THE LOVE OF JESUS ON DISPLAY
John 8:1-11
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. Gary Dearing told a story about his Air Force Colonel, who served as inspector general of his command, and paid particular attention to how personnel wore their uniforms.
2. “On one occasion the Colonel spotted a junior airman with a violation. "Airman," he bellowed, "What do you do when a shirt pocket is unbuttoned?" The startled airman replied, "Button it, sir!"
3. The Colonel looked him in the eye and said, "Well?" At that, the airman nervously reached over and buttoned the Colonel's shirt pocket.”
4. The Colonel was being critical of others, but he himself was guilty of the same infraction! A similar situation happened in our text this morning.
B. THE AMERICAN CHURCH: AN IMAGE PROBLEM
1. Jesus said, “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.” John 13:35, MSG.
2. But unfortunately, Christians in America are not seen as loving. In polls taken recently of Generation Zers, 90% say Christians are too judgmental, 85% describe the Church as hypocritical, 70% say they are “insensitive to others.”
3. HOW DID WE GET TO THIS PLACE IN AMERICA?
a. For decades movies and news media have worked hard to portray the church in a negative light. Church leaders who have fallen into sin (of which there are very few) are painted as normal of all preachers.
b. The good Christians do is usually ignored and any wrongdoing is magnified. Unfortunately, CHRISTIANS HAVE BECOME KNOWN FOR WHAT THEY’RE AGAINST RATHER THAN FOR WHAT THEY’RE FOR.
4. Christians have become known as people who are
boycotting events, are judgmental, are intolerant of different lifestyles, are critical. Now I’m not saying we should change our moral positions – but Jesus said we should be KNOWN for our love and compassion and not for our judgmentalism.
5. So this morning I want us to look at an incident in Scripture where the Lord Jesus had the opportunity to be harsh toward a sinner, but instead He found a way to show love and redemption.
C. TEXT
1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.2 Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. 3 Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, 4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. 5 Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” 6 This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. 7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” 8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. 10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”
D. THESIS
1. We’re going to see this morning how Jesus diffused this explosive situation.
2. We're also going to see how redemptive/merciful Jesus is compared to many of the religious crowd.
3. We're also going to see how Jesus restores the dignity of those who’ve been the down and outers.
4. Title: “The Love of Jesus on Display.”
I. SIN EXPOSED!
A. SETTING THE SCENE
1. Verse 2: "AT DAWN"
a. JESUS AT TEMPLE at 6 a.m., diligent.
b. Dawn Crowd: Cream of the Crop, (Holy, loved God). There were possibly 1,000 people there because it was the Feast of Tabernacles.
2. THE WOMAN
a. Put Yourself In Her Shoes
b. Caught in the Act of Adultery (but where's the man?). Can you imagine being dragged into the holy Temple area, before a 1,000 holy people and the great Prophet, Jesus of Nazareth, and having your sin loudly declared? How humiliated, how embarrassed, how frightened – they were calling for the death penalty!
c. Imagine the sneering, hateful voices of the Scribes & Pharisees – shaming her, wounding her with words. We all know this was a charade. She was a pawn and maybe even was framed so that the Jewish leaders could try to condemn Christ.
B. PICTURE OF GREATER JUDGMENT
1. Nevertheless, this is a picture of how it will be at the Great White Throne Judgment.
2. Have you ever been caught red-handed? Most of us have gotten a traffic ticket sometime in our lives. It's a terrible "Got Ya" feeling. It's when you hope none of your friends drive by. [Call up 2 people to discuss how it felt to see those police lights go on behind their car.]
3. Just as exposed as this woman's sins were, so ours will be before God one day. For those who die in their sins, the Day of Judgment will be a similar time of exposure before the Saints, the Angels, and God Himself.
4. SCRIPTURES:
a. "For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known" Matt. 10:26.
b. "For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested..." Mk. 4:22.
c. "Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account" (unless under the Blood!) Heb. 4:13.
5. JOKE: "Repaint & Thin No More"
a. A man was hired to paint a church. He won the job by bidding too low. He painted half the church and noticed that three quarters of his paint was gone. So he began adding water to the paint until it was a thin white.
b. While the paint was still wet, a thunderstorm broke and washed away the paint. "Lord, I knew I shouldn't have done it!"
c. A voice boomed from the sky and commanded, "Repaint and thin no more!"
II. JUDGMENT REVERSED
A. THE PLOT: THE PHARISEES’ PURPOSES
1. The Pharisees wanted to make themselves appear to have great zeal against sin and be anxious for counsel from Jesus about what to do with this woman. Charade.
2. But their goal was to force Jesus to either:
a. Condemn her – then they could accuse Him before the Romans (they prob. had 50 men ready with stones to carry out Jesus’ verdict);
b. Release her – then Jesus could be declared an Enemy of the Law of Moses (He’d already been breaking the Sabbath), and a Compromiser – soft on sin (He’d been eating with publican and sinners).
3. So either way Jesus chose He was in trouble.
B. HOW THE LORD BAFFLES HIS ENEMIES
1. But Jesus, the holy Son of God, saw with His omniscient eyes their true character and motives. Jesus first showed His disapproval of their harsh and heartless actions by ignoring them, refusing to even notice them.
2. Jesus saw worse sin in the accusers than in the accused. "He stooped and wrote on the ground..." What did He write? Some Greek manuscripts add, "the sins of each one of them."
3. THE JUDGE – PUT THEM ON TRIAL WITH HER. "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone."
4. Jesus pointed out that they were just as guilty of sin as the woman, so they had no right to judge her. Imagine how she felt to see them dropping their stones. Wow!
5. ILLUSTRATION.
a. A boy had stolen a watermelon. He stood before the judge to be sentenced. The judge asked, "Have you
anything you wish to say before I pass sentence upon you?"
b. The boy thought for a moment, and then said, "Judge, have you ever stolen a watermelon?" Subdued laughter was heard throughout the courtroom.
c. The judge pounded the gavel for order. Then after a long look at the boy, he said, "No cross-examination allowed! Case dismissed!"
C. THE PROBLEM OF JUDGING OTHERS
1. How easy it is for us to look down on/ judge:
a. The unsaved, living in sin. They’re easy targets.
b. To be impatient with new Christians; we forget how long it took us to get our lives in order.
c. Or even more critical of older Bros. & Sisters who still have some inconsistency in their lives.
2. But we’re just as much sinners as they are!
3. The Scriptures Teach:
a. "Who are you that judge another man's servant?" Rom. 14:4.
b. "Judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come..." 1 Cor. 4:5.
c. God didn’t appoint us to be judges, but to bring the Good News of forgiveness and transformation through Jesus Christ.
D. A CONDEMNED GENERATION
1. Of Generation Z—people born after 1996—34 percent identify as atheist, agnostic or nonreligious. Only 20% of them name ‘religion’ as a key component of their lives.
2. Two out of three members of Gen Z believe for-profit companies should take a stand on social issues, and 3/4 say companies should be eco-friendly. That’s why you’re seeing companies siding with social issues.
3. Generation Zers see the Church as INTOLERANT in terms of LGBTQ rights, immigration, the environment and women’s and gender equality – values the vast majority of them now support.
4. We’re not talking about changing our moral views, but I think we need to be much more careful how we present ourselves to unbelievers and we need make sure, when we have to resist something, we do so in a loving spirit.
5. They may look a little different, but Jesus loved them and died for them. The only way they’ll get saved is if they see the love of God in us!
6. WE WILL NEVER WIN THEM TO CHRIST IF THEY THINK WE HATE THEM. MOST OF US BECAME CHRISTIANS BECAUSE WE REALIZED HOW MUCH GOD LOVED US – JOHN 3:16. We MUST find a way to demonstrate love to the new generation.
III. NO CONDEMNATION
A. READ
John 8:10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”
11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”
B. THINK OF THE DIFFERENCE between the way Jesus treated this woman and the way the Pharisees (religious crowd) did;
1. He didn't try to make her feel bad about her sin. Jesus turned a scene of judgment into a scene of grace.
2. He responded with respect and dignity. He gave her back her dignity and sense of self-respect before the crowd. Because HE gave her permission to try again, the crowd did too.
3. If anybody could’ve condemned her, Jesus could’ve, because He had no sin. But Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you!” WHY? “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” John 3:17.
4. You see, JESUS’ PURPOSE – AND OURS – IS NOT TO CONDEMN ANYBODY, BUT TO LOVE THEM THROUGH TO SALVATION! To lay down our lives for them!
5. Instead, with tenderness in His voice, Jesus said, "Go and sin no more." Jesus refused to put a label of adulteress on her. He tore it off and said, “You’re free to live a new different life than before!” Praise God!
C. YOU TOO!
1. Just like Jesus believed and loved this woman, He believes and loves You too!
2. Jesus is setting you free from all the bondages that held you. Will you take His hand and walk with Him?
CONCLUSION
A. VIDEO OF THE POWER OF LOVE
https://youtu.be/o2BITY-3Mp4
B. THE CALL
1. “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, diversity; in all things, charity.” Jesus said, “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.” John 13:35, MSG.
2. Someone said, “Love the sinner, but hate the sin.” We’ve gotten that confused. We need to pledge this morning to be more diligent to love unbelievers. We need to imagine what they’d be like if they got saved, and love them to that place.
3. Maybe some of you can identify with this woman; you feel condemned and sinful – Jesus is here to restore you.
4. Others may be here who’ve had a faultfinding, critical spirit toward others and you want God to deliver you from that.
5. Judgment day will reveal all; Are your sins under the blood? Let’s all make sure our hearts are right.
