The Stone That Was Never Thrown

“Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst they said to him, ‘Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?’ This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, ‘Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her’” And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus stood up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.’”

J

esus endeavoured to maintain a routine that gave Him time both to pray and to teach; at least that is my considered opinion after reading the scriptural accounts. However, the routine He sought to maintain was frequently interrupted by those who hated Him and who were intent on destroying Him. Those who were opposed to Jesus knew His schedule, and they often tried to disrupt what He might be doing. That is certainly the case in the incident described in our text today.

The Master had gone to the Mount of Olives, where He often resorted for prayer. It was quiet there, away from the presence of others, allowing Him time alone in the presence of the Father. Then, as seems to have been His custom whenever He was in or near Jerusalem, He went to the Temple, where the people would eagerly gather to hear Him as He taught. As they surrounded Him, He would instruct them in the things of God. And those who heard Him speak were delighted. Peter, speaking through Mark, declares, “The great throng heard Him gladly” [MARK 12:37b].

There is no great surprise in the characterisation of the Master as a teacher and as a preacher. To be sure, Jesus was a preacher, though I doubt that He could be characterised as a foot-stompin’, shoutin’, Bible-thumper. I don’t mean that Jesus wasn’t capable of flashes of anger accompanied by stern words. He had no trouble driving from the Temple those who were desecrating God’s House. Who could forget John’s description of Jesus’ anger, writing, “In the temple [Jesus] found people selling oxen, sheep, and doves, and he also found the money changers sitting there. After making a whip out of cords, he drove everyone out of the temple with the sheep and oxen. He also poured out the money changers’ coins and overturned the tables. He told those who were selling the doves, ‘Get these things out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace’” [JOHN 2:14-16 CSB]. Describing the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, you recall that Mark opens the Gospel that bears his name by stating, “Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God” [MARK 1:14b]. From the first opening act of His service that is provided in the Gospel accounts, Jesus was engaged in proclaiming the Gospel.

His stance opposing any action that would detract from God’s glory put Him in conflict with the religious leaders. Those to whom the populace looked for guidance in religious matters were extremely pragmatic. If an action promoted Judaism without compelling the leaders to grapple with the messy business of dealing directly with the hoi polloi, the religious leaders gave their approval, if only tacitly. Jesus was laser focused on honouring God which ensured a clash with the religious elite.

You and I have a challenging time maintaining focus in the press of religious life. We go to the services of the congregation, and far more often than we would ever care to admit, we carry the distractions of the day-to-day world into the assembly of the righteous. “Where shall we eat following the service today?” “Why is she dressed like that in church?” “Will my client pay what is owed, or will I have to get rough with him?”

How I wish that I could be like the woman who was asked by her pastor what she did! She responded to the question, “I am a follower of Jesus Christ cleverly disguised as a machine operator.” How I long to be focused on first things, which is serving Jesus, the Master. How I long for each of you who hear me to focus on first things at all times. Instead, our pleasure, our desires, our wants take precedence over honouring Him as God. In our own congregation we witnessed a man who wanted to be a pastor deliver a rousing message on commitment one Sunday morning and fail to show up Sunday evening because he chose to go hunting. Some commitment! We heard that man lecture the congregation about serving Christ and then failing to be in the service the following Sunday morning because his donkey had escaped the pen. Either Christ is King, or He is just an excuse for us to pretend to be holy. The message this day is designed to confront each of us with the question of whether we are serving Christ, or merely being religious.