THE SAVIOUR’S GRACE FOR SINNERS’ GUILT
Study Text: John 8:1-11
Introduction:
- When this woman met Jesus, her life changed forever. Her sin was forgiven. Her guilt was removed. Her fear was turned to peace.
- What appeared to be a hopeless case suddenly became a time of forgiveness, salvation and joy.
- Let’s imagine the scene. It is very early in the morning. Jesus is sitting in the Temple. A crowd has gathered around Him as He teaches them the word of God. It is a scene of peace and tranquillity.
- This poor woman’s story speaks to us today.
i. This story teaches us that no sinner is too far gone.
ii. It teaches us that no one’s guilt is too deep.
iii. It teaches us that no one is beyond the reach of the grace of God.
iv. This is a story of hope in the midst of hopelessness.
- We shall discuss the topic under three sub-headings:
1. The Guilt of the Adulteress
2. The Game of the Accusers
3. The Grace of the Advocate
1. The Guilt of the Adulteress
- This woman was caught in “the very act” of adultery. Evidently, she was caught having sexual relations with a man to whom she was not engaged. She was guilty of a terrible sin, of that there was no doubt. Her guilt is beyond question.
- Adultery is a vile sin. We have whitewashed it in our day and we call it “an affair.” God calls it adultery and He says it is a sin! It’s easy to see why.
i. It breaks the Law of God. ii. It violates marriage vows.
iii. It breaks hearts and destroys families. iv. It destroys trust.
iv. It shatters dreams. vi It is horrible, evil, and inexcusable.
- Yet, as horrible as the sin of adultery is; it is no worse, in the eyes of God, than any other sin, James 2:10. All sin is evil in His sight.
- Certainly, some sins carry greater consequences than others. For instance, adultery can destroy your marriage; you might acquire a sexually transmitted disease; or a multitude of other terrible things can happen.
- Contrast that with someone who takes a piece of candy from a store without paying for it. It happens and no one but God and the shoplifter know anything about it.
- We look at those sins and we think they are worlds apart. While, they do carry vastly different consequences if the sinner is caught, in God’s eyes, however, they are the same thing. They are both sin! Rom.3:10–18.
- Each of us is just as guilty as this adulterous woman; our problem is that we simply won't admit to it. And, admitting that we are sinner is the first step toward finding forgiveness.
- Sin is a shameful thing! The sinner will always be brought to shame, if not before other people, surely before the Lord.
- For, no matter how skillfully sin is hidden from the eyes of others, Jesus knows all about it. Pro. 15:3.
- One day hidden sin will be revealed for all to see. That is the Lord’s clear statement. Luke 12:3.
- One day, even the true state of the sinner’s heart will be revealed, the truth about your profession will also be made public, Matt. 7:21-23.
- This woman was guilty, and the men who accused her were correct; she deserved to die. The Law of God said so: Lev. 20:10, Deut. 22:22.
- Adulterous women who were betrothed were stoned to death, married women were strangled, and if the woman was the daughter of a priest, she was to be burned to death.
- Of course, there was a little problem with their accusation: Where was her partner? Both were supposed to die for this sin! The man may have been part of this scheme to attack Jesus. He may have been allowed to slip away. Regardless of where the man was, this woman was guilty and she deserved to die.
- Again, there is a lesson here for us: nobody gets away with sin! Sin demands a price, and that payment always come due; Rom. 6:23; Eze. 18:4.
- If you are not saved, you need to know that there will be a payday associated with your sin. The ultimate price will be paid when you die.
- If you die without Jesus, you will go to Hell. From there, you will one day stand before the Lord Jesus Christ and be cast into “the lake of fire.” The Bible calls that “the second death,” and that is the future every lost soul faces, Rev. 20:11-15.
- The only hope any sinner has is found in the person of Jesus. Jesus Christ is the only hope anyone has in this world or the one to come. Jesus is the only way, John 14:6; Acts 4:12; Acts 16:31.
- This woman is trapped! What can she do? She can’t deny her sin; she was caught in the very act of adultery.
- To whom could she plead her case? The Law condemned her. The crowd condemned her. The religious establishment condemned her.
2. The Game of the Accusers
- These religious legalists were attempting to pin Jesus on the horns of a dilemma. If Jesus let the woman go without condemning her sin, He would be seen as being easy on sin. He could be labelled a compromiser, and He could have been arrested for violating the Law.
- If, on the other hand, He endorsed the stoning on this woman, He could then be accused before Rome as an upstart and a seditionist, and He would have destroyed His reputation as being the “friend of publicans and sinners.”
- We know this was a setup. It was an attempt to trap Jesus in an effort to get rid of Him. Either they could discredit Him with the people, with Rome, or in His relationship to the Law.
- When Jesus did speak, He said, “He that is without sin among, let him first cast a stone at her.” He stood back up and He said, “Stone her! But let the man without sin be the one to cast the first stone.”
- These men were guilty, and they knew it! At this point, all the shouting came to a stop and all that could be heard was the dropping of their rocks and the shuffle of their sandals as they quietly slipped away. These men had been exposed before their fellow man, the accused lady and most importantly before the Lord.
- We should give these men credit for the fact that when they saw themselves as they really were, they stopped calling for the death of this woman.
- One of the hardest things you will ever do is see yourself as you really are! When you do see yourself as you are, you will be in a place to do something about it.
3. The Grace of the Advocate
- When Jesus stooped that day: His stooping is a picture of His grace. When Jesus stooped here, He stooped for this woman. When He stood up, He stood up for her too!
- Jesus stood up and faced this sinful woman. Standing there before her, He was the only One the world has ever known Who was qualified to take up those stones, and execute her for her sins. When she faced Jesus, she was facing the ultimate judge!
- She came to a place where life came down to just Jesus and her. By the way, it always comes down to that! Eventually, somewhere, someday you are going to have to face Jesus. Eventually, somewhere, someday you are going to have to bow to Jesus!
- The only One qualified to throw a stone refused to! Jesus dealt with her on the basis of mercy and grace. She deserved judgment, but He gave her forgiveness!
- Those religious men condemned her and said she was worthy of death. Jesus saw someone who was worthy of His love. He saw someone worth saving.
- When this woman looked to Jesus by faith and received the grace He offered to her, her salvation was instantaneous. That’s how it works for all of us! Rom. 10:9
- Everyone who comes to Jesus by faith receives forgiveness for all their sins and absolute liberation from all condemnation, Rom. 8:1, 1 Cor. 6:9-11.
- When Jesus cleansed her, He said, “Go and sin no more.” All of her life, this woman had been subject to Satan. She had been a prisoner of her own lusts and desires, Eph. 2:1-3.
- Jesus came to her and unlocked the shackles that bound her to her sin, and He set her free! How her life must have changed!
- Think of her years later as she looks at her children and her husband. A family she would have never had if she hadn’t met Jesus.
- Jesus specializes in taking wasted, ruined lives and saving them by His grace and restoring them to usefulness. Every person who comes to Jesus for salvation receives a new life, 2 Cor. 5:17.
- Jesus did not see this woman as she was, He saw her as she could become through Him! Jesus took a wicked, godless, carnal, sinful woman and turned her into a saint.
- When Jesus looks at a life, He sees a person as they can become through faith in Him. Just so you know, your life doesn’t have to remain like it is right now. It can be better, it can be new, and it can be pleasing to the Lord, but only if you will come to Jesus!
- When He stopped and stood up, sin, death, Hell, Satan, and the grave were all defeated!
- When Jesus stopped and stood up in the Temple, a woman was set free from sin and certain death. When Jesus stooped to die and stood up three days later, He delivered His people from their sins!
Conclusion:
- Your life does not have to be lived out in the prison house of sin. You do not have to be a slave to your passions. You do not have to die and go to Hell.
- The Lord of glory, Jesus Christ Himself, stooped for you! He came to this world and died that you might live. He came to set you free.
- He is able to deliver you from the sins that torment you. He is able to deliver you from dead religion. He is able to give you a new life.
- All you need do is accepting His grace just like this woman did. When you do, salvation will be the result!
- Are you lost in sin? Come to Jesus and be saved! Are you saved by grace? Come to Jesus and give Him long and sustained praise for His grace in your life.
