John 8 - Full of Grace. Full of Truth!
8 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 John 1:14 it says, "Jesus came full of grace and truth." There is no better example of this than this story. There is no better example of Jesus speaking the truth in love. Jesus loved this woman but did not excuse her sin. We can learn so much from Jesus in this story.
Once again the teachers of the law were trying to trap Jesus. This time they brought a woman caught in the act of adultery. This was an ongoing lifestyle for her. In Deuteronomy the law sanctioned this woman be put to death by stoning, but it was not often this happened in Jesus' day.
It is true that adultery was a capital offense under Jewish law, but the rules for evidence in capital cases were extremely strict. The actual act had to be observed by multiple witnesses who agreed exactly in their testimony. As a practical matter, virtually no one was executed for adultery, since this was a relatively private sin. - Guzik
When they asked him what he would do, he started writing on the ground. First, it shows he could write. The question is what was he writing? The best answer I have heard that he was writing down all of the sins of her accusers, which makes sense when he says, "Whoever of you is without sin gets to throw the first stone."
It is interesting that the older leaders were the first to get up and leave. After all, they knew their sins better than anyone. When Jesus was left alone with the woman, I wonder what she must have been thinking. Maybe she feared that Jesus wanted to punish her alone not in front of everyone. After all, Jesus was the only one without sin so he would be justified in throwing the first stone.
Jesus asked her, "Is there no one left to condemn you?" She said, "No one sir!" And then the only one who could have condemned her said, "Then neither do I?"
One can only imagine how she must have felt in that moment. But Jesus was not done. If he would have stopped there, she might have viewed it as a temporary reprieve which allowed her to go back to her old lifestyle. But Jesus said, "Go and sin no more!" Full of grace and full of truth!
Dispute Over Jesus’ Testimony
12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 13 The Pharisees challenged him, “Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your testimony is not valid.” 14 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. 15 You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. 16 But if I do judge, my decisions are true, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. 17 In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is true. 18 I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me.” 19 Then they asked him, “Where is your father?” “You do not know me or my Father,” Jesus replied. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” 20 He spoke these words while teaching in the temple courts near the place where the offerings were put. Yet no one seized him, because his hour had not yet come.
We see again John's theme of light and darkness when Jesus declares, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness." The religious leaders try to accuse him of testifying on his own behalf. Jesus once again returns to the theme of his divinity. Jesus doesn't have to testify because He is God. Any judgment Jesus gave would be true, because he had come from God and He was the truth. His truth was verified with the Father. They were always in agreement because they were and are One.
In a Jewish court of law one needed only two witnesses. Jesus had himself, God the Son, and God the Father. I would say these would be called "star witnesses"!
The leaders were still stuck on his earthly father, who was Joseph. The Jewish leaders did not know his earthly father, but more importantly they did not know the heavenly Father. Amazingly Jesus was not seized, as this would have considered blasphemy, which was also punishable by stoning.
“They prided themselves on their knowledge of their God. Jesus tells them that they have no knowledge of Him at all.” (Morris)
Dispute Over Who Jesus Is
21 Once more Jesus said to them, “I am going away, and you will look for me, and you will die in your sin. Where I go, you cannot come.” 22 This made the Jews ask, “Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, ‘Where I go, you cannot come’?” 23 But he continued, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins.” 25 “Who are you?” they asked. “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning,” Jesus replied. 26 “I have much to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is trustworthy, and what I have heard from him I tell the world.” 27 They did not understand that he was telling them about his Father. 28 So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up[a] the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me. 29 The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him.” 30 Even as he spoke, many believed in him.
Jesus let them know that he would be going away soon. He gets pretty direct and confronts the Pharisees by telling them where He is going they can't come. Of course, they are thinking in the temporal realm. He also tells them that they will die in their sin. He is already building the framework of unless they believe in him they will not receive forgiveness of their sins.
They ask, "Who are you?" They have never had someone talk to them like this before. I don't they are inquiring as much as questioning why he thinks he has the nerve to speak to them like this. When they nail Jesus to the cross, they will realize Jesus' true identity as the Son of Man.
“I could speedily expose all your iniquities-your pride and ambition, your hypocrisy and irreligion, your hatred to the light, and your malice against the truth, together with the present obstinate unbelief of your hearts, and show that these are the reasons why I say you will die in your sins.” (Clarke)
Jesus maintained his unity with the Father. He came from the Father. He only spoke what the Father told him to speak. His goal was always to please the Father and do His will. The Father would never leave him alone, though Jesus would feel alone in the garden.
Not everyone dismissed Jesus. Those who had been called by the Father believed in him. They recognized Jesus was the way, the truth, and the life. They realized the only way to the Father was through him.
Dispute Over Whose Children Jesus’ Opponents Are
31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?” 34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are Abraham’s descendants. Yet you are looking for a way to kill me, because you have no room for my word. 38 I am telling you what I have seen in the Father’s presence, and you are doing what you have heard from your father.[b]” 39 “Abraham is our father,” they answered. “If you were Abraham’s children,” said Jesus, “then you would[c] do what Abraham did. 40 As it is, you are looking for a way to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. 41 You are doing the works of your own father.” “We are not illegitimate children,” they protested. “The only Father we have is God himself.” 42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. 43 Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. 44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! 46 Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me? 47 Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”
Though many believed in him, he made it clear that it was only when the obeyed his teaching would they be set free from sin and bondage. Again they took him literally and referred to their history as sons of Abraham. But they forgot the part in history where they were in bondage to the Egyptians and also when the Babylonians and Assyrians invaded them and took away their freedom.
Jesus was also speaking on spiritual terms. He was talking about the bondage to sin. Anyone who continues on in sin is a slave to sin. In a sense though they are choosing to sin, they also are born in sin with a sinful nature. But through Jesus' death on the cross they would be set free from sin, death, and the power of the devil.
These Jews claimed Abraham was their father. A Jew's identity was wrapped up in being a child of Abraham, which made them a child of God through the Abrahamic covenant. But if they were from God, Jesus argued, why were they trying to kill the Son of God. The reality is because of their sinful nature, they could not see who Jesus really was or understand what he taught.
Jesus tells them they are not sons of Abraham, but their father is the devil. I'll bet that went over real well. Jesus also tells them the nature of the devil, who is the father of all lies. The devil was a liar from the beginning. He lied to Adam and Eve telling them the opposite of what God told them. God told them that when they ate from the tree of good and evil, surely they would die.
The devil said, "Surely you will not die!"
“This verse is one of the most decisive testimonies for the objective personality of the devil. It is quite impossible to suppose an accommodation to Jewish views, or a metaphorical form of speech, in so solemn and direct an assertion as this.” (Alford)
This is one of the ways they cannot see the truth of Jesus as the Son of Man, because the devil has deceived them. If they belonged to God they would see the lies of the devil.
Jesus’ Claims About Himself
48 The Jews answered him, “Aren’t we right in saying that you are a Samaritan and demon-possessed?” 49 “I am not possessed by a demon,” said Jesus, “but I honor my Father and you dishonor me. 50 I am not seeking glory for myself; but there is one who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.” 52 At this they exclaimed, “Now we know that you are demon-possessed! Abraham died and so did the prophets, yet you say that whoever obeys your word will never taste death. 53 Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are?” 54 Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. 55 Though you do not know him, I know him. If I said I did not, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and obey his word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” 57 “You are not yet fifty years old,” they said to him, “and you have seen Abraham!” 58 “Very truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” 59 At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.
The leaders try to turn the table on him by saying he is demon possessed. By claiming to be greater than Abraham, the leaders thought Jesus was again going crazy. They said, "Who do you think you are?"
Then Jesus makes his most direct claim to be divine. He says, "Very truly before Abraham was born I am."
The word for "I am" in the Greek is the same word for Yahweh (God) in the Hebrew Old Testament. It would have been unmistakeable to the Jews, which is why they picked up stones to kill him. The gauntlet had been laid, Jesus would now be on the run for the rest of his life, but eventually they would catch up to him.
Comments
Post a Comment