Where Are Your Accusers?

John 8:1-11

But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. And early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them.

Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?"

This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.

So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." And again He stooped down and wrote something on the ground.

Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?"

She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus spoke to her, "Neither do I condemn you: go and sin no more."


The events in the Bible are true. They may sometimes seem far fetched but we're talking about God here! We're talking about the One who created this earth and all things in it. Is nothing impossible for Him?  Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You. (Jeremiah 32:17)

Jesus had the right words for any occasion because they were the truth. And often these words stupefied or upset those who were trying to slip Him up. No one ever did, no one ever will.

Here again Jesus has brought the masses to listen to His words. It doesn't say they were forced to be there; and all the people came... What a commanding figure, this Jesus, and so amazingly wise. Who was this Man? They'd seen no one like Him. Surely He did not present Himself as one who was arrogant. He just spoke from His heart with all wisdom, knowledge and understanding. Just why the Pharisees despised Him. He was looking greater than they. A threat. Someone to get rid of. Just like we see Jesus here being tested by those who felt threatened, couldn't it be that today the whole idea of Christianity is in the same circumstance?

So here's a chance for the religious leaders to try to stump Him. There they went again bringing up the Old Testament laws, right before the Man who spoke of a new covenant, a new way. He put them in their places very swiftly! Was there any man there who had not sinned? No, because there is none righteous, no not one (Romans 3:10). There is only One who is totally without sin and they were standing before Him, trying to test Him!

And what does Jesus do? We don't know what He wrote on the ground although people have tried to speculate. I won't. We don't know. Maybe it was just something to give them a moment or two to think. So few words needed to be said, but such a conviction placed on these men.

Everyone is now gone. Just this woman who'd been caught in the "very act" of adultery. Had they been spying on her to catch her in the very act? What does that say about those who spied? Where were her accusers now? So they felt convicted!? Didn't stop them from wanting to stop Him, as we know. People feel convicted even today.

Anyway, then came what Jesus came into this world to do, for this woman and for us. Remove the condemnation and forgive sin. But there is a stipulation: go and sin no more. Jesus comes into our lives spiritually that we might turn from our sins and walk in obedience to a new life in Christ. He tells us that while others might condemn us, He will forgive. But it takes an act of belief that He has done this and still does.

As I write this I'm thinking about judgment. Some judge Christians for their seemingly narrow minded view of things. And we are told not to judge, and yet we are...righteously, like He did. He judged those Pharisees. He had them pegged! He also knew what all the sins of this world were. He had to judge. But He also hoped that people would turn from their sinful lives. It's what He asks of each one of us. And nothing is impossible through the power of Jesus Christ! In His own words He has told us this...

John 3:17-18 - For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."

Light and Dark

John 3:13-21

"No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

He who believes in Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."

The Book of John is amazing. It so shows us who Jesus is. It's a great read. John 3:16 is one of the most popular verses. That God so loved the world...He sent His Son to live among the sinners that He might make Himself known to them as the One who they must believe in to be saved. We love hearing about His love, don't we?

Jesus, the Light, lived among us who lived in darkness. A huge step down from the holiness of heaven into an evil world. If we are all sinners at birth, we live as evil beings, according to the Word.. We do. Only Jesus was perfect. That is why we need Him, to believe in Him, follow and obey Him...that our evil would be covered by His blood.

He came to earth to reveal Himself to man. Those who walked with Him, who were healed by Him, saw His miracles, saw Him go through an agonizing death and then saw Him once again alive, risen from His grave, have shared their testimonies with us that the Word would not be forgotten, that others would believe in Him also. Just because we weren't there doesn't mean it didn't happen. See how over the years many people have still believed and follow Him. He won't go away!

But there's that word again, believe. It seems to mean different things. It's a heart attitude, not a mental one. We cannot just know who Jesus is but we must have a heart knowledge of Him. We know Him and our lives change; we move away from that which He has said in His Word is evil...which is where we can get hung up. Who wants to believe they are evil?

In His own words Jesus claims those who do not believe are condemned. Sounds pretty harsh for a loving God, One who so loves the world. Many believe He is only love, that His judgment was only an Old Testament characteristic. But He does not change. He's the same today as He was then. It is we who must change.

So what does God claim is evil?

Proverbs 6 gives us a sampling of what He abhors: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren. Galatians 5 adds: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idol worship and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies. There are more...including teaching as doctrines the commandments of men (false preaching, teaching), Matthew 15.

If we say we know Jesus but continue to do evil, we don't know Him. All right, I can say I still struggle, like we all do, with some of those things above. We are not perfect. As long as we are on this earth we wrestle with our flesh. That's where this heartfelt belief in Him comes in. If we are in Christ, if we have given ourselves to Him, we are a new creation. Who can understand this fully? It's God's grace, that free gift He gives that we cannot work for. And we should not purposely sin after this new birth but when we catch ourselves, repent of it. Without that repentance we are guilty.

This is a hard teaching from our Lord. Some prefer not to know Him because they prefer their lifestyles, find it too difficult to let go of those things that are so all consuming. A lifestyle out of God's will is what He calls evil, darkness. The light (Jesus) is hated because of what it will expose. Seems we have so much to hide. But there is a freedom that also comes from letting go of what is considered evil by God.

Once we let go and are in God's will, understand His truth, what we do we know comes out of hearts wanting to do for God. Doing right is a lifelong process. He purges us that we might become more like Him. It's why we go through trials. There are always lessons to be learned.

Monday was the start of Passover. The Israelites were told to apply lamb's blood on the door posts of their houses to protect themselves from God's wrath as He went through Egypt killing all first born of each house. That is like what Jesus's blood applied to our hearts does for our safety. It comes in the form of a spiritual act of receiving, believing, following and obeying Jesus Christ. Amen!

1John 1:6-10 - If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.

I Said NO Condemnation!

Romans 8:1 - There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Do you ever find you berate yourself over a mistake you've made? Are you embarrassed, do you fret or become anxious about discussing this with God? Do you believe it was so bad He could not forgive you? Now is the time to remember that He is fully aware of all you think or do. And even better, He is fully merciful to forgive if you just ask. He knows all about you; knows all the hairs on your head. He loves you. His desire is for you.

What a wonderful God we serve! We all fall into sin at times but it is because we are children of the Most High God we are able to boldly enter into the Holy of Holies and ask for forgiveness. We are called to come just as we are, sins and all, that we might receive that forgiveness for all our mistakes/sins and fall under the non-condemnation clause in the Word of God! If we have received Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, it is a done deal. His love for us will never fade. It remains the same today as it was the day we first received Him because He never changes.

We all have imperfections, so let's not compare ourselves with someone else. We are all at different levels in our journey with the Lord. He does not compare us, nor does He condemn us, His children. He chose us to accomplish His plans. He desires to change our negative into positive. The mistakes we make as we go along will help us to learn and grow. As children of God we are all equal in His sight. Each one has a perfect plan and it does not include being condemned.

Let's thank God that He does not condemn us. He might discipline but also is part of our learning and growing experience. Let's thank Him that despite the mistakes we made He is always willing to forgive if we acknowledge them before Him. We do not need to worry about going to Him to seek His forgiveness. He is merciful, quick to forgive and desires to renew our spirits. 

John 3:18 - He that believes in Him is not condemned....