When I was a little girl, my neighbors and I loved playing with chalk. There were several kids on our street and we had several large driveways to decorate. One year, probably for my birthday, my parents gave me “spray chalk.” I remember complaining about my hands getting all chalky, so I was so excited about this new gadget! Naturally I showed all the neighbors and we were so excited to use this awesome sidewalk spray chalk! However, we didn’t always limit our decorating to the driveways or the sidewalk- What the chalk was intended for.
One afternoon, my parents decided I was old enough to stay at the house alone, (well kind of alone- They left for maybe an hour and my neighbors were home.) While they were gone, my neighbor, Leslie, and I thought it would be fun to spray the wooden fence that divided my house from hers.
“Mom and Dad will love our beautiful masterpiece when they come home! They will be so proud of our talent, and so honored that we wanted to paint for them!” So Leslie and I put on our Picasso hats and started painting this newly discovered canvas (the wooden fence).
Well, Leslie's dad had just bought a brand new car. (I can’t remember what kind, but it was a beautiful white sports car). He had parked it right on the other side of the fence and of course we didn’t realize, the wooden fence had small cracks and holes between each wooden rod. I can still remember that loud and harsh scream as we were drawing our innocent hearts, rainbows, and flowers. “What the ______ are you girls thinking!! STOP!! NOW!!!”
There was nothing we could do to cover this one up. We were caught red handed! And when her dad crossed over the fence, he did not see us as sweet innocent little Picasso’s, but rainbow painting, car-destroying monsters. We were guilty and we now faced the punishment for our actions.
I remember thinking- my one chance to prove I was big enough to stay home alone… I had one shot and I ruined it! All I wanted was to rewind time, I wanted a do-over.
But today we are going to see that we serve a God of second chances. With God, the game of life is not a game in which you have one chance to win or lose, but through his mercy and grace we have multiple chances. Our God is not in the business of keeping scores, and if you are alive, you are not outside the reach of God’s forgiveness!
Lets turn to John chapter 8.
John 8: 1-11
1 but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?”
6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”11 “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”
In this story, the Pharisees had caught a woman in the act, she was committing adultery. According to the law she was to be stoned to death. Instead of punishing her right away, they decided to take her to Jesus. They wanted to trap him, if he said “yes, lets stone her” then they could claim that he was not the loving savoir that he had claimed to be; however, if he said “No, lets forgive her” then they could claim that he too disobeyed the law.
But we can’t trap Jesus- He will always have the perfect response.
In verse 7 he tells them: “Let anyone of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone.” Leaving only Jesus standing with the woman. He was the only one without sin and therefore the only one able to accuse her or stone her.
Instead of punishing the woman for her actions, Jesus is gracious and has mercy on her. V.11- “neither do I condemn you, Go now and leave your life of sin.” Our Lord is a Lord of second chances!
At some point in life, we have all been classified as one of these characters: either a Pharisee or an adulterous woman (the person at fault).
- Pharisee: unable to see our own need. Self righteous and guilty of judging others.
- Adulterer: Debtor, condemned by others, and in need of forgiveness, or feeling unworthy desperate for a do-over.
Both groups of people, whichever character we can relate to, we are desperately in need of Jesus’ forgiveness and we all need a second chance. So today I want to discuss the terms of His forgiveness & how we can receive it.
We have all been caught in the act. We cannot even try pleading “not guilty.” So we should stop trying to put up a defense.
In this story, the adulterous woman does not claim to be innocent and she does not call the Pharisees liars.
1 John 1: 8-10
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
Scripture is clear; if we confess our sins the Lord will forgive us! But if we claim that we do not need his forgiveness, then we are liars and the truth is not in us.
This is a great reminder to me that I do not confess enough!! I make requests but I should be repenting far more than requesting!!
Sometimes maybe we are too ashamed to ask for forgiveness. It may sound odd, but sometimes we accept the fact that we deserve a punishment; therefore we do not even ask for a pardon.
The adulterous woman knew that she was guilty- what she didn’t know was that Jesus was not only able to forgive her, but he WANTED to forgive her!
Last time I taught, I spoke about Christ’s healing. This question, “Do you really, really, really, want to be healed?" can be applied here too- "Do you really want to be forgiven?" Just like in our last lesson, Jesus is offering spiritual healing in the form of forgiveness to the adulterous woman. Today, He offers us this very same forgiveness, we just need to ask Him for it!
Isaiah 1: 18-20
“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land; but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.” For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.
The verse says if you are willing and obedient. When we repent and ask Jesus to forgive us, we are being obedient. Our sins have stained our life (stains as dark as scarlet) but, Christ wants to make them white as snow! No matter how great your sin, God’s grace is greater!
I’m sure many of you are familiar with the story of King David. He was called a man after God’s own heart. Yet he committed one of scriptures most scandalous sins. His actions involved murder and adultery!!
David slept with Bathsheba, committing adultery while her husband, Uriah, was away at war. Through this sexual sin, Bathsheba became pregnant, which would publicly reveal King David’s sin. In effort to cover up this act, David brings Uriah back from war. He encourages Uriah to go home and sleep with his wife. But he refuses to take any physical pleasures while his men are suffering at battle. So David is panicked! How is he going to cover up his sins now?
Instead of coming clean, he decides to send Uriah back to battle and place him on the front line. This was basically a death sentence! David commands some of the army officials to not send back up to protect Uriah, and thus Bathsheba’s husband was killed in battle. David was not only guilty of adultery, but he was guilty of murder!!
And as the story continues, we see that David is caught red handed, but still, the Lord forgives him. David was forgiven because David came to the Lord with sincere sorrow and request for forgiveness. He admitted that he had done wrong and claimed he was guilty!
Psalm 51:1-7
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight; so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge. Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place. Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Hyssop is an herb associated with cleansing and purification and in Psalm 51 is used symbolically of cleansing of the soul. The hebrew for word wash (kabac) is used for the washing of clothes by Beating and Pounding. King David wanted a thorough cleansing from the his sinful nature.
David believed the Lord would forgive him; therefore, he begged for forgiveness!
For some people, the question is not can Jesus forgive me, but rather do I need forgiving?
Last time I taught, we saw the legalistic Pharisees condemn Jesus for healing a lame man on the Sabbath and again here in today’s story they want to again condemn him for not keeping the law.
According to their standards they had been following this law and therefore did not need forgiveness.
I am curious, are we guilty of the same thing? Do we believe we are in the clear because we are better compared to someone else who is not following some biblical law?
Luke 7:36-47
39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”
40 Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
41 “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[c] and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
"Whoever has been forgiven little, loves little." We cannot receive the fullness of Christ's forgiveness unless we ask- BIG and OFTEN!
Like the Pharisees, we too may convince ourselves that we are good people because we have never committed adultery and we have definitely never killed anyone! So looking at the law makes us feel pretty good.
But in all these stories throughout the book of John, Jesus says, ok if you want to compare yourselves to the Law, then lets do it.
According to God’s law if you are angry with someone, you too are guilty of murder.
According to God’s law if you if you have ever fanaticized or looked at someone an inappropriate way, then you too have committed adultery!
If we want to be judged based on the law, we might as well line up and call in the firing squad because we are all guilty!
But as I shared last time, God’s law is not meant to condemn us, but rather to make us aware of our need for Christ’s forgiveness!
Going back to our story in John 8. Jesus does something strange in response to the Pharisees acquisitions. Instead of responding or debating with them, he starts writing something in the ground (Read John 8:6-7)
I looked at several commentaries to figure out what Jesus was writing. One commentary suggested that maybe he was writing the 10 commandments. Once he had finished he looked up at them and said, “you are right. She has broken the 7th commandment (thou shall not commit adultery, but have you all kept the other 9?
Sinlessness is the requirement for condemnation. Only Jesus is qualified!
Hebrews 4:15
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.
Jesus does not forgive because he feels he is not righteous enough, but rather he is the only one righteous enough to forgive!!
John 8:15- You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one.
5.) Jesus’ forgiveness proves his desire to heal us and NOT condemn us!
John 3:16-17
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Isaiah 61: 1-3
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy, instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy, instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.
God’s desire is not that I be punished for what I have done, but that I realize I need forgiveness and healing in order to receive a new heart. A heart that loves others the way Christ loves others.
This is why king David was called a man after God’s heart. When he was caught living in sin, he realized he needed God’s forgiveness before he could ever lead others.
As I was preparing for this lesson, I realized that I can never be an effective teacher and I can never share Christ's love with others until I start asking for forgiveness. The past couple months I have grown frustrated at times- feeling like I am not being an effective light, not only in our class but especially at work and with my friends outside these church walls. I keep putting so much pressure on myself and I have gotten to a point of feeling defeated and burnt out. "Lord, I will never reach this person or that group… I keep messing up and I don't think they hear or care." But as I spent time in this chapter, I realized the problem is not other people, but the problem is me.
I love to write and so I often write my prayers in a journal. It is always interested to see the Lord answer prayers that you have specifically written down. Sometimes when i get down or stuck i go back and read the things I have shared with the Lord. And I am realizing, my prayers are full of requests and lacking in repentance!
It was like God is saying Laura- I can't use you when your heart is not right before me. Lets work on you first.
Psalm 51:10-13
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
so that sinners will turn back to you.
so that sinners will turn back to you.
First my healing, THEN second teaching and leading!
We have to focus on our own spiritual healing before we can influence others. When we skip the first step, our motives will be full of flesh and we so easily become burnt out.
However; the Pharisees were actually right about one thing. When they found someone consumed in sin, they took her to Jesus! Even though their motives were not pure, Jesus can use impure motives to do amazing things.
I am so quick to judge, when I see someone else’s problems, I so quickly forget the sin in my own life! Instead of loving that person, I use what they are doing to make myself feel better. So often I am like the Pharisees and I take them to Jesus because I want to feel better about myself, not because I truly want them to get better!
This lesson is such a good reminder of what many of us (myself included) have forgotten.
- A.) It Reminds us that when we forget we too need forgiveness, we will fall back into our old ways and lose our love for the one who forgave us!
- B.) It Challenges us to examine our heart: What areas of your life do you need forgiveness? and are you asking for forgiveness?
- 3.) It gives an Example of the kind of forgiveness we are suppose to give one another
For those of you who do not claim Jesus as your savior: this lesson is an invitation to receive forgiveness and cleansing. You do not have to live in Guilt! No sin is too great to be forgiven and no sin is too small to need forgiveness!
When we leave our sins before His feet, he tells us: John 8:11- “Neither do I condemn you. Now go and leave your life of sin!”
