When the Pharisees brought the adulterous woman to Jesus, they were trying to trap Jesus and see if He would agree with them to stone her.
It was the law that the accuser had to cast the first stone. And if later they were found to be lying or wrong, they were stoned to death.
Jesus stooped down, lowering Himself in front of the woman, which was against Jewish tradition, and wrote in the sand twice.
It’s believed He wrote the name of her accusers and their sins in the sand. (Jeremiah 17:13).
The Pharisees departed.
He told the woman to “Go and sin no more.”
We can sometimes look like the Pharisees trying to “trap” people in their sins instead of showing them a way out. We can be really good at pointing to people’s problems instead of offering them a solution.
We can be quick to condemn.
In John 13, Jesus lowers Himself again and washes the feet of His disciples. He sets aside His garment (His glory) and girds Himself with a servant’s towel.
As He washes the dirt from their feet, it symbolizes the sin He will take upon Himself on the cross.
Full knowing Judas would betray Him, He washes His nasty feet anyway. He gives us a beautiful example of how we should serve one another, even our enemies.
Jesus loved them, sins and all, to the bitter end.
In short, shouldn’t we lower ourselves and lift each other up offering a hand of mercy?
Shouldn’t we spend more time serving others, seeing a need and meeting it, than we do shaming them and pointing out their flaws?
Would Jesus have written our names in the sand that day as a person trying to trap someone in their mess or would we have looked more like Him washing the feet of the undeserving?
Jesus loves us and accepts us how we are, but He loves us too much to leave us there. His life was a sacrifice and so should ours be if we are living for Him.
Are you spending most of your time throwing stones or washing feet? Cause it’s really hard to do both.
#Jesuslovesyou #mercy #grace #john13 #john8 #betrayed #footwashing #adulterouswoman #love
