Sin No More
John 7:53 – John 8:11

INTRODUCTION: Good morning church. We will start with a historical introduction before we look at this section. This story is well known and often used to show the compassion of Jesus. Before we begin, we need to make a note about the markings found in your Bibles concerning this text. Many Bibles will mark either in the footnotes or directly in the text that this story is not found in the earliest and best Greek manuscripts of the Gospel of John. Scholars note that some ancient manuscripts place this story in different parts of John or even in the Gospel of Luke.

In his New Testament Commentary William Hendriksen wrote:
“Though it cannot now be proved that this story formed an integral part of the Fourth Gospel, neither is it possible to establish the opposite with any degree of finality. We believe moreover that what is recorded here really took place and contains nothing in conflict with the apostolic spirit.”

We will study the narrative as it has come down to us.

I. The Law – Let us begin with John 8:1-6 – “1. but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them. 3. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst 4. they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 5. Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” 6. This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.” [ESV] In chapter 7 we saw that Jesus has come to Jerusalem, and He is now sitting and teaching in the temple.

A. In verse 3 the narrator tells us that the scribes and Pharisees present a woman who has been caught in the act of adultery and place her amid this crowd. I visualize this as being like Matthew 5:1. The custom of sitting down to teach was a procedure long followed in the early church. Sitting to teach was an indication of authority. J.R. Dummelow noted that in the "early church, the preacher sat, and the congregation, including the emperor, stood."
B. In verse 4 the narrator describes what is said: They say to him, teacher this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Twice this information is given to us and here it is with the scribes and Pharisees own words to Jesus. In verse 5 they continue by telling Jesus what the law commands and asking Him, “So what do you say?” - What do you say?
C. Verse 6 is the most telling part of what is going on here, telling us that They said this to test him. That they might have some charge to bring against him. We know that this is not a legitimate question but a trap. They were not really concerned because they caught this person sinning and came to Him because they didn’t know what to do. This is the sort of thing that we see in the other Gospels. The religious leaders are always tempting, testing, pressing, trying to catch Jesus because they want to arrest Him.

1. I think first we should look at what the law of Moses has to say since they refer to it. Leviticus 20:10 reads, “If a man commits adultery with the wife of his neighbor, both the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.” Likewise, Deuteronomy 22:22 says, “If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman. So you shall purge the evil from Israel.”
2. The text there in Leviticus and Deuteronomy doesn't say stoning, however, that's how the Jews typically executed the death penalty. They are reflecting what the law says when they say that this person is to be stoned. We also want to recognize that she's not just simply accused of this. The story indicates that she's been caught red-handed, in the act.
3. When you read the law, what does the law say is to happen in this situation? Looking at Leviticus and Deuteronomy, what exactly is supposed to happen? The law says not only the woman, but also the man is to die. Something's not right here.
4. If this is a legitimate story and a legitimate problem, why didn't you bring the man as the law requires as well? What is going on here that he's not involved and they've only brought her? Then I wonder how they even accomplished catching somebody in the very act of adultery and yet did not hang on to both as the law requires?
5. They are pressing Jesus and trying to test Him by picking this time when He is teaching a crowd of people. They bring in the woman and put her in the midst, and they say we've caught her in the act of adultery. The law says that we're supposed to stone her. Trying to put Him on the spot they ask; what do you say?
6. As an aside, there were two schools of Pharisees at this time and with the predominant one, Hillel, punishment of death for this offence was obsolete. Some think they wished to make Jesus unpopular with the people by inducing Him to advocate its revival. Others think it more likely they wished to embroil Him with the Roman authorities, who would not allow a death-sentence to be executed without their permission.

II. Jesus’ Response – Jesus knows the purpose of these leaders. They do not love the law of God. They are not put off by sin. They just want to dispatch Jesus. They want Jesus arrested and killed. They do not want to deal with Him any longer, but Jesus does not immediately respond. Rather than looking up toward these accusers and addressing them, Jesus bends over and writes on the ground. This is not what these leaders wanted. They wanted a response from Jesus.

A. Verse 7 says, “And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”” They keep pressing Him for an answer until He stands up and says to them, let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.

1. Let's first talk about what this doesn't mean, and then we can talk about what Jesus is doing with this response. It is important for us to recognize that He is not excusing her sin, nor is He suggesting that only perfect people can offer up a judgement which is a conclusion that some wish to draw.
2. This isn't saying that anybody who hasn't sinned in their life should be the one to throw the first stone. The reason that will not hold is because repeatedly, Jesus, as well as the New Testament writers, call upon us to pass righteous judgment. Matthew 18:15-20, “15. “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.””
3. There's obviously judgment going on. Jesus is not teaching something here to suggest that, if somebody sins, you can't even mention that because you're a sinner also. Repeatedly, we're told that that is not the case. We're commanded to reprove, to rebuke, to exhort, to correct. It's the very purpose of what we're trying to do together in encouraging one another toward obedience and holiness and godliness.
4. We need judgment to deem somebody needing correction; to ostracize a sinner; to baptize anybody; to stand up for truth. To say that we can never judge is to go beyond the scriptures, for Jesus also commands us to judge, but with righteousness. We saw that last time in John 7:24.

B. Jesus answers from the scriptures. If we are going to invoke what Leviticus and Deuteronomy say to do, that is, they are supposed to put the adulterer and the adulteress to death, what does the scripture say of them?

1. Deuteronomy 17:6-7 says, “On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses the one who is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness. The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people.”
2. Under Mosaic law, execution required qualified witnesses, and there must be two or three. Where are they? Both Deuteronomy 13:9 and 17:7 declare that the hands of the witnesses were to be the first to act.

C. Jesus’ statement demonstrated that these men were not as eager as they claimed to carry out this command from Moses, and neither were they morally competent to do so. The Law made it clear that the witnesses were required to carry out the stoning. They had violated the Law by not bringing the man with whom this woman had been involved.

1. As Guy N. Woods put it “The issue was not whether the Law of Moses should be respected and obeyed—the Lord, in contrast with these Jews, gave the law its proper place and fulfilled it—the issue was whether these hypocritical pretenders were the proper representatives of it and possessed of the moral competence to carry it out.”
2. When was God's word ever to be used as a lynch mob? Because that's what is happening in the story. God did not give the laws of Leviticus and Deuteronomy so that Israelites could go around knocking on doors and busting through windows to find who they could catch sinning and get them killed.
3. I wonder what kind of heart people must have to find a couple in the act of adultery, decide to seize the woman, let the man go so that they can get her killed. What we are seeing is the scribes and Pharisees not at all interested in carrying out the law of God. They don't care about this woman. They don't care that a sin has been committed. If they had; (1) they would not be testing Jesus, (2) the accusers failed to bring the man involved, which violated the proper procedures of the Mosaic code itself, (3) they would know what to do because the law is clear.

D. Let’s take a minute to consider another problem. Why do we pass judgment? Why do we expose darkness? I submit to you that there are two reasons. One is a righteous reason, and one is a sinful reason.

1. The sinful reason for condemnation is to make ourselves feel better. We want to elevate ourselves. “At least I’ve never committed a sin like that!” The point is simply embarrassment of the other person and self-righteous thinking of ourselves.
2. The right reason for condemnation is because we want people to know what they are doing is wrong and they need to turn to the mercy and grace of God. No one will find grace unless they know they are in sin. No one can be saved unless they understand they are condemned.
3. We saw this back in chapter 3 when we saw Jesus teaching that we are condemned already. We point out darkness so people will come to the light, not to elevate ourselves and make ourselves feel better. The Jewish Leaders claim she was caught in this sin but have let the man go free yet desire the woman to be killed. This is not justice or righteousness at all. These people have made a mockery of God’s law.
4. It was not the business of these leaders to accuse and judge the woman. But that of the husband and the judges.

E. Verse 8, “And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground.” Another period of silence ensued, as the Lord kept writing. The older heads in the Pharisees' company saw instantly that their scheme had failed. Not in a million years were they prepared to produce a witness, much less a sinless witness. Jesus was giving them time to reflect. God is long suffering.

1. What was the purpose of the law of Moses? To show that everybody falls short of the law of God, that everybody falls short of His character, that nobody is obedient, that all of us are condemned, that all of us are sinners. The function of law was to show us that we have a problem with sin and we need a Savior. We need someone to deal with our sins.
2. I think that is critical to understanding what's going on with these Jews. Why have they captured her? To test Jesus. Does that make them “holier than thou”? They act like it until Jesus reminds them of their sinful own nature that they are ignoring.
3. You don't seem to grasp what you've done. In your effort to try to do harm to this woman and to test me, look at all the things that you've done yourself. Where is your heart for this person? Where is your care for her soul? Why have you not done what God has specifically called for you to do? It is an important picture of what's happening here.

F. You'll notice in our story in verse 9, “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.” [NKJV] However we understand that phrase, it certainly seemed to hit the heart of them and they recognized how they had handled the situation was completely wrong and a violation of everything that the law of Moses had said.

1. The Saviour's silence — the total absence (or silence) of any witness against the woman — the watchfulness of the throng of people — all of that became suddenly a situation of profound embarrassment to the Pharisees. The oldest, being the more perceptive, led the way, and they all left.
2. What caused them to leave wasn’t embarrassment alone — it was conviction. Their conscience, the God-given internal gauge of right and wrong, had been pricked, and in that moment, they realized they were not fit to judge. This moment illustrates how powerful and spiritually sensitive the conscience can be, especially when exposed to the truth of God’s Word.

III. Neither Do I Condemn You – Listen to what Jesus does in verses 10-11. “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 said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”[NKJV]

A. “Neither do I condemn you.” This phrase is the hope of every human, the words we need to hear from our Lord. We need an advocate. We need somebody to stand before us because of our sins, to come to our rescue, and to be the defense attorney. John would describe it later in 1^st John 2:1 “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”[ESV]
B. She needed somebody to come to her defense, Jesus does that, and He has the power to forgive sins.

1. We realize the woman is not innocent. We recall John 3:17 – “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” We don't need condemnation for we're already condemned. There's no point to condemning this woman as she's already condemned.
2. The problem is she needs salvation; she needs to have her sins dealt with, she's guilty. We have the same problem, we need salvation. Jesus has the power to come into this woman's life and to be able to forgive her of her sins and to say that I do not condemn you as well.
3. The woman's humble and respectful answer, Jesus' refusal to condemn, despite His divine knowledge of all the truth, and His gentle admonition "sin no more" — this is the beautiful conclusion of this incident. Jesus' mercy to the woman is possibly the reason some have suspected this passage. Hendriksen wrote: “Augustine definitely stated that certain individuals had removed from their codices the section regarding the adulteress, because they feared women would appeal to this story as an excuse for infidelity … Hence the suggestion that this section was actually part of John's Gospel but (later) removed cannot be entirely dismissed.”

C. Turn your thoughts back to the Jewish leaders. How could these leaders get to such a state? How do you get to a level of hatred where you would let a guilty man go free, condemn only the woman, and bring this into a public forum in the midst of multitudes of people in the temple courts breaking your own laws in the effort? How is it possible for people to become so hateful toward another? It was possible and I suggest it is just as possible for us to express that kind of hatred and that kind of arrogant self-righteousness when we forget our own sinfulness.

1. There is something so precious in what you see Jesus doing, how He had compassion and love for every single soul. We're already condemned. God has given us a whole book of laws that on every page tells us how we've fallen short. We are clearly shown that we are not living according to the standard that God has given us.
2. Jesus would be of no help if He comes into the world and says, that's right, you're all a bunch of sinners, just wanted to make sure you knew it. We need a Savior. We need somebody to come and say, neither do I condemn you.
3. We will see sin and injustice, but we must understand we're not called to be a lynch mob. We're not called to act like these leaders but to display the graciousness of God, to call people to grace. We are told to expose darkness, but that function is not to simply say all of you are a bunch of terrible people and develop a hatred toward the world.
4. There are many times we will have lessons where we might walk away with an us-versus-them feeling. We're pretty good. We're not so bad. Those awful people out there, they're so full of sins, they're so wicked that we need to hunker down, get in a bunker, and don't let the sin cooties touch us.
5. Where does that kind of attitude come from? Where does that kind of self-righteousness come from? Where does that kind of hatred come from? It comes from the fact that we forget that we're just as sinful. It happens when we forget we need Jesus to say to each of us, just as much as to the world, neither do I condemn you. How sad it is that we can so quickly forget where we've come from, how the grace of God has affected our lives and how much we need the grace of God as every single person does.

D. We are to expose darkness to show people grace, not to lift ourselves up or to act like we're something. What I find valuable about this story is that God forgives all sins. There is not a sin that you've committed that God will not forgive. There is not a sin that any person has ever committed that cannot be forgiven. There's great hope in thinking about being able to stand before God on the day of judgment and Him being able to say, I don't condemn you either. Romans 8:1 is so powerful – “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

CONCLUSION: Sin No More – Jesus is not blowing off this woman’s sin. Jesus gives the instruction to stop living a life of sin. Sin is not treated lightly. Sinners are offered a new life in Christ. Christ’s mercy drives us to loving obedience. You are forgiven! Make God’s will your will! Steer clear of sin because you have been forgiven. This is one of the greatest tools God has given us to fight the battle against sin. You are undeservedly forgiven. Go and leave your life of sin because you are in the hands of God’s grace.

On our own we deserve that condemnation. Condemnation hangs over us. We should feel the weight and the gravity of our sins. This woman does. She's not claiming innocence. She understands the weight of her sins. She needs salvation. God forgives all sins no matter if people consider them big sins or small sins. To God they are all sins.

In this world the repercussions of our sins unfortunately, we still must deal with, but that doesn't mean God doesn't forgive that sin. God will forgive every single sin, and it is our job then to tell the world about that. To tell the world that Jesus will give you a fresh start. That Jesus gives you a new life. See the weight of your sin and to come to Him believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God who died for your sins, and be determined to no longer live that way anymore. To go and sin no more. To recognize that He's given you something precious, undeserved forgiveness.

What will you do with that grace? What will you do with what God has done to your life? What will you do now that you've been forgiven? Will you throw away that grace and live how you want to and give yourself the condemnation that you deserve? Or will you give your life to Jesus and follow Him with all your heart?

Won't you come to Him this morning and turn away from your sins and be immersed in water for the forgiveness of your sins? Let Jesus say those words to you, neither do I condemn you, now go and sin no more.

Won't you come while we stand and sing?

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Reference: Brent Kercheville, James Burton Coffman