The development of DNA testing and the ability to use the science of the body’s cells to solve crimes has made significant changes in the criminal justice field.
Forensic is a wonderful thing, only God knows how many ennocent men who have died for something they did not do.
But I want to show you in the scriptures what happens to a woman who is guilty of something and she is released.
However, she is not released due to forensics!!!
The religious leaders bring to Jesus a woman caught in adultery—which was a capital offense.
Let’s begin with...
I. THESE RELIGIOUS LEADERS
Look at the teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in the very act of adultery.
We read in John 8:3-5 And the scribes and the Pharisees bring a woman taken in adultery; and having set her in the midst, they say unto him, Teacher, this woman hath been taken in adultery, in the very act. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such: what then sayest thou of her?
How did they catch her in the “act of adultery?”
Again, we can’t be sure, but something fishy seems to have been going on.
The rabbinic law was very specific on this point. Since adultery was technically a capital offense, the law demanded that any accusation be a literal eyewitness testimony.
• It would not be enough to say, “I saw them entering the bedroom and then I saw them leave.”
• Hearsay testimony would not be accepted for a charge like this.
So how did these men “happen” to catch her “in the act?” We don’t know.
That leads to a crucial question. Where is the man?
Adultery by definition requires two people.
It is not likely the man somehow escaped, but the woman didn’t.
Perhaps it was a set-up. Perhaps they talked the man into seducing the woman so they could catch her in the act. By prearrangement they then let the man go free.
One final question. Why did they expose her publicly? There was no need to do that. And there was no need to bring her to Jesus. Clearly, they weren’t simply seeking to punish her. Something much more sinister is at work here.
We see two things in these verses:
1) She was guilty of adultery. The Bible says she was caught in the very act of Adultery.
2) They were quoting the law correctly. The law states she should be stoned to death.
They were correct, this was a capital crime calling for the death penalty.
"Leviticus 20:10 “And the man that committeth adultery with another man's wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. "
But notice, these men who brought this woman to the Lord stating they caught her in the very act was stating the truth.
They came quoting scriptures, they had their “T’s” cross and their “I’s” dotted.
You might say they came loaded for bear!!!
YOU KNOW WHAT I SEE HERE SOMETHING WE ALL WOULD HAVE SEEN IF WE HAD BEEN THERE?
We would have seen a bunch of RELIGIOUS SNOBS that had no compassion for this woman. NONE!!!
I imagine she stood trembling, embarrassed, crying but they did not care a thing about this woman that they charged with adultery. NOT A THING!!!
It is amazing how some folks use the scriptures for the wrong purpose.
We have those today who mis-use the scriptures also, such as:
(1)Some have already decided what the Bible teaches on a particular topic and then searches the Scriptures for verses that seem to back up their belief.
They do not study the Bible to find spiritual food, they study to find some scripture they can take out of context and use it to back up their argument.
When a person has gathered enough verses that appear to back up their position, they stop searching.
(2) Some use the Word of God twisting the Scriptures.
For example, in I Cor. 5:13 Paul had written to the Corinthians and told them not to associate with immoral persons and it seems that some had taken this and twisted it to make it mean that he forbade contact with any immoral person. Paul then shows that such a belief was ridiculous because it would mean that one would have to leave the world. The true meaning was that they were not to keep company with an immoral brother or sister.
(3) Some Misquote the Scriptures.
There are many Scriptures that people quote that are either misquotations or not actually in the Bible at all! Doing so misleads and deceives people.
a. "Money is the root of all evil." This is a misquotation of 1 Timothy 6:10 that actually says, "For the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil…"
Another is, "God works in mysterious ways," which is not even in the Bible!
These evil men who brought this woman knew what the LAW SAID about adultery. And this particular passage that dealt with this woman committing adultery they took great delight in quoting what the Law said.
Illus: They make me think of some street preachers that was preaching in South Carolina, when the cars drove by they would point their finger in the face of drivers that they did not know and say, YOU ARE GOING TO HELL! These street preaches did not care for the souls of mankind, they were filled with hate and found joy in telling people they were going to hell.
Also, these men did not care about this woman, they brought her to Jesus for salvation, they brought her for another reason.
These people see the situation as black and white. She’s guilty, she should die. There’s no concern here shown for the woman.
They parade the woman out and make her stand humiliated and terrified before the crowd. And we must ask also where is the man?
The motives of these men were anything but pure yet they stretched out their accusing fingers. And most likely the things they accuse her they were guilty themselves.
Illus: Jimmy Swagert
We have looked at THE RELIGIOUS LEADERS, but now let us look at
II. THE COMPASSIONATE SAVIOR
I am glad this wonderful Savior that we have come to know and love is a COMPASSIONATE SAVIOR.
The Lord talks about compassion in Luke 10:30-36 A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho; and he fell among robbers, who both stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance a certain priest was going down that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And in like manner a Levite also, when he came to the place, and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he was moved with compassion, and came to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring on them oil and wine; and he set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow he took out two shillings, and gave them to the host, and said, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, I, when I come back again, will repay thee. Which of these three, thinkest thou, proved neighbor unto him that fell among the robbers?
Some have told this same story like this:
Illus. A man fell into a pit and couldn't get himself out.
• A Christian Scientist came along and said, "You only think that you are in a pit."
• A Pharisee said, "Only bad people fall into a pit."
• A compassion-less Fundamentalist said, "You deserve your pit."
• A Charismatic said, "Just confess that you're not in a pit." A Methodist came by and said, "We brought you some food and clothing while you're in the pit."
• A Presbyterian said, "This was no accident, you know."
• An Optimist said, "Things could be worse." A pessimist said, "Things will get worse!"
• Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the pit.
When the Lord saw this woman who was brought to him, not for salvation, but brought to him for stoning He was moved with compassion.
Notice, Jesus initially ignores them and gets down to write in the sand.
He could have written something in stone, but he wrote in sand!
Illus: The good thing about writing in the sand is that you can write something in the sand and with one swipe of the hand it is gone.
We don’t know what he wrote in the sand but I guess it was something they could see and he wrote something like, “Woe unto Scribes, Pharisees and hypocrites.”
Most likely the ones who were condemning her was guilty of the same thing, only they never got caught.
The Pharisees press him and continue to ask him, "C’mon Jesus, what have you got to say?"
Jesus says, "Let him among you who is without sin cast the first stone"
Then he knelt to write again we don’t know what he wrote. But the text says that as he wrote they began to leave one by one.
• First the older ones left. I wonder if as he wrote Jesus paused to look at one straight in the eye. and then wrote again.
• As he continued to write the younger ones left. When Jesus had finished writing, there was no one left to accuse the woman.
What does this exchange say to us Well first of all it shows us that we must never forget the fact that each of us are sinners.
Does anyone of us have the right to point and accuse others of their sins.
Illus: Someone said of the idiom, People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. That is, You should not criticize other people for having the same faults that you yourself have.
The Scripture says plainly that all have sinned and no one is righteous.
Jesus offered a Pardon
Look at verses 10-11 Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" "No one, sir," she said.
"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared.
Condemnation is a horrible thing.
Illus: Richard Hoefler’s book Will Daylight Come? includes A simple illustration of how sin enslaves and forgiveness frees. A little boy visiting his grandparents was given his first slingshot. He practiced in the woods, but he could never hit his target. As he came back to Grandma’s back yard, he spied her pet duck. On an impulse he took aim and let fly. The stone hit, and the duck fell dead.
The boy panicked. Desperately he hid the dead duck in the woodpile, only to look up and see his sister watching. Sally had seen it all, but she said nothing. After lunch that day, Grandma said, "Sally, let’s wash the dishes." But Sally said, "Johnny told me he wanted to help in the kitchen today. Didn’t you, Johnny?" And she whispered to him, "Remember the duck! So Johnny did the dishes.
Later Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing. Grandma said, "I’m sorry, but I need Sally to help make supper." Sally smiled and said, "That’s all taken care of. Johnny wants to do it." Again she whispered, "Remember the duck." Johnny stayed while Sally went fishing. After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and Sally’s, finally he couldn’t stand it. He confessed to Grandma that he’d killed the duck. "I know, Johnny," she said, giving him a hug. "I was standing at the window and saw the whole thing. Because I love you, I forgave you. I wondered how long you would let Sally make a slave of you.
Some the Lord has forgiven them, but they are still living under condemnation.
No matter what your sin, Jesus has paid the price for you. He didn’t go to the cross so that He could hold it over your head, but so that he could release you from it’s bondage. Which brings us to the last part of the story. The part that deals with the woman herself
III. THE WOMAN
Look at verse 11 "Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go and sin no more."
Jesus offers the pardon to be sure, but he doesn’t just leave it at that, he also gives her a new purpose in life, I don’t think these word are just an admonition--an order to straighten up and fly right.
I think there is power in these words. He’s not just pardoned her, he’s empowered her to live above the level of her own sinfulness--He’s offered her new life, abundant life. This is critical too, because she’s got to live in the old neighborhood, after suffering this public shame. Only a good soul washing and transformation worked within her by the power of Jesus would help her to face the future after this experience.
The forgiveness and grace of Jesus doesn’t just free us from the burden of past sin it frees us from the burden of future sin by empowering us to avoid it. Jesus empowered her with His word "Go now and leave your life of sin."
Conclusion:
A man had some pups for sale. He painted a sign advertising the pups and set about nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard. As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his overalls. He looked down into the eyes of a little boy.
“Can I have a puppy?”
"’Sure,’ said the farmer. And with that he let out a whistle. ’Here, Dolly!’ he called. Out from the doghouse ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur.
The little boy pressed his face against the chain-link fence. His eyes danced with delight.
"As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else stirring in the doghouse. Slowly another little ball of fur appeared; this one noticeably smaller. In a somewhat awkward manner the little puppy began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up. This was clearly the runt of the litter.
"’I want that one,’ said the boy pointing to the runt.
"The farmer knelt down at the boy’s side and said, ’Son, you don’t want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would.’
"With that the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up the leg of his trousers. In doing so, he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg and attaching itself to a specially made shoe. Looking back up at the farmer, he said, ’You see, sir, I don’t run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands.’"
There is someone who understands! There is someone who cares!
Did this woman commit this horrible sin and get away with it? No, not in the slightest her sin cost the Lord Jesus to die on the cross of calvary!!!
NOTE: YOU CAN HEAR DR. ODELL BELGER PREACH SOME OF HIS SERMONS ON YOUTUBE. Go to Youtube type Youtube lykesland
