May 29, 2021
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in John? Here’s today’s reading:
John 8 (NIV)
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, ........Continue Reading
What Jesus says here about sin and judgement is so confusing to the Pharisees. In their mind the law says the adulterous woman must be stoned to death but by who’s hand Jesus challenges them to think about….there is only One True Judge!
We are all “slaves to sin” and therefore none of us is without sin and in any place to cast judgement on someone else. God sees our sin the same, as just sin that needs to be forgiven and rooted out that we would live life as a new creations!
What I do find interesting in Jesus’ response to the woman being spared from stoning is similar to the one He gave the man He healed in chapter 5 of “stop sinning” While we do ALL sin and He recognizes that about man we are still not off the hook for our sins! We should live a life like Jesus did, without sin!
Salvation, forgiveness, and sanctification come from Christ’s sacrifice but that does not take away our need to live a life pleasing to God!
“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.””
John 8:12 NIV
https://www.bible.com/111/jhn.8.12.niv
Once again 100 lessons in this chapter. So desperately they are trying to get Jesus to slip up. And they can finally say Got ya. He crushes everyone of their statements. This chapter sums up so many truths. You will die in your sins. You belong to your father the devil. Wow. Ends with. Before Abraham was. “I AM”. Absolutely. Love this truth. The deity of Jesus Christ!!!!!!!
John 8 – they were quick to judge but Jesus put them in their place right away, it’s not our job to judge others, we all have sinned and fall short of his Glory, but we are redeemed through his blood.
I love how Jesus tells them about how they can be free from their sins, but they are having a difficult time understanding because they don’t want to see the truth they are full of hate for him, so much in this chapter.
John 8:58. Is a great verse to bring up to modern day false religions who believe that Jesus was a great man and prophet
This first account is not found in the earliest manuscripts so it may be an account based in the nature of Jesus as opposed to what actually happened. So Jesus begins by declaring He is the light of the world..the One from whom we can seek guidance and direction and trust His words completely. The Jews question the validity of His testimony because Jesus is the only one proclaiming who He is. Jesus affirms that because of who He is, His testimony is valid, but He also has the testimony of the Father as well. Jesus expresses in various ways the direct connection that He has with the Father. At first they don’t understand what He is saying, then they clearly do not believe and then they discredit Him by saying He is from the devil. It is a progression we often find in those who here the truth. But Jesus words are true not just because of what He says but also based it what He has done and will do. His being lifted up will be a testimony of who He is and show them to be the ones in the wrong. By not believing in Jesus, they reveal they do not know the Father nor do they understand their own Scriptures. The truth of who Jesus is so categorical, to not believe is to believe a lie and be in line with the devil.
And if all this isn’t enough, Jesus ends this chapter equating Himself with the great I AM, the most fundamental truth of who God is and the personal name He gave Himself. One should appreciate Jesus’ tenacity in dealing with them and finding various ways to address their questions as well as challenge them with a few questions of His own in addition to the bold statements He makes that He knows they will object to and lead to HIs being targeted by them.
The crux of Jesus’ message is belief in Him. He knows, honors and speaks only what the Father tells Him to.
“Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”
They accuse Jesus of having a demon. A seemingly common thing in the Bible. I think we are so oblivious to the spiritual that we probably don’t see this nowadays….but I suspect it is here and just as prevalent. It is just “diagnosed” as other things.
It is interesting to consider what has been going on in the spiritual realm. Jesus says , “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” and that Jesus existed in time before Abraham. “Before Abraham was, I am.” So…Abraham saw Jesus’ “day”.
54Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me.55Though 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.56Your 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!”59At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.