“Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”
The famous line is from the story about the woman who was caught in the act of adultery and brought by religious hypocrites before Jesus to be condemned.
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. 7 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.” 8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. 9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.” – John 8:2-11
Although adultery takes two to perform, this woman was singled out and brought before Lord Jesus.
Based on the Mosaic law this woman would be stoned to death, yet Jesus’s earthly ministry came to save sinners, to exhibit God’s compassion and mercy. He used the situation to teach a higher lesson, a higher view of God’s law.
We are all…
Morally, we are all like the woman caught in adultery, guilty of having broken God’s laws. As Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount,
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell. – Matthew 5:27-30
Jesus often used hyperbole to make points as stark as possible, but He also spoke the Truth about God’s judgment and Kingdom which may only seem like hyperbole in comparison to man’s standards. He wanted to waken a populace who were being mislead by religious leaders, underestimating the true Holiness of God the Father and over estimating themselves.
If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.
Your body is a gift from God. The Bible does not condone mutilation, although it was common practice in the pagan religions surrounding ancient Israel. Jesus is NOT instructing that ‘everyone go mutilate yourselves’, but what He does mean is that your attitude towards repenting from a sinful behavior or lifestyle requires an attitude that is on par with escaping out of a burning building or leaping off the tracks of an oncoming train.
And yet many did not turn from their sins, despite all the miracles, amazingly authoritative teachings, leading a sinless life, the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and the miraculous preservation of eye-witness testimony of His ministry, death and resurrection. This reality is sobering and offers insight to the truth of Jesus warning about the wide path that leads to destruction (Matthew 7).
18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. – Ephesians 4:18
Furthermore…
And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. – Matthew 10:28.
The warnings Jesus declares repeatedly throughout the Gospels of eternal judgement by God who is just and righteous must gain the attention of the reader and certainly anyone who considered themselves a Christian. If God is righteous and The Word, or Jesus Christ is part of the Godhead and was sinless, then everything that Jesus taught must be true. Ignoring Jesus must be done at one’s own peril.
From the Bible in its entirety but especially from Jesus Himself, we are able to receive the clearest picture of who God is. Regretfully, this is not the picture that many churches teach about Jesus and God, because the have created thrown agenda and do not teach the Bible and all of Jesus’ teachings as authoritative.
In other words, continuing to live in rejection of the Gospel and God’s moral law, holding to a willful ignorance or proud self-righteous attitude will result in eternal judgment and banishment from God’s eternal kingdom. Hence, it would be much better to enter the court of God’s judgment without a hand or an eye and enter heaven rather than be cast into hell.
True Standard
Many praise the goodness of themselves and others as though their standard of goodness is either a substitute for God’s grace or that moral achievement only needs to be compare to the likes of a Hitler or a serial child molester. Oddly enough, without an adherence to God’s righteousness, what was previously considered heinous can become acceptable. History and human nature confirms this. Current cultural trends exhibit this.
Unless your standards are based on the True North of God’s moral absolutes, even the philosophically “conservative” will slide like trying to keep a stable course without an accurate compass.
Being alert to God’s standards, that will cure you of that fallacy that you are somehow a righteous person without the saving grace of God’s mercy. Until you acquire a healthy dose of the fear of the Lord, you are not beginning to comprehend the off-the-human-dimensions of reality of God’s holiness and righteousness.
There are two parties involved in an adulterous affair, neither are innocent. This woman, despite being singled out, is guilty and being shamed for her sin.
Jesus Christ came to show compassion, kindness and mercy and to save sinners, not the righteous. In reality, He came to save all people, but the problem is the Pharisees and scribes, by and large, thought themselves to be righteous by their man-made standards that were an inaccurate and self-agrandizing adaption of Mosaic Law. In their view, Jesus’s willingness to socialize with the so-called outcasts of society was a violation of righteous behavior.
Of the two parties involved, the accusers and the accused. Both are guilty of sin and Jesus treated each in an amazing way. The Pharisees wanted to trick Jesus but they in turn were exposed for their own sins. We do not know exactly what Jesus wrote on the ground, but each time he wrote, brought conviction in the hearts of the accusers. The conviction was so great, each left the scene. They realized they had no righteousness to stand on. We cannot know if the accusers were repentant to just embarrassed with the truth. Either way, Jesus shined a light on their darkened consciences.
“Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? – Matthew 7:1-3.
Surrender to the Lord
The woman did not know the accusers had left. As she stood there, she was very ashamed of her sinfulness. Being arrested in the act, brought before a judge in public, she would expect to be put to death.
However, Jesus perceived her repentant heart, a humble and contrite response to the conviction that was brought about by being exposed for her sinful behavior. Although her faith and obedience to God was weak, being brought low by circumstances spinning out of control and Jesus’ compassion had caused a quantum shift in her heart.
The magnificent exhibition of God’s Grace to a precious daughter of God, restoring the dignity of an adulterous and humiliated woman, resounds as much in ancient times as it would in the tyrannical realities in many modern day cultures,
Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”
She acknowledges and honors Christ as Lord. She passes from death to life.
This appears to be another clear case, for what man had meant for evil, God had meant for good (paraphrase of Genesis 50:20) at least in the woman’s case.
When she realized her accusers had left and she was free from certain death, Jesus gave her assurance of being free also from His condemnation. Importantly, He Instructed her to “sin no more.” This is a warning for each of us not to intentionally continue in a lifestyle of sinful behavior if we have truly accepted Christ as Lord.
For a detailed explanation of who Jesus Christ is from the Bible’s perspective go to the video in this website , “Who is Jesus Christ?”
For a one minute explanation of the Gospel, watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCP9UcC7BzE
For a review of the Ten Commandments: https://www.challenyee.com/the-ten-commandments/
Featured image: sourced from christ.org
CKY
P.S. Typos and all, I do not use AI.
Sunset photo in Hawaii (Maui) is from my personal stock.