What do Alex, Erin, and Tim need to know?
INTRO
Good Morning… Blah blah blah…
Simple yet profound (Reword)… We chose to do an in depth on John's gospel because although it's often time the first suggested book to read to brand new Christians because of its simplicity, it also is amazingly profound in its structure, theology, and richness. We hope that you are reading John on your own as we walk through this book as a community and our prayer is that the simple words of John will profoundly move us all to living Jesus > Everything.
Something about Fathers Day...
TENSION
In honor of Father’s I thought the best passage of scripture would be the Woman Caught in the act of adultery…
I think this is actually a really good passage for us to look at today… There’s a lot in here for everyone. But specifically for you dads out there’s some stuff you need to see…
In this passage we are going to see Jesus handle a situation that involves someone caught doing the wrong thing… They made it mistake. In this case a big one. And Jesus has a unique ability forgive her and tell her the truth of her actions…
This is a great lesson for everyone in the room, but I especially think it’s one that every dad in the room needs to lean in on. Because most of us we lean towards giving the truth or avoiding conflict…
If I could put this in other words Jesus enters into the situation full of Grace AND Truth. He doesn’t skimp on either. But most of us lean towards one…
The truth is your kids need to know the truth. They do they need it. But truth without grace is just cruel. It just beats people down. Some of you have experienced that. Your kids also need grace… But grace without truth is just a get out of jail free card. They will learn nothing if you always just give grace. Your kids need you to be full of Grace AND Truth.
And the reality is everyone in your life needs that. Everyone wants that. But so often we lean towards one extreme.
TEACHING
We are going to look at a story of Jesus today and I think this story best illustrates how Jesus was full of Grace and Truth. Turn your Bibles over to John 8: let me set the scene a little bit… Jesus is teaching a group of people at the temple when all of a sudden a women is brought before him. This women was caught in the act of adultery, not accused, caught in the act… This is a set up, a trap. They probably followed this couple around, saw them eat, get drinks, and when they went back to the hotel room they waited a few minutes then busted down the door. They threw the sheets off and grabbed her and drug her out of bed… and left him… Not fair. And brought her before Jesus.
These guys bring this women before Jesus, which is probably the worst day of her life. She’s standing before Jesus, probably wrapped in only a sheet… And then they start quoting scripture to Jesus. Which is never a good idea… Jesus did you know the Bible says this… Yeah I wrote it… So they are quoting this scripture and telling Jesus this women was caught in the act of adultery. And they are reminding Jesus that what this women did is a sin. Not only a sin, it was a crime and one punishable by death. Leviticus 16, anyone caught in adultery can be stoned to death.
That’s the truth. The women broke God’s rules for sexual purity. This women was caught breaking a law, she’s blown up her marriage and probably blown up some other marriage in the process. She’s in the wrong. Here’s Biblical truth. The wage of sin is death. That’s in the Bible, Romans 6, you cannot argue that. The wage of all sin is death. Not just this sin, but all sin. So these guys say Jesus what should we do with her? They are trying to trap him, but Jesus knows what they are trying to do. And what he’s going to do is give her exactly what she needs in that moment.
My guess is you’ve been in a situation like this before… Not the caught committing adultery, being dragged naked into public part… At least I hope you haven’t experienced that…
But you’ve been found out right? You’ve been caught? think back to that moment… What is it that you needed? Not what you wanted, what did you need?
Maybe you’re a parent… You’ve definitely caught your kids doing something they shouldn’t have… You caught them… They are guilty… Do you know what they need in that moment… Do you know what we all need when we are caught in the wrong? We need truth. But we need truth WITH LOVE. In other words, we need truth and grace.
And Jesus is going to show us exactly what this looks like…
Check out this interaction…
The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 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. John 8:2-6 (SLIDE)
Jesus doesn’t even justify their answer yet, instead he just starts writing in the sand…The Bible doesn’t tell us what Jesus wrote in the dirt because that’s not the point. I have some theories. But the more important piece is what he says next.
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. John 8:7-8 (SLIDE)
That’s what he said, but it’s really really important that we know what Jesus did not say. Because a lot of us impose things on what Jesus said that we think should be in the Bible. Here’s what he did not say… He didn’t look back at the crowd and say come on it’s not really a big deal. Maybe back in old fashion Moses’ day but not in our modern 1st century times. We’re cool, come on guys it’s not a big deal. So don’t worry about it. With all the other problems in the world right now do you really think this is a big deal? I mean people are getting nailed to crosses everyday is it really a big deal who this girl sleeps with? This isn’t a big deal, go home… That’s all grace and no truth and Jesus didn’t say that.
Here’s an other thing he didn’t say… Give her a break. give her a break. It’s not really her fault. You don’t know her story like I do. You see she’s in a bad marriage with a guy she shouldn't have married in the first place. Her husband doesn’t treat her very well and she still has some daddy issues she’s dealing with. So she fell in love with this guy that she met at the watering hole last night. For once she felt good about herself and he makes her happy and he promised her all these things and she believed it. So it’s really not all her fault.
He didn’t say that… He didn’t say come we all make mistakes. She’s only 19. It was prom, it was college, we all remember those days. He didn’t say that. Maybe you wish he did, but he didn’t…
Jesus also didn’t say you’re right. She was caught in a sin and the wages of that sin is death… So let’s do it. If you are looking for someone to cast the first stone, I’m in. I’ll blow the whistle and we will on go after her. Let’s give her what she deserves. Which is true, there’s bible verses to back it up. But that’s not what he said. That’s all truth and no grace and Jesus didn’t say that.
What he said was… If there is someone else in this religious crowd who hasn’t committed a sin. Maybe not this sin, but a sin that the Bible tells us not to do. If someone like that exists in this crowd, go ahead, by all means, throw the first stone.
But watch what happens…
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. John 8:9 (SLIDE)
Why did they go home? They were right. They had truth on their side, they had a Bible verse to back it up. Why didn’t they just point to the verse and step into the role of jury, judge, prosecutor, and executioner. What stopped them? The answer is truth..
That same truth that brought them to that place where they thought they had the right to attack what others have done wrong in their lives also stopped them dead in their tracks. When Jesus acknowledged that what they said is true. He also acknowledge an other bigger truth. That truth is, if those are the rules you want to play by, we can play by those rules. But are you sure you want to do that?
We can use truth as a weapon to destroy other people. We can use truth to destroy her, but when we are done with her. Your next. That’s truth. Everyone gets what they deserve. Anybody want to play by those rules? The whole crowd gets what they deserve. Nope, I’m out, and the whole crowd dropped their stones and went home. They wanted to condemn her with truth, but once they realized that that truth didn’t just condemn her it also condemned them they were out.
Let’s be honest, we are just like them…
Anybody ever see a car driving on the line… and think what an idiot… He can’t even hold his car straight… Only to look down and realize you were on the line too?
I’ll use myself as an example… I can be the biggest hypocrite. When I see someone else make a mistake I am SO quick to throw truth at them. My family, my wife, that person on the road… When someone else makes a mistake I throw truth at them… Because I’m right and they are wrong…
Be honest, that’s you too isn’t it?
When I’m confronted with the truth that although they might be wrong, but I’m guilty too. I put down my stones and walk away. I don’t want to play by those rules. Because if they are guilty, I’m guilty too.
Many of us stop reading the story here… The take away is nobody is perfect so don’t throw stones. We all make mistakes so don’t judge me. But Jesus isn’t done. He’s not done yet. We can’t ignore what Jesus says next.
The crowd is now gone and it’s just Jesus and the woman standing there and this is what Jesus says…
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.” John 8:10-11 (SLIDE)
This is important, this is part of the story that often gets left out. Jesus said neither do I condemn you, the one person in the crowd that is qualified to condemn her didn’t. And listen, He could have. He could have picked up that stone and done it. He could have, but he didn’t. That’s called grace.
Grace is getting what you need, and not what you deserve. (SLIDE)
Here’s what Jesus is saying… I could condemn you. But instead I’m going to give you something better. I’m going to give you what you NEED, not what you DESERVE.
But again the conversation isn’t over yet. Because Jesus is loving, because Jesus wants what’s best for her, he can’t leave it there. So he says “Go and sin no more”. In other words, from now on you can’t do this anymore. You can’t live your life like this anymore.
She was living her life apart from what God says was best for her. She was sinning.
Jesus is telling her I could condemn you, but I won’t. Because I want something better for you. But you’ve got to stop, you’ve got to stop living your life that way. Because it’s not the best I have for you.
Jesus gave her exactly what she needed. She needed grace so she wouldn’t be stuck in her mistakes. And she needed truth so that she wouldn’t go back to her old ways…
Dads in the room… This is what your kids need. This is what your family needs. They need your grace, your forgiveness… Otherwise they will just end up stuck in their mistake. They will feel like a failure with no hope for the future. But they also need truth… They need to know the right way to act. You’ve got to be full of truth and grace…
This isn’t just for dads… This is for everyone in the room… You family, your spouse, your employee or employer, your neighbor, your whoever… They need grace and truth from you…
The world so often only offers one side. They give grace and forgive, but never offer truth… Or they give truth and no grace and beat people down… We need to be a church full of both…
APPLICATION
If you care about someone, if you love someone then you have to show them grace and truth… One without the other is not love… It is not caring..
Here’s the bottom line…
This is what Jesus is saying… "Because I love you, I must to tell you the truth." (SLIDE) If you love someone you have to tell them the truth. If you believe that God’s way is the best way for our lives then we need to tell others the truth. But what most of us say is because I love you, I’m just going to let you do what you want… That’s not love.
But that’s not all… "Because I love you, I must offer you grace." (SLIDE) Because God loved us he sent us Jesus so that we could have grace. Jesus came so that we could be saved from the untruth that is in our life. Because I love you I must offer you grace too. That has to be the mindset of Christians, Because I love you, I must offer you grace and truth.
My guess is it’s much easier for most of you parents out there to give your kids truth… Especially after a long day where they are misbehaving… But listen, they need grace… If you never give them grace it just beats them down.
Early on in my time working in the church (not here) I had a few interactions with the leadership of the church. They were quick to point out all the areas I didn’t measure up… All the mistakes I made and the areas that they thought weren’t my strengths… Now I needed that truth. I needed to know that… But they never balanced it with grace… There was no here’s how you get better, here’s how you can improve. In short it was get better or get out…
I know some of you have worked in places like that and really that’s not a good environment. It doesn’t promote growth. And my guess is that’s how some of you are in your homes too… There’s little grace… Just truth.
Example of grace and truth with my wife… Maybe how she forgives me, but tells me what I did wrong… Without the truth I will never get better, but without her grace I will feel stuck…
You need both…
I can’t control all the environments my son will eventually enter into. I can control his school or his future workplaces… But what I can control is the tone of our house. And when here’s there… I want him to hear the truth, in love, but i want him to know the truth. But right beside there’s a whole world out there with so little grace… He needs that.
I need that… You need that… We all need that.
That’s what Jesus gives us… Because he loves us he tells us the truth about us… He will point out the ugly parts in us… not to condemn, but so that we can live a better life… That’s what he did for that woman… But also Jesus gives us grace because he loves us… And we need both…
So in our lives let’s follow his example. Dads… Let’s be full of grace and truth for our families…
For everyone else what does it mean for you to be full of grace and truth for your kids, spouse, neighbor, coworker, friends, whoever? Which one do you struggle with? Do you lean towards giving grace without truth or truth without grace?
Let’s go from here and be full of grace and truth…
CONCLUSION
Imagine what would happen if you lived this way… What would that tell your kids? How would this change them? What impact would this make on your marriage? Continue on with this... Spice it up...
I think Jesus would more clearly be seen… I think people would be drawn to the Gospel… Continue on...
Let’s be more like Jesus and let’s live full of grace and truth…
