WEBVTT 00:00:00.599 --> 00:00:03.165 Well, good morning, Valley View. 00:00:03.466 --> 00:00:05.333 It's great to be with you this morning. 00:00:05.333 --> 00:00:11.066 I got to tell you, it's really great to be in Louisville, Kentucky, this week. 00:00:11.833 --> 00:00:15.666 In fact, those last two songs, each of those kind of hit me in a different way. 00:00:15.666 --> 00:00:26.666 The themes of fresh wind blowing, the themes of homecoming, because a tornado passed through Little Rock this week and actually passed over the street. 00:00:26.699 --> 00:00:30.733 We lived on homes just a couple of houses down from us. 00:00:30.733 --> 00:00:34.865 Just a couple of houses down were destroyed across the street. 00:00:34.865 --> 00:00:37.232 Houses falling apart all around us. 00:00:37.432 --> 00:00:45.000 And when I saw that when I heard that, obviously we were burdened for our friends that live on that street. 00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:46.299 Many of them we know closely. 00:00:46.299 --> 00:00:47.732 We call and check in on them. 00:00:47.732 --> 00:00:49.533 No one no one was hurt. 00:00:50.566 --> 00:00:55.200 But also just the overwhelming sense of thank you, God, for bringing us here. 00:00:55.200 --> 00:00:55.799 You know, thank you. 00:00:55.799 --> 00:00:58.832 That we didn't have to experience that, have to go through that. 00:00:58.832 --> 00:01:01.700 We owned that home a year ago. 00:01:01.700 --> 00:01:12.599 And, you know, obviously, I know stuff hits you where you are that could still happen here, but it just brought an increased sense of gratitude for being here at Valley View and for all of you. 00:01:12.599 --> 00:01:14.465 So thank you for bringing us here. 00:01:14.465 --> 00:01:15.865 We're really grateful to be here. 00:01:15.865 --> 00:01:22.900 It's the point, and I'm really excited to dive into the days passage. 00:01:22.900 --> 00:01:26.832 In fact, I've been holding off the whole time we've been in the book of John to get here. 00:01:26.832 --> 00:01:33.266 I've been looking forward to this passage because basically I'm going to give you two sermons for the price of one today. 00:01:33.266 --> 00:01:34.700 And I know you can't wait. 00:01:34.700 --> 00:01:37.000 I know you're excited to hear that. 00:01:37.000 --> 00:01:39.233 I'm going to try to keep it to the same length. 00:01:39.233 --> 00:01:43.700 But this passage really requires you to look at it in two big chunks. 00:01:43.700 --> 00:01:46.299 In fact, we're going to wrap up John, Chapter seven. 00:01:46.299 --> 00:01:54.599 I said we wrapped it up last week, but there's this one extra verse that's tacked on to the beginning of Chapter eight, and so you'll want to be turned in there into Chapter seven. 00:01:54.599 --> 00:01:57.500 We're going to look at the first 11 verses in Chapter eight as well. 00:01:58.832 --> 00:02:08.832 But that passage, a couple of things about it, while I have to approach it in two different sermons within one sermon, one is we've got to teach the passage and the passages. 00:02:08.832 --> 00:02:11.733 The theme of the passage is all about a woman caught in adultery. 00:02:11.733 --> 00:02:13.300 How does Jesus engage with her? 00:02:13.300 --> 00:02:17.366 How does he dialog with those who are bringing the conviction against her? 00:02:18.199 --> 00:02:19.800 So I'm going to teach that passage. 00:02:19.800 --> 00:02:30.599 We're going to talk about that passage, but also this passage more than any other, needs to be dealt with in terms of what does this tell us about how much we can trust the Bible. 00:02:30.599 --> 00:02:42.432 In fact, I'm going to spend the first sermon within the sermon talking about why I think this passage more than almost any other in Scripture, greatly increases our trust and confidence in the Bible. 00:02:43.733 --> 00:02:52.500 A common objection You will hear from people when they say that Christianity can't be trusted or it isn't true, or that it's all made up. 00:02:52.500 --> 00:02:56.233 A common objection you'll hear is, Well, the Bible. 00:02:56.233 --> 00:02:58.000 Let's take the Bible, for instance. 00:02:58.000 --> 00:02:59.699 It's not trustworthy. 00:02:59.699 --> 00:03:03.665 I mean, it's been copied and copied and copied for generations. 00:03:03.765 --> 00:03:05.133 It's not even the real thing. 00:03:05.133 --> 00:03:08.432 We can't even know that it was the real thing that we started with. 00:03:08.432 --> 00:03:12.500 It's like a 2000 year version of the telephone game or something. 00:03:12.500 --> 00:03:16.233 That's the kind of objection you'll hear. 00:03:16.233 --> 00:03:20.866 But I hope to make the case today using this particular passage to help. 00:03:21.265 --> 00:03:23.566 Great to say the exact opposite of that. 00:03:23.566 --> 00:03:29.400 The reason why we can have incredible confidence in the Bible you hold in your hands today. 00:03:30.532 --> 00:03:32.866 Now, why this particular passage? 00:03:32.866 --> 00:03:35.332 Why this passage more than others? 00:03:35.332 --> 00:03:42.665 Well, it comes down to in fact, if you've read this before, you might be thinking really this passage, this one more than others. 00:03:42.665 --> 00:04:04.300 In fact, look, there's a couple of reasons why if you just look in your Bible, in fact, before you look in your Bible, the mindset to have some of us may have towards this passage is much like you might have about the NCAA championships in particular two 2013 and you Avella and their national championship win. 00:04:04.300 --> 00:04:10.900 Throw that image up on the screen if you recall that glorious moment, although we have to act like it didn't happen. 00:04:10.900 --> 00:04:11.633 Right. 00:04:11.633 --> 00:04:14.233 If you remember that actually God vacated. 00:04:14.233 --> 00:04:16.399 So it's got a big asterisk next to it. 00:04:16.399 --> 00:04:18.766 This happened but but it didn't really happen. 00:04:18.766 --> 00:04:24.833 I can see the morning on your face is actually as I look around the room I know of, you are still trying to recover from that moment. 00:04:25.065 --> 00:04:27.065 I also see some smiles out there, by the way. 00:04:27.132 --> 00:04:28.699 I don't like that. 00:04:27.132 --> 00:04:28.699 I don't appreciate that. 00:04:30.033 --> 00:04:32.033 But it's there. 00:04:32.033 --> 00:04:32.833 But it's not there. 00:04:32.833 --> 00:04:42.899 And when we look at this passage, in fact, if you look in the ESV, I've got an image from the inside of the ESV, That's the Bible I preach from, partly because it has notes like this. 00:04:42.899 --> 00:04:43.966 Go ahead and throw up that image. 00:04:43.966 --> 00:04:49.233 It says right there, the earliest manuscripts do not include 753 through 811. 00:04:49.233 --> 00:04:56.100 It's got this note put off in brackets on the front end with a footnote and that footnote says stuff like it also appears and this location. 00:04:56.100 --> 00:05:10.199 And John, it also appears in the Book of Luke, it gets moved around in the older manuscripts and then the whole thing you can see double brackets at the start of verse 53 on down through verse 11, they put double brackets around it. 00:05:11.800 --> 00:05:18.899 And so you may be saying, really, you're going to pick this passage to tell me why the Bible is more trustworthy, the one that is in here, but maybe is not in here. 00:05:19.932 --> 00:05:28.500 Well, I got five points to make about why this passage in particular greatly increases our trust and confidence in the Scripture. 00:05:28.500 --> 00:05:30.266 So let's dive into these first one. 00:05:30.266 --> 00:05:43.065 Number one, by doing this, by putting in these notes, by setting it off in brackets, the translators are trying really hard to be as transparent as possible. 00:05:43.065 --> 00:05:49.632 So whenever a translation of the Bible is made, there's a team of guys for good, solid translations. 00:05:49.632 --> 00:05:55.266 I'm not talking about some of the versions that are just one guy giving his interpretation. 00:05:53.300 --> 00:05:55.266 Those are fine. 00:05:55.266 --> 00:05:59.165 I like reading those, but it's also helpful to know this is one guy's thoughts. 00:05:59.165 --> 00:06:06.300 But with Bibles like the ESV, NIV, King James, a whole team of translators came together and these are scholars. 00:06:06.300 --> 00:06:10.833 They list out their names oftentimes in the front of the Bible or somewhere in mind where you can find them. 00:06:10.833 --> 00:06:12.100 They're not hiding from anyone. 00:06:12.100 --> 00:06:16.199 You can go find these guys and ask them, what did you think of this passage? 00:06:16.199 --> 00:06:17.199 They'll respond to you. 00:06:18.399 --> 00:06:21.065 And they get together as a team and they talk through the passages. 00:06:21.065 --> 00:06:22.800 Should this be in the Bible or not? 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:24.833 Based on the oldest manuscripts? 00:06:24.833 --> 00:06:28.632 And there are a couple of places where there is big disagreement. 00:06:28.632 --> 00:06:31.300 This is one also the end of Mark is this way. 00:06:31.300 --> 00:06:33.966 There's a big section at the end of Mark. 00:06:33.966 --> 00:06:39.932 And what I love about what these guys have done is they've said we're not 100% sure if this should be in or not. 00:06:40.333 --> 00:06:41.632 So we're going to treat it this way. 00:06:41.632 --> 00:06:42.766 We're going to put a note here. 00:06:42.766 --> 00:06:44.833 We're going to put brackets around it. 00:06:44.833 --> 00:06:46.199 We're not sure if we should leave it out. 00:06:46.199 --> 00:06:48.365 We're not sure if we should include it like the normal text. 00:06:48.365 --> 00:06:55.565 So let's be as careful as possible, be as transparent as possible, which I really appreciate. 00:06:55.565 --> 00:06:59.966 You know, cults and manipulators, they want to hide information from you. 00:06:59.966 --> 00:07:01.899 They want to tell you this is how it is. 00:07:01.899 --> 00:07:03.600 Don't go looking on your own. 00:07:03.600 --> 00:07:05.865 Here's a list of banned books that you can't read. 00:07:06.266 --> 00:07:08.500 Here's the things we don't want you to have access to. 00:07:08.699 --> 00:07:10.600 Just trust us completely, wholly. 00:07:10.600 --> 00:07:12.899 Don't think for yourself. 00:07:12.899 --> 00:07:15.665 But even the guys who are translating the Bible are going, You know what? 00:07:15.665 --> 00:07:21.233 Since we're not 100% sure, let's be as careful and as transparent as we can be. 00:07:21.233 --> 00:07:22.632 And I really appreciate that. 00:07:22.632 --> 00:07:24.132 I'm really grateful for that. 00:07:24.132 --> 00:07:30.165 Second, there's only a handful of passages like this in double brackets. 00:07:30.165 --> 00:07:32.932 Very, very few. 00:07:32.932 --> 00:07:38.000 So it's not like your Bible is riddled through with these greatly debated passages. 00:07:38.199 --> 00:07:39.833 There's really just very few. 00:07:39.833 --> 00:07:45.466 Now, there are a lot of differences between our manuscripts, and really that leads to my next point. 00:07:45.665 --> 00:07:54.432 Point three, though, there are many differences between the manuscripts of the Bible, there is no significant point of doctrine under question. 00:07:54.432 --> 00:07:57.333 As a result. 00:07:57.333 --> 00:08:06.899 So we have something like 5000 different manuscripts of the Bible, and manuscript means handwritten. 00:08:06.899 --> 00:08:09.932 So the printing press comes around late 1400s. 00:08:10.199 --> 00:08:13.932 We don't have a Greek printed Greek New Testament until 1516. 00:08:13.932 --> 00:08:17.100 That's the first one that's printed prior to that, all handwritten. 00:08:17.865 --> 00:08:23.000 And so when things are hand copied, of course, sometimes it can be difficult to read. 00:08:23.000 --> 00:08:25.932 Sometimes the parchment fades. 00:08:25.932 --> 00:08:28.266 So that leads to a lot of differences. 00:08:28.500 --> 00:08:38.966 But overwhelmingly, the differences are very minor things like should this letter go on the end of this word or on the beginning of this word? 00:08:38.966 --> 00:08:44.299 Should it be a verb instead of an and should it be Jesus or should it be Jesus Christ? 00:08:44.299 --> 00:08:45.832 Or should it be Christ Jesus? 00:08:47.000 --> 00:08:52.365 Overwhelmingly, the differences are very minor like that, very subtle. 00:08:52.365 --> 00:08:55.332 They don't add up to huge differences. 00:08:55.966 --> 00:09:03.865 In fact, you can go see all the ancient manuscripts that your printed English Bible are based on. 00:09:03.865 --> 00:09:06.932 You can go see all the significant ones online. 00:09:07.865 --> 00:09:12.432 I had a friend, in fact, in seminary, we we were in Hebrew class together. 00:09:12.432 --> 00:09:17.066 And this guy, he would study Hebrew at night and during the day, his day job, he was a defense contractor. 00:09:17.832 --> 00:09:22.765 He did a programing and he was working on this program in particular that linked up soldiers on the field. 00:09:22.765 --> 00:09:26.832 In fact, he even developed the software that allowed you through an eyepiece. 00:09:26.832 --> 00:09:30.500 You could see through the scope of your gun around a corner. 00:09:30.500 --> 00:09:31.500 This is what he did during the day. 00:09:31.500 --> 00:09:32.932 And I know some of you are going, I want that. 00:09:32.932 --> 00:09:39.166 How do I get that job? You know, But he comes to the end of seminary and he goes, you know what? 00:09:39.166 --> 00:09:43.666 I want to take all those programing skills and apply them to Scripture. 00:09:43.666 --> 00:09:45.865 And so he moves to Germany to do a Ph.D. 00:09:45.865 --> 00:09:51.500 and while he's there, he develops this whole website where they're putting all these manuscripts online. 00:09:51.500 --> 00:09:53.765 The images transcribing them. 00:09:53.765 --> 00:09:55.633 You can search them all up and down. 00:09:55.633 --> 00:09:58.000 In fact, here's an image of this particular passage. 00:09:58.200 --> 00:10:00.265 I know you can't read it. 00:09:58.200 --> 00:10:00.265 I can't read it from here. 00:10:00.265 --> 00:10:08.399 But you can see there's the manuscript on one side, there's a transliteration of the other, and you can go find tons and tons of manuscripts. 00:10:08.399 --> 00:10:22.666 In fact, any decent Greek, New Testament, the whole back of it, it's just page after page after page of manuscript that you can't see this from here, but manuscript after manuscript after manuscript listed out, I jumped right past it. Sorry. 00:10:22.666 --> 00:10:24.399 And next to it is the location. 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:26.566 Here's the library. 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:26.566 It's in what country? 00:10:26.566 --> 00:10:28.899 It's in what century. It's from what it contains. 00:10:28.899 --> 00:10:31.666 Just page after page after page after page after page. 00:10:31.666 --> 00:10:37.765 Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds listed in the back because they want to be as transparent as possible. 00:10:37.799 --> 00:10:39.466 We're not trying to hide anything for anyone. 00:10:39.466 --> 00:10:42.566 If you're not sure that's what it says, go look for yourself. 00:10:42.566 --> 00:10:50.299 That website, it's accessible to anyone which greatly increases our confidence in what we have. 00:10:50.299 --> 00:10:57.399 When you have thousands and thousands of manuscripts to compare, it helps you to get back to what might originally been intended. 00:10:57.399 --> 00:10:59.533 In fact, there's a word for that. 00:10:59.533 --> 00:11:04.000 And this is my fourth point textual criticism. 00:11:04.000 --> 00:11:06.500 Go ahead, throw that up on the screen because this is a mouthful. 00:11:06.500 --> 00:11:07.600 Just bear with me for a minute. 00:11:07.600 --> 00:11:09.265 I told you, I've been waiting for this day. 00:11:09.265 --> 00:11:12.399 I'm really going to nerd out on you for a moment. 00:11:12.399 --> 00:11:19.865 Textual criticism is the art and science of comparing manuscripts to determine as closely as possible the original wording of the Bible. 00:11:19.966 --> 00:11:24.832 That's the fancy phrase for how do we get our final copy of the Bible? 00:11:22.500 --> 00:11:24.832 Textual criticism. 00:11:24.832 --> 00:11:39.299 That's the technical term for that discipline of comparing manuscripts and the beautiful part of us having so many different manuscripts is really we really can approach it with confidence that these are to be what we have is to be trusted. 00:11:40.200 --> 00:11:44.765 I think a great way to illustrate this and explain it, I heard from Wayne Graham. 00:11:44.765 --> 00:12:03.066 He said, you know, if we lost today the original copy of the Declaration of Independence, it's if I got burned, if if the archives got raided or whatever, if it got destroyed, we'd be able to recreate the Declaration of Independence or the Declaration of Independence. 00:12:03.066 --> 00:12:07.566 We'd be able to recreate it just based on the copies we have. 00:12:07.566 --> 00:12:10.432 And I'm not even talking about printed copies, photographs online. 00:12:10.432 --> 00:12:22.732 If we just went back and found hand copied copies, you could compare all those and there would be some differences, but you'd be able to get back with a high degree of confidence to what the original wording was. 00:12:22.732 --> 00:12:25.633 And it's a similar approach with scripture. 00:12:26.166 --> 00:12:35.533 In fact, there's a quote that sums up a lot of this by F.F Bruce, he was a well-known textual criticism scholar and here's what he says. 00:12:35.533 --> 00:12:37.033 Go ahead, throw that quote up on the screen. 00:12:37.033 --> 00:12:39.299 You can skip that other image there. 00:12:39.299 --> 00:12:44.865 F.F Bruce, F.F Bruce, about which any doubt remains. 00:12:44.865 --> 00:13:00.633 So meaning in particular, this passage in John, if there's any doubt about the differences between them, the variant readings about which any doubt remains in the New Testament affects no material question of historic fact or of Christian faith and practice. 00:13:02.500 --> 00:13:24.899 So in the midst of all these little differences, subtle differences, at the end of the day, none of that affects any real significant point of practice, point of faith, point of history, point of doctrine So when someone says to you, well, we have lots of copies and they have lots of differences, you can say, yeah, they do. 00:13:24.899 --> 00:13:27.299 But that actually doesn't decrease our confidence in scripture. 00:13:27.299 --> 00:13:30.832 It increases our conference confidence in Scripture. 00:13:31.133 --> 00:13:48.166 In fact, that's my concluding point for this whole sermon before the sermon, pre sermon, because this is point five, because of how carefully the Bible has been handled, this increase is our confidence and trust in the Word of God. 00:13:48.166 --> 00:13:49.166 and trust in the Word of God. 00:13:49.332 --> 00:13:55.600 It has been handled so carefully and it has been assembled so carefully and so thoughtfully. 00:13:55.600 --> 00:13:59.232 This increases our confidence in the Word of God. 00:13:59.232 --> 00:14:05.166 The fact that they're transparent about, Hey, we're not 100% sure if this should be in or not. 00:14:05.166 --> 00:14:05.633 Okay. 00:14:05.633 --> 00:14:07.166 So that's sermon number one. 00:14:07.166 --> 00:14:14.000 Now, how does that set up sermon number two, how does that cause my mindset to be towards this passage? 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:16.365 How do I approach it as I teach it? 00:14:16.365 --> 00:14:19.799 Do I approach it as Scripture or do I approach it as a not sure? 00:14:21.066 --> 00:14:28.466 Well, I'll tell you how I'm going to approach it today and if you want a whole lot more information on this, I'll put some links. 00:14:29.100 --> 00:14:34.299 You know, we put the sermons online on our website and we often put some notes under it, some comments. 00:14:34.600 --> 00:14:36.033 I'll put that up on there. 00:14:36.033 --> 00:14:38.265 When that comes up Monday or Tuesday. 00:14:38.265 --> 00:14:41.832 I'll also put a link to that in the midweek update if you really want to know. 00:14:42.566 --> 00:14:48.533 Lots of detail, I'll put a couple of links into an article there, some footnotes that'll help you discover that. 00:14:49.600 --> 00:14:56.732 But how I'm going to approach the scripture, I'm going to I'm going to teach it like Scripture because it's in our copy of the ESV. 00:14:56.732 --> 00:15:04.832 However, I'm going to do it with this caveat, and I think this is a helpful mindset of approaching any passage like this. 00:15:04.832 --> 00:15:23.700 In fact, I ran across across this quote where it says it this way teach to illustrate, but not determine our theology and practice, meaning any passage in double brackets like this, we should teach in a way that complements other points of theology alongside it. 00:15:23.700 --> 00:15:32.066 It shouldn't this shouldn't be the one place where you make your case for a point of theology is from this passage per se, or from the ending of Mark. 00:15:33.133 --> 00:15:40.365 And so I'm going to teach it with that in mind as if it is Scripture, because maybe it doesn't go here in the Book of John. 00:15:40.365 --> 00:15:43.466 It's also in some of these older manuscripts in the Book of Luke. 00:15:43.466 --> 00:15:50.365 Maybe it goes there, but most people who look at this go even though maybe it doesn't go here, we think this really happened. 00:15:52.100 --> 00:15:55.533 As we read the story you're going to see it feels very familiar. 00:15:55.932 --> 00:15:59.832 It feels like how Jesus would respond to a woman caught in adultery. 00:15:59.832 --> 00:16:04.200 It feels like how Jesus would interact with those just trying to trip him up. 00:16:04.332 --> 00:16:07.365 It rings true at so many levels. 00:16:07.365 --> 00:16:10.033 It complements other stories that have a similar nature. 00:16:11.332 --> 00:16:14.033 So I'm going to approach it that way as we dive into it. 00:16:14.033 --> 00:16:20.966 So sermon number one over time for sermon number two, where we're actually going to look at the passage itself and teach the passage. 00:16:20.966 --> 00:16:22.799 So turn with me, John. 00:16:22.799 --> 00:16:28.865 Chapter seven Last verse 753 through 811, and let's dive into the passage. 00:16:28.865 --> 00:16:30.899 It's on page 840 and a church Bible. 00:16:30.899 --> 00:16:34.033 If you don't have a Bible, we have Bibles out in the collection corner. 00:16:34.033 --> 00:16:35.566 Get up anytime you want and grab them. 00:16:35.566 --> 00:16:37.799 We want you to have your own copy that's free for you. 00:16:37.832 --> 00:16:39.832 Want you to have your own copy of God's Word. 00:16:39.832 --> 00:16:43.265 And the page numbers on screen are tied to that specific Bible. 00:16:45.066 --> 00:16:50.399 So let's look at verse 53, read a couple of verses here to get our setting of the story. 00:16:50.399 --> 00:16:55.799 Verse 53, they went each to his own house, but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives early in the morning. 00:16:55.799 --> 00:16:58.600 He came again to the temple. 00:16:58.600 --> 00:17:03.000 All the people came to him and he set down and he taught them. 00:17:04.232 --> 00:17:07.266 So if you remember the setting, he's been in the temple teaching. 00:17:07.266 --> 00:17:13.500 It's the end of the Feast of the Booths that wraps up and it says People go back to their homes. 00:17:13.700 --> 00:17:16.000 He goes to the Mount of Olives, more than likely. 00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:17.266 This has been a big festival. 00:17:17.266 --> 00:17:19.799 It's probably taken aloud a lot out of him. 00:17:20.965 --> 00:17:24.400 So he goes to get a break, probably goes off to pray alone. 00:17:24.400 --> 00:17:35.566 We see that pattern with Jesus many times, but then he comes back and the cool part is when he comes back it says all the people came to him. 00:17:35.566 --> 00:17:47.900 I don't know what that means if that's kind of like the oil we use, but a whole group of people show back up, which if you've been kind of a Jesus hater at this point in the story, you might be like, Now what's happened in here? 00:17:47.900 --> 00:17:50.432 People are starting to come back with God. 00:17:50.432 --> 00:17:51.566 His disciples had left him. 00:17:51.566 --> 00:17:53.732 We thought things were heading downhill. 00:17:53.732 --> 00:17:55.633 There's all this division around him. 00:17:55.633 --> 00:17:58.032 Hey, maybe things are back on the upswing for Jesus. 00:17:58.032 --> 00:18:03.900 Maybe he is kind of rebuilding his brand here, starting to get excited about what might be happening for him. 00:18:03.965 --> 00:18:05.700 So what happens in the miss of that? 00:18:05.700 --> 00:18:06.900 What's the response to that? 00:18:06.900 --> 00:18:08.200 Look at the next set of verses here. 00:18:09.932 --> 00:18:16.700 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and placing her in the midst. 00:18:16.700 --> 00:18:22.900 They said to him, Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 00:18:23.766 --> 00:18:28.932 Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. 00:18:29.865 --> 00:18:31.432 What do you say? 00:18:31.900 --> 00:18:38.532 They said this to test him that they might have some charge to bring against him. 00:18:38.532 --> 00:18:40.333 So here's the setting he's teaching in the temple. 00:18:40.333 --> 00:18:44.133 The income scribes and Pharisees bring a woman now to set up the situation. 00:18:44.133 --> 00:18:49.766 And the interesting part is right out of the get go, we get the behind the scenes information. 00:18:50.365 --> 00:18:53.799 The whole point they're doing this is to test Jesus. 00:18:53.799 --> 00:18:59.200 That's that's what they're after here. 00:18:59.200 --> 00:19:03.532 And so we come into this story and we're wondering, how's Jesus going to respond? 00:19:03.532 --> 00:19:05.465 What's going to happen? 00:19:05.465 --> 00:19:12.532 What's he going to do with these who really don't care about him, don't care about this woman, They just want to trip him up? 00:19:14.299 --> 00:19:22.633 It's really interesting to see their approach because in the way they approach him, we see two huge problems with the way they approach him with this setting. 00:19:24.099 --> 00:19:29.365 So the first relates to the woman and how they approach her. 00:19:29.365 --> 00:19:42.833 They bring her in and it says in verse four, a woman who has been caught in the act of adultery, caught in the very moment of adultery. 00:19:43.299 --> 00:19:45.400 This isn't just hearsay. 00:19:46.400 --> 00:19:51.299 This isn't just a jealous spouse trying to get her in trouble. 00:19:51.700 --> 00:19:55.299 This woman was caught in the very act of adultery. 00:19:55.500 --> 00:20:02.066 The huge problem with this is where's the other party involved in this? 00:20:02.833 --> 00:20:06.333 You know, the old saying goes, it takes two to Yiddish, right? 00:20:06.665 --> 00:20:07.799 I don't even know what that means. 00:20:07.799 --> 00:20:09.932 Actually, I just made that up. 00:20:09.932 --> 00:20:17.165 Tango sounded kind of weird in the New Testament, but it takes two to make this happen, right? 00:20:17.833 --> 00:20:20.500 So where's the other party caught in the act? 00:20:20.500 --> 00:20:21.766 You don't commit adultery alone. 00:20:23.532 --> 00:20:28.865 Why did they just only bring in the woman? 00:20:28.865 --> 00:20:34.200 And what this tells us about them is that they don't care about her at all. 00:20:35.500 --> 00:20:46.432 You know, the very people who were meant to protect her spiritually, they're treating her just like every other man in her life as they're just using her. 00:20:46.432 --> 00:20:47.700 They're just using her. 00:20:47.700 --> 00:20:50.799 They don't care about her. 00:20:51.465 --> 00:20:57.232 This makes teachings like Matthew five and the Sermon on the Mount that much more difficult to process. 00:20:58.665 --> 00:21:03.032 The whole passage in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus is teaching people what the law really meant. 00:21:03.032 --> 00:21:09.965 You see, this pattern of you have heard it said, but I say to you, here's what you think the law means. 00:21:09.965 --> 00:21:12.766 Let me explain to you what the law really means. 00:21:12.965 --> 00:21:15.066 Here's the letter of the law that you're focused on. 00:21:15.232 --> 00:21:17.865 Here's the heart, the spirit of the law. 00:21:18.799 --> 00:21:23.032 And there's that passage in particular where he says, you have heard it said, do not commit adultery. 00:21:24.299 --> 00:21:35.500 And if those maybe some of these scribes and Pharisees might say, I haven't committed adultery, I'm so much more better of a person than this woman at our feet. 00:21:35.500 --> 00:21:45.266 But then it goes on to say, But if you've looked upon a Roman, a woman with lust in your heart, you've already committed adultery in your heart. 00:21:46.500 --> 00:21:54.599 And maybe they haven't lusted after her, but they've done the same thing of just using her for their own pleasure or just use and we don't care about you. 00:21:54.599 --> 00:22:00.732 You're just a tool. Toward the end, getting after Jesus. 00:22:00.732 --> 00:22:06.365 So that's the first really concerning part of this text and the way they have gone about this really poorly. 00:22:06.365 --> 00:22:07.432 They just use the woman. 00:22:07.432 --> 00:22:13.833 But the second concern, the second problem comes in the way that they handle the law. 00:22:13.833 --> 00:22:24.000 In fact, it's more shocking than the way they hint they mishandle the woman is how they mishandle the law because look at verse five, it says, The law of Moses commanded us to stone such women. 00:22:24.000 --> 00:22:32.665 But if you look back at the law, Leviticus 2010, then say, Stone, first of all, just that they should be put to death. 00:22:32.932 --> 00:22:34.932 But also it's not just the woman. 00:22:36.133 --> 00:22:39.566 Both parties involved are to be put to death. 00:22:39.566 --> 00:22:41.766 So again, where's the man? 00:22:42.232 --> 00:22:44.500 Where's the other person in this arrangement? 00:22:44.799 --> 00:22:51.299 And what this shows is just like they use the woman towards their own gain, towards their own end. 00:22:52.532 --> 00:22:54.432 I don't care about the law either. 00:22:54.432 --> 00:22:56.299 They don't really care about the law. 00:22:57.833 --> 00:23:01.333 All they care about is getting what they want. 00:23:01.333 --> 00:23:02.500 They'll use the law. 00:23:02.500 --> 00:23:03.232 They'll mishandle. 00:23:03.232 --> 00:23:05.965 The law, however, is needed. 00:23:06.900 --> 00:23:16.500 However is necessary to get what they want to get the power they so desperately are hungry for. 00:23:16.500 --> 00:23:28.465 And I think this is important place to just pause personally and ask, That's a dangerous place to be in, in my own heart when I have an agenda that I'm pushing, no matter what. 00:23:29.633 --> 00:23:43.665 I got to have this no matter what, no matter what Scripture says, no matter what other people are saying to me, no matter what the facts say, no matter what people are hurt, that's a dangerous place to be. 00:23:43.665 --> 00:23:48.200 I, I hope that the Holy Spirit in those moment convicts us and says, take a step back. 00:23:48.200 --> 00:23:51.965 Just take a pause here. 00:23:51.965 --> 00:24:00.865 Just look around for a moment and listen to what the Holy Spirit might be saying. 00:24:00.865 --> 00:24:03.833 It's an important morning for all of us. 00:24:03.833 --> 00:24:06.566 Now, how does Jesus respond to this? 00:24:07.365 --> 00:24:09.032 Here she is at his feet. 00:24:09.032 --> 00:24:10.099 He knows all this. 00:24:10.099 --> 00:24:12.833 He knows they don't really care about her. 00:24:13.932 --> 00:24:15.032 They don't care about the law. 00:24:15.032 --> 00:24:16.232 They just want to trip him up. 00:24:16.232 --> 00:24:18.032 They want to see which side are you going to take? 00:24:18.032 --> 00:24:21.665 You're going to take the law of Moses, which you can't really carry out fully. 00:24:21.665 --> 00:24:27.633 By the way, the Jews weren't allowed to carry out capital punishment, except in the case of the temple that we talked about in the Ephesians. 00:24:27.633 --> 00:24:31.566 But in this case, they knew he wouldn't be allowed to stone or he'd be in trouble with the Romans. 00:24:31.566 --> 00:24:37.865 Or do you take the side of the Romans, which puts you in trouble with all the people who are expecting the Messiah to come and be against the Romans? 00:24:37.865 --> 00:24:38.965 Which way do you go? 00:24:38.965 --> 00:24:41.400 There's a no win situation here. Jesus, What do you do? 00:24:41.599 --> 00:24:42.432 How do you respond? 00:24:44.066 --> 00:24:49.200 Let's look and see and look at the second half of verse six and look at how he responds. 00:24:49.200 --> 00:25:05.099 Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground, 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. 00:25:05.266 --> 00:25:10.932 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground, I love this passage. 00:25:10.932 --> 00:25:14.133 In fact, I've often thought, Hey, if your kids are fighting, try that. 00:25:14.133 --> 00:25:16.000 Just bend down and start writing on the ground. 00:25:16.000 --> 00:25:18.032 See if that calms everyone down. 00:25:18.833 --> 00:25:19.900 It doesn't work, by the way. 00:25:19.900 --> 00:25:22.700 Then don't try it. 00:25:19.900 --> 00:25:22.700 Don't waste your time. 00:25:22.700 --> 00:25:25.932 But one of the great debates of Scripture is what in the world did he write? 00:25:26.865 --> 00:25:28.400 I mean, how many people have wondered? 00:25:28.400 --> 00:25:34.799 You've probably heard speculation over and over again, What in the world could he have written in this moment that quieted everyone down? 00:25:36.532 --> 00:25:38.766 And you know, we have no idea. 00:25:38.766 --> 00:25:39.965 There's no way to know. 00:25:39.965 --> 00:25:42.032 But it sure is fun to guess. Right. 00:25:42.032 --> 00:25:43.799 So I'm going to guess a little bit here for a minute. 00:25:43.799 --> 00:25:45.566 Complete guesswork. 00:25:45.566 --> 00:25:45.799 Okay. 00:25:45.799 --> 00:25:46.965 Just bear with me. 00:25:46.965 --> 00:25:53.133 This is not the same for Lord, but there have been some interesting ideas floated around. 00:25:53.133 --> 00:26:05.465 One is just that he was just merely doodling, just not doing anything in particular and in his body language, sending the signal that what you're talking about doesn't matter. 00:26:05.465 --> 00:26:08.032 I can't be bothered with such a trivial issue. 00:26:08.032 --> 00:26:10.200 This doesn't stir me up the way you think it will. 00:26:10.965 --> 00:26:17.400 And here they are desperate to trick him and he just doesn't even care, which is infuriating. 00:26:17.400 --> 00:26:23.766 Another guess is that maybe he was writing the secret sins of his the accusers right there in front of them. 00:26:23.766 --> 00:26:26.700 Oh, you say you have no sin. 00:26:26.700 --> 00:26:28.700 I know what your sins are. 00:26:28.700 --> 00:26:30.732 Let me just write them out here for others to see. 00:26:32.400 --> 00:26:33.700 We don't know. 00:26:33.900 --> 00:26:35.633 Those are guesses. Those are. 00:26:35.633 --> 00:26:37.566 We have no idea. 00:26:37.566 --> 00:26:45.599 I think there's one parallel, though, with the Old Testament that we can look at and see some linking. 00:26:46.200 --> 00:26:54.400 We don't know what he wrote, but there is someone else who wrote with their finger in the Bible. 00:26:54.400 --> 00:26:56.700 Do you anybody remember the situation? 00:26:57.900 --> 00:27:01.732 God himself wrote the Ten Commandments with his finger. 00:27:03.299 --> 00:27:11.032 And I think there's just a bit of connection here that we see all throughout the book of John, the ways that subtly Jesus is positioned as God himself. 00:27:12.599 --> 00:27:16.500 And he's the only one that has the authority to write the words of God. 00:27:16.500 --> 00:27:21.932 The very one who wrote them himself understands what they really mean. 00:27:21.932 --> 00:27:35.566 And so in this moment, he bends down, he's writing, and then he says this phrase, Let him, who is without sin among you, be the first to throw a stone at her. 00:27:35.566 --> 00:27:50.799 It's important for us to take a moment and really think about this phrase, talk about this phrase, because it's often misunderstood, misapplied to mean something along the lines of, you know, we don't have any right to make any moral judgment at all if I've done anything wrong in my life. 00:27:50.799 --> 00:27:54.932 Therefore, we have no right to make any kind of moral judgment. 00:27:55.766 --> 00:27:59.066 That's not really I don't think that's the point of this passage. 00:27:59.066 --> 00:28:00.232 As we read. 00:28:00.232 --> 00:28:02.865 We've got to get the rest of the story to see why that is. 00:28:03.532 --> 00:28:10.732 We'll see how you unpack it unpacks it, but that's often a mis application misunderstanding of this passage. 00:28:11.932 --> 00:28:14.266 So look at how the rest of the interaction goes. 00:28:14.266 --> 00:28:17.432 He bent down, continue to write on the ground, verse nine. 00:28:18.766 --> 00:28:29.266 When they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with a woman standing before him. 00:28:30.465 --> 00:28:37.165 Jesus stood up and said to her woman, Where are they? 00:28:37.799 --> 00:28:41.133 Has no one condemned you? 00:28:41.133 --> 00:28:48.900 She said, No one, Lord And Jesus said, Neither do I condemn you. Go. 00:28:49.799 --> 00:28:55.532 And from now on sin no more. 00:28:55.532 --> 00:29:07.000 Whatever he wrote, we don't know exactly what it was, but what he said struck a chord and they slowly trickle out of the room. 00:29:08.099 --> 00:29:09.865 And I love here. 00:29:09.865 --> 00:29:17.465 I love that John is careful to make the point that the first people to leave were the or the old folks. 00:29:17.465 --> 00:29:29.165 You know, that's a principle I talk about here all the time in terms of the older, the more mature should take the lead in things should be the first to defer their own preferences for the good of others should be the first. 00:29:29.165 --> 00:29:41.099 To seek forgiveness or to apologize should be the first to show kindness, to have a a light hearted attitude. And in fact, yesterday I was at a funeral home. 00:29:41.865 --> 00:29:43.432 You may have known Betty Fleur. 00:29:43.432 --> 00:29:45.333 She was a longtime member here. 00:29:45.333 --> 00:29:50.432 She was living in Florida at the time, but she passed away and they had her service own funeral home yesterday. 00:29:50.432 --> 00:29:56.299 And I was in the funeral home and income Charlotte, Larry Piercey and Charlotte hasn't been here in quite a while. 00:29:56.299 --> 00:30:02.333 She had a knee replacement, so she'd been gone many, many weeks because there were complications around it. 00:30:02.333 --> 00:30:06.799 But here she was a funeral home, and I walk up to her to say hi before I can say anything, she says hi. 00:30:06.799 --> 00:30:08.732 I'd like to introduce myself. 00:30:08.732 --> 00:30:10.099 My name's Charlotte Piercey. 00:30:10.099 --> 00:30:12.133 I used to be active at Valley View. 00:30:13.400 --> 00:30:14.299 It's good to see you. 00:30:14.299 --> 00:30:16.500 It's good to meet you, Pastor John. 00:30:16.500 --> 00:30:18.500 And I love that about it is a light hearted tone. 00:30:18.500 --> 00:30:20.266 I said, you know, we'll have a new members class. 00:30:20.266 --> 00:30:23.066 You're coming up soon that you can check out. 00:30:23.066 --> 00:30:24.066 I didn't say that, too. 00:30:24.066 --> 00:30:25.165 No, no, no. 00:30:25.299 --> 00:30:27.000 I love that. 00:30:27.000 --> 00:30:31.932 I love that lighthearted tone, that playfulness. 00:30:32.532 --> 00:30:38.932 And in this moment, the older ones are the first to go, Yeah, I see what's going on here. 00:30:40.665 --> 00:30:42.532 And they take the lead. 00:30:42.599 --> 00:30:44.532 Come on, let's go. 00:30:44.965 --> 00:30:47.400 Let's give up on this. 00:30:47.400 --> 00:30:50.566 He's right. 00:30:50.566 --> 00:30:57.766 Who am I to drag her before him? 00:30:57.766 --> 00:31:02.500 I really hope that's our posture here, by the way. 00:31:03.566 --> 00:31:07.133 I really hope as a church, that's our posture. 00:31:07.133 --> 00:31:15.032 I hope that when someone comes in here, maybe they're not dressed the way you would like and maybe they're not wearing enough clothing. 00:31:15.032 --> 00:31:17.032 Maybe they don't smell the way you like. 00:31:17.032 --> 00:31:18.599 I don't know. 00:31:19.000 --> 00:31:20.965 But I hope our posture is. 00:31:20.965 --> 00:31:24.066 Come on, Come on. 00:31:25.400 --> 00:31:30.599 In fact, I like to say come as you are so you don't have to stay as you are. 00:31:32.566 --> 00:31:36.432 That's the beautiful part of this passage. 00:31:36.432 --> 00:31:39.400 So Jesus says to her, Look, I don't condemn you. 00:31:40.333 --> 00:31:42.432 Which reminds me of one of my favorite verses. 00:31:42.432 --> 00:31:43.732 1 . 00:31:43.732 --> 00:31:57.165 There's therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, that being the key phrase, those who are in Christ Jesus for the Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of Sin and death. 00:31:57.165 --> 00:31:57.865 you free from the law of Sin and death. 00:31:57.865 --> 00:31:59.633 For those who are in Christ Jesus. 00:31:59.633 --> 00:32:01.532 There is no convent condemnation. 00:32:01.532 --> 00:32:10.432 And she has met Jesus and he says, I don't condemn you. 00:32:10.432 --> 00:32:17.133 And yet and here's the beautiful part of this passage, and yet he doesn't leave it there. 00:32:17.133 --> 00:32:22.200 He still calls her up, Go and sin no more. 00:32:23.099 --> 00:32:26.500 Don't continue to live the way you're living. 00:32:26.500 --> 00:32:26.665 Don't continue to live the way you're living. 00:32:26.665 --> 00:32:28.200 And he doesn't do that to say. 00:32:28.200 --> 00:32:32.266 And if you behave good enough, then maybe I'll let you in. 00:32:33.766 --> 00:32:37.200 Al Mohler I've heard him say the gospel is not behave, it's believe. 00:32:38.833 --> 00:32:42.566 Don't behave better believe. 00:32:42.566 --> 00:32:47.965 But and yet the call is come as you are. 00:32:48.032 --> 00:32:51.000 So you don't have to stay as you are. 00:32:51.000 --> 00:32:53.900 Come as you are. 00:32:53.900 --> 00:32:55.932 I do not condemn you. 00:32:55.932 --> 00:32:56.165 I do not condemn you. 00:32:56.165 --> 00:33:17.700 And so my hope is that when anyone comes into this church, they would come in not feeling judged, not feeling condemned, feeling welcomed, and at the very same time having such a radical encounter with Jesus Christ that they are completely made new and feel in that very moment, I can't stay the way I've been. 00:33:19.232 --> 00:33:22.000 I mean, every one of us are here because you want to change. 00:33:23.299 --> 00:33:26.232 No one here wants to stay the same. 00:33:26.232 --> 00:33:32.099 Otherwise you wouldn't listen to me go on and on about how Jesus changes week after week after week. 00:33:32.099 --> 00:33:34.599 We all want to change. 00:33:32.099 --> 00:33:34.599 I want to change. 00:33:34.599 --> 00:33:36.099 I don't want to stay the way I am. 00:33:37.900 --> 00:33:38.965 And that's my hope. 00:33:38.965 --> 00:33:40.333 Come as you are. 00:33:40.333 --> 00:33:43.200 Come as you are, please. 00:33:43.633 --> 00:33:46.333 So that you don't have to stay as you are. 00:33:46.333 --> 00:33:47.633 So that you don't have to stay as you are. 00:33:47.633 --> 00:33:50.032 That's the call of this passage. 00:33:50.032 --> 00:33:53.099 That's what Jesus is calling us to. 00:33:53.932 --> 00:34:04.400 And when you meet him, he can change your life in such a radical away that the things that seemed so important before I just pass away as irrelevant. 00:34:04.865 --> 00:34:12.032 The things that consumed your personhood and identity, the things that completely defined who you were. 00:34:12.032 --> 00:34:14.199 Gone in a moment. 00:34:15.900 --> 00:34:17.266 Come as you are. 00:34:17.266 --> 00:34:19.099 Come as you are. 00:34:19.099 --> 00:34:21.932 Because and so that you don't have to stay as you are. 00:34:21.932 --> 00:34:28.300 Let's pray God, thank you for how you have worked in our lives. 00:34:29.365 --> 00:34:35.233 We can't take credit for who we are or where we are. 00:34:35.233 --> 00:34:40.199 It's completely, entirely, and solely up to you. 00:34:40.199 --> 00:34:42.632 Thank you for how you have changed our desires. 00:34:42.965 --> 00:34:43.365 Thank you. 00:34:43.365 --> 00:34:45.532 That you can continue to change this. 00:34:45.532 --> 00:34:47.400 Thank you. That you're not done with us yet. 00:34:49.266 --> 00:35:11.400 My prayer that today, all day long we would be dwelling on just the richness and beauty of the ways you have changed our lives, The ways you have stepped in made us new rescued us from the domain of darkness, transferred us to the kingdom of your son, would help us to live in a way that models that to others. 00:35:11.400 --> 00:35:17.099 That shows them that you are alive in our lives and that you want to be at work in others lives as well. 00:35:17.532 --> 00:35:20.766 Give us the opportunity to talk about you this week. 00:35:20.766 --> 00:35:22.900 Jesus, we love you. 00:35:20.766 --> 00:35:22.900 We thank you. 00:35:22.900 --> 00:35:25.199 I thank you for everyone who is here today. 00:35:25.199 --> 00:35:27.099 It's in your name. We pray. 00:35:27.099 --> 00:35:27.666 Amen.