John 8:1-11 – Living in the light of God’s forgiveness

This account recorded in John 8:1-11 seems to be out of place in the drift of John’s thought from chapters 7-8. Omitting these eleven verses, the flow would be smoother and perfect. By putting a bracket from John 7:53 - 8:11, the New American Standard Bible seems to indicate that this is a parenthetical paragraph. Whatever the case, reading this account tells us the sentiment the Judeans had against Jesus. Their intention was to trap Jesus. In the last verse of John 7 we are told that everyone went home and the opening verse of John 8 tells us “But Jesus went to Mount Olive.” Perhaps for some quiet moments with the Father.

Early the next morning, Jesus was again in the temple and quickly the people gathered to hear His teaching. Many were captivated by His teachings. And while He was instructing the people, the scribes and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery and set her in the centre of the temple court. Their intention was clear. They brought her there not to seek an opinion from the Lord. They were there to trap Him. However, we must realize that this account depicts a classic example of the wisdom of Jesus. The woman’s accusers wanted to know what Jesus would say to the woman caught in such a blatant sin. Here the scribes and the Pharisees were using her as a tool to attack Jesus. What they were doing was exerting their moral superiority over her, and yet at the same time used her to put Jesus on the spot. They reckoned that it would be difficult for Jesus to wriggle out of this tricky situation. They probably had an inkling that Jesus would want to forgive the woman. If He did that, He would have ignored some instructions in the Law of Moses.

No one can tell what Jesus had written on the floor. Suffice to say that in the day before the invention of chalk and blackboard or the whiteboard, teachers would write or draw on the dust to illustrate their points. However, we do not know what Jesus had written. Perhaps He was listing other sins, and maybe the accusers’ own sin of hypocrisy. He could be just doodling to show His disgust at what their question really deserved. However, His response to them in verse 7 could have a devastating effect, had one of them mistakenly and arrogantly thought that he was without sin. But as we all know so well that whenever we point an accusing finger at someone, we have three pointing back at us. Perhaps the scribes and Pharisees knew this very well too. Jesus did not say that the Law of Moses was wrong, but if they were to seriously consider it in the light of how they had lived, each would be found guilty of breaking the Law at some point. Each of them then quickly and quietly dropped the stone in their hand and left, because they got the point.  

In what Jesus did, He shows us that while the sin of adultery is a serious offence, what matters more was the sin of misusing the Law, and making it a means to make oneself out to be righteous. We are all sinners needing God’s forgiveness. We must not be mistaken to think that the story is telling us that the sin of adultery doesn’t matter. All sins, big or seemingly small, matter to God. Jesus’ concluding words to this woman clearly affirmed it. Don’t mistake the forgiveness of God as His indication that sin does not matter. It does. Forgiveness is the outpouring of God’s grace and a demonstration of His magnanimity. Like His instruction to that forgiven woman, we must also not spurn the grace of God. We must instead live our life in the light of the forgiveness that God had granted us.