Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.”]
• SLIDE #9
III. Finding the hidden option offers hope for all. (10-11)
• When Jesus escaped the trap of the woman caught in adultery, He provided more than just hope for himself.
• He also provided hope for the woman who earned the penalty of death.
• She was completely trapped and had no way of helping herself. If Jesus hadn’t found escaped the trap set for him, she would have died.
• When we seek the hidden options that God offers us in life, those options will not only bless us but will be a blessing to others around us.
• For the person who is struggling with a sin of which they feel helpless to defeat, taking the hidden option of HOPE through Jesus will not only bless you, but all those around you, your friends, and most importantly, your family!
• When I look back at my own life, I am so thankful that I opened myself to see there was more to life than what I thought life offered, by being open to the hidden option of living for Jesus instead of myself, my life has never been the same.
• When God gives us hidden options, it’s not always just for us.
• Yes, God will sometimes help us out of sticky situations by giving us His creativity. But He also wants us to impact others. Our opportunity as Disciples of Jesus is to help others find God’s justice and grace for their own lives.
• Ultimately, the most significant hidden option we can give people is bringing them to a God who loves them and wants the best for them through a relationship with Jesus Christ!
• We must lead them to the source of options of grace, mercy, and reconciliation.
CONCLUSION
• The same creativity available to Jesus in this story is available to you.
• You don’t have to feel trapped by circumstances other people place you in. You don’t have to feel hopeless.
• When we start to look for God's hidden options in our lives, we see hope again. Not only that, but the people around us will experience that hope.
• The hidden option isn't just for yourself; it's for others. As we shine the light of hope into situations, that reaches other people.
• We can be sources of encouragement to those around us, even when things seem hopeless. We can help others and lead them to God, the ultimate source of hidden options.
• Next time things seem impossible, choose to paint the problem in the colors of grace and justice instead of black and white despair.
• Next, we will conclude this mini-series seeing that the best solution to your problems will require God's thoughts. We will need to strive to seek and plug into God’s creative solutions as we will look at the story of Gideon in Judges 7!
