Scripture: John 7:53-8:11
Dirt Stories
Theme: Lessons in Dirt
Title: Dirt Writing Lessons
This sermon is dedicated to the lessons we can learn when Jesus wrote in the dirt in John 7:53-8:11. Jesus teaches us lessons that that deal with the seriousness of sin and other things that can lead to living a life of salvation.
Intro:
Grace and peace today from God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit!
I want to talk to you today about some lessons we can learn from dirt writings. I want to talk to you today about the lessons Jesus teaches us when He wrote in the dirt right outside of the Temple.
It’s a rather interesting picture that the Apostle John paints for us in his gospel. Interesting not just from the aspect of how a group of men seemed to entrap a certain woman with the goal of then trapping Jesus but what Jesus does with the whole situation and what we can learn today from all of it that will help us live a better life in Christ.
It’s also interesting in the fact that Jesus took that time to write in the dirt. It’s funny how God seems to use dirt to teach us humans all kinds of lessons.
+We were made from dirt. I believe that God did that to help us experience not only amazing glory (dirt that comes alive with God’s breath) but humility as well. After all, we who were made just a little below the angels also have to remember that we were created from dirt.
+How many lessons has God taught us using the picture of the potter and the clay understanding that clay itself is just a specific type of dirt/soil.
+How many of Jesus’ teachings are tied to the dirt; the Parable of the Soils, the Parable of the Tares and others we find in the Gospels.
+Jesus even uses dirt as a medium to heal a man of blindness as he makes mud and put it on the man’s eyes.
And now here we are again with God in Flesh playing in the dirt. God; the Son of God reaching down and writing in the dirt. Dirt that He created. Dirt that He had used to create human beings. Dirt that could experience everlasting life if it possessed God’s breath.
This morning, I would like for us to look at some lessons that I believe that Jesus wants us to understand from His writing in the dirt. While we do not know exactly the words or the symbols that He wrote in the dirt that day there are some lessons that we can learn. Lessons that I believe can help us live out a more fulfilled life in Christ. Lessons that I believe can help us not only be better individuals ourselves but be a better community as well.
I. Lesson #1- Sin Is Serious
You may be surprised to know but in several states today Adultery is still a crime and is punishable by law. These state include: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin.1
+ In Alabama
Section 4184 of the Code of Alabama provides that ‘if any man and woman live together in adultery or fornication, each of them must, on the first conviction of the offense, be fined not less than $100, and may also be imprisoned in the county jail or sentenced to hard labor for the county for not more than six months.
On the second conviction for the offense, with the same person, the offender must be fined not less than $300, and may be imprisoned in the county jail, or sentenced to hard labor for the county, for not more than 12 months; and for a third or any subsequent conviction with the same person, must be imprisoned in the penitentiary or sentenced to hard labor for the county for two years.”
+In Illinois
The consequences for adultery in the state of Illinois is up to a year in jail for both cheaters.
+In Oklahoma
Adulterers face fines of up to $500 but also incarceration for up to five years.
Needless to say even though those laws are on the books the chance for them to be enforced is minuscule. Adultery is now seen as merely a natural part of our nation’s moral health. Sad, but true.
In our modern world adultery is basically no longer viewed as a crime. Any of the countries today that would prosecute adultery are likely those governed by Islamic law, including countries like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Somalia. Prosecutions are common in those countries with the punishment ranging from a monetary fine, public flogging, imprisonment and some extreme cases the death penalty.
This is what the scribes and the Pharisees wanted in our passage this morning. After they had entrapped the woman they brought her to appear before Jesus for Him to pronounce the death penalty according to how they viewed the Mosaic Law.
In all of Jesus’ dealing with this situation; with the Pharisees and the scribes along with the woman, it is important to see that He does not dismiss the sin. Jesus does not in any way sweep aside the sin that she and her partner had committed.
Jesus recognized the sin/wrongdoing. He knew what she had done was wrong. He also knew what her partner had done was wrong. Even though he was not there or at least perhaps was hiding in the crowd the act of adultery was wrong.
Just to put a finer point on all of this all you have to do is look at the Ten Commandments:
“You shall not commit adultery.” – Exodus 20:14; Deuteronomy 5:18
Plain and simple.
II. Lesson #2 – God Is the True Judge
If you have ever been in a court room or really followed a trial then you know that it is not always an easy thing to figure out who the guilty party is and what needs to be the proper discipline or punitive action taken. It is easy to allow your emotions to swing back and forth as different people testify and different questions are asked.
Of course, in some instances where the crime was premeditated then it is a bit easier. But in most crimes and in most situations the causes and the reasons why people did what they did are very complicated.
In this particular case that Jesus is having to deal with there are a myriad of unanswered questions and just as many different emotions.
+Where was her partner – or can only women be charged with adultery?
+Who was stalking her or making sure that she was being watched and ultimately for what reason?
+What was the true motivation of bringing her before Jesus here in front of the Temple?
+Where was her advocate that could bring forth some evidence or some information that might exonerate her?
There are certain judgments that we all have to make in this life; judgments small and judgments large. Each of them has the potential to change not only our lives but the lives of others as well.
It is not an easy thing to judge. That is why on more than one occasion the Apostle Paul pointed out that the only true judge is to be the LORD.
“Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to be a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother/sister.” – Romans 14:13
“Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the LORD comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God.” – 1 Corinthians 4:6
Paul was able to write those words because so many times in his life he was brought before the authorities (Temple authorities, local authorities, Roman government authorities) and treated harshly before anyone knew any of the true facts. More than once he and one of his companions were jailed and beaten before they could receive a fair hearing.
The only One that can truly judge us this morning is God. Only God knows our hearts, our minds, our souls, our motivations and our reasons for doing certain things that we do.
That is not to say that as a society or even as a church fellowship that we have to just let everything go until the end of time. It does mean that to the best of our ability and with the help of the Holy Spirit we should take great care how we judge any situation and particularly how we should judge one another.
Very few things are as simple as they look. In this particular case one could easily have said that the woman needed to be killed. She committed adultery and according to the ancient laws she needed to be stoned right then and there in front of the Temple.
But Jesus knew better. He knew the full story. He knew her full story. He knew that the Pharisees and scribes were not interested in the whole truth or else her partner would have been brought along with her. He knew that the only reason she was being humiliated and intimidated was to entrap Him. And Jesus was not going to have any part of that sordid game.
Will we have to judge something or someone? Yes. But as we do so let’s do it with great care and do our best to be true to the One who is the Real Judge in this Life – the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY.
III. Lesson #3 – All Humans Beings Matter
As I read this story one of the lessons that it teaches me is the value of every human being in the eyes of God.
This woman was valuable. As Jesus was writing in the dirt I wonder if He was remembering the day that He, the Father and the Holy Spirit took some of that dirt and created Adam. I wonder if He remembered how wonderful it was to breathe life into Adam for the first time.
As He was writing in the dirt I wonder if He remembered forming Jeremiah in his mother’s womb. I wonder if He remembered the day that He whispered into the Prophet Eli’s ear to share the good news to Hannah that she would soon have a baby.
As you read the Old and New Testament one of the things that it shouts out to you is the importance of every human being. We were all created in His image and we are all His masterpieces.
I think these Pharisees and scribes forgot all of this. They forgot that every person alive is alive because God willed them to be alive. I think they forgot that every human being has been made just a little lower than the angels.
And when we put John 3:16-17 into the picture then you can really understand how important human beings are to the LORD GOD ALMIGHTY. They are so important that God in Flesh came to rescue us, redeem us and restore us into the image of Himself.
16 “For God so loved the world,[a] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
I can’t tell you how many times I need to be reminded that each person I see or meet is important. They are important to God and should be important to us as well. For they are potentially going to be our fellow citizens on the New Heaven and New Earth forever and ever and ever.
It is difficult for us to remember that and engage with people with that in the forefront of our minds every day. Especially those days that we find ourselves in heavy traffic and someone cuts us off or treats us poorly. But it would do us good every now and then to read this story and remember that everyone in this story was important to God.
IV. Lesson #4 – There is a way of Salvation
Notice for a moment that not only does the woman matter to Jesus in the story but all those that brought her and were surrounding her. They were as much in need of salvation as she was in need of salvation. By lifting her up, Jesus was not putting them down. What He was doing was opening up the door of salvation to them all.
Think about it for a moment. In the heat of the moment they might have picked up some stones and done the unthinkable – stoned her to death. In the heat of the moment they might have taken a life that had been falsely accused or at least had not had the opportunity to tell her side of the story.
What about the next day? Would those who had picked up a stone and killed her would they wake up the next day with thoughts of righteousness and holiness and purity? Would they be able to come to the Temple day after day knowing that they had taken a life? Would such an act have either scarred them or made them that much harder and stiff necked?
I think the actions that Jesus took that day not only saved the woman but it saved those men as well. He saved them from a life of guilt and shame. He saved them from a life of remorse. He saved them from destroying themselves.
And He taught them all about forgiveness. He taught them about forgiving the woman and forgiving themselves.
What do I mean?
They thought they knew that the woman was wrong. They thought that they were filled with holy anger and a just cause.
But in the end they knew that they were much like the woman. They had not of course committed adultery but they were not sinless either. Here they were before the Temple; before the Holiness of God and I am sure that they were beginning to feel a little bit like Isaiah did when he had his vision of God in the Temple.
I think that the God’s Holy Spirit was at work as God in the Flesh (Jesus) was kneeling and writing in the ground. I don’t think Jesus started writing down a list of sins but I do think that the Holy Spirit was convicting all those around of the darkness of their own hearts, minds and souls.
This was no way to treat a woman; even one who had been caught in sin.
This was no way to treat anyone outside of the Temple.
What were they doing by trying to kill someone just to entrap Jesus?
I think as we read this story you can see that one of the most important things that Jesus wanted to do was to rescue us and redeem us and that is what He does with this woman.
Yes – she had committed adultery.
Yes – she had been caught.
But she was a person in desperate need of physical, emotional, social and spiritual salvation. She was in need of a Savior and Praise the LORD she found herself in front of the Lord of Lords and King of Kings.
I love the fact that Jesus took the time to teach everyone the true message of His Father – not to destroy human beings or to harm human beings but to bring human beings grace, mercy and forgiveness.
Again, remember that Jesus does not condone her sin. But He does absolve her of her wrongdoing. Her protects her and allows her to repent and start anew.
How do I know that? Let’s look at the final lesson.
V. Lesson #5 - Live Out Your Salvation
There was really only One who could have righteously condemned the woman that day and that was Jesus and Jesus rather than condemn her rescued her and redeemed her. But He did more than that.
Jesus commissioned her that day.
Sitting there perhaps not in the best dress and certainly not looking her best, Jesus not only grants her mercy and forgiveness but commissions her as well. And in doing so any that heard what Jesus said was also forgiven and commissioned as well.
“…from now on sin no more.”
In other words live out your salvation. Live out the life that God wants you to live following your repentance, forgiveness and redemption. Don’t receive grace only to live the same sin filled life.
Most of us have heard something about the Dead Sea Scrolls discovery back in 1946. Those scrolls have helped Biblical archeologists and scholars understand more and more about ancient Hebrew literature and theology.
What a great deal of people are not aware of is another momentous discovery of Hebrew texts also happened fifty years earlier in 1896. Over 3,000 Jewish documents dating back to over 1,000 years were found in a synagogue storeroom that housed worn out holy texts. (See Reading the Bible with Rabbi Jesus by Lois Tverberg)
One of the great findings in all of this was the revelation that during the time of Jesus most Jews paid homage to the past but were focused on the future. They were focused on the coming of the Messiah. This focus changed the way they lived and they way they viewed things.
For example, as they read the scriptures they would ask questions like:
+What will the world look like when the Messiah comes?
+How shall we live our lives as we anticipate His coming?
That is something that these Pharisees and scribes forgot. They too were living in the midst of the coming of the Messiah. Had they been thinking more about the future than focused on the past, I think that they would have treated this woman different and treated themselves and others differently.
I think that is what Jesus was pointing out to her and to them and then commissioning them to live a life above sin. He was challenging them to go out and live a life worthy of what it means to be a human being created by God to reflect His Glory and to enjoy an Abundant Life.
Jesus turns this whole story around. Not just for the woman but for everyone involved that day. He stops them from hurting the woman and from hurting themselves. He does His best to help them see that God is in the forgiving business more than He is in the punishment business.
Here they are in front of a place of worship, of prayer, of sacrifice and of forgiveness and they wanting to kill a woman for committing a sin. Hmm…
What they should have been doing is inviting her into the Temple to offer a sacrifice for forgiveness and grace. What they should have been doing is to help her under the conviction of the Holy Spirit to repent and turn her life around.
That is what we see Jesus doing for her and for them. The Holy Spirit to doing the work of enlightening them, correcting them, convicting them and leading them to a place of repentance and redemption. All of them are in need of repentance and grace. For one it is the sin of adultery, for others it is the sin of arrogance, malice, hatred and self-righteousness.
This is not an easy to story to read and understand. It is filled with all kinds of emotions. It could have ended so many different ways.
Stones could have been thrown. Lives could have been taken. Lives could have been shattered and broken forever. A mother could have lost her daughter. Perhaps even a family lost their mother.
The Pharisees and the scribes hearts could have been darkened just a bit more. The disciples and followers of Jesus could have been forever scared. The Devil could have had a field day as he watched human beings created in the image of God kill and harm other human beings created in the image of God.
Yes – there was a sin committed.
And yes – the wages of sin is death.
But I believe the Apostle John reveals to us a better path – the path of forgiveness, redemption and then commission.
No matter how we have sinned or what we have done there is forgiveness.
No matter how we have sinned or what we have done the LORD JESUS can remove that sin and then empower us to live out a life of salvation.
That is the Good News of the Gospel.
Let us now come before the One that Loves Us and receive the Elements of God's Grace, Mercy and Love.
Invitation for Salvation/the Lord’s Supper/Blessing
1(https://infidelityrecoveryinstitute.com/u-s-a-laws-on-infidelity-and-adultery/)
