Day 39

After meeting with Moses and Elijah, they went back down the mountain and

"when they came back to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him" (Mark 9:14-15).

Jesus comes off the mountain and is immediately confronted with the needs of the people. He ministers to the people as the movement continues to expand. Now, it's time for another feast. Let's see what happens!


Read John 7:1-8:11

Go through this passage and list all the questions raised by various people. (It should be about 20).

What were the various views presented about who Jesus is? (maybe 12)

What does this tell us about the crowds?

What does this tell us about Jesus?

What leadership lessons can we learn from this?

The Bible says that the Jewish holiday, the Feast of Tabernacles, was coming up (John 7:2). At that time, all Jewish men must report to Jerusalem and present themselves at the feast. This was an Old Testament-mandated, seven-day men's retreat each year (Lev. 23:33-36, Deut. 16:13-17). Jesus' half-brothers, James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon, were excited about making this yearly trip with their older brother, Jesus. Yet they were still struggling to believe that He was not only their older brother but also the Messiah (John 7:5). We are not sure when Jesus' half-brothers became Christ-followers, but somewhere along the way, at least two of them, James and Judas, do. We know this because we have a book written by each of them- the books of James and Jude. We also know James became the first "Sr. Minister" at the church in Jerusalem.

In obedience to the Father, Jesus tells His brothers to go without Him to the feast, which must have sounded odd to them. But they listened and headed off to Jerusalem. The Father wanted some time alone with Jesus to talk and then sent Him to Jerusalem undercover. Midway through the feast, Jesus makes His grand appearance at the temple and teaches again about who He is: He was born in Bethlehem, a son of David, yet raised in Nazareth. A fight breaks out among the crowd because of what Jesus is saying and what the people have been taught about the Messiah. There is a fight and a lot of yelling, and Jesus slips away to the quiet of the Mount of Olives to spend time with His Father again. This small mount was a place Jesus liked to pray when he was in Jerusalem. While Jesus is praying, the fight continues. And who takes a stand for Jesus? Good ol' Nicodemus. Remember him? He was the guy who came to Jesus at night back in John 3. Nicodemus gets his chance to stand up for Jesus. He makes a calculated risk and decides to ask those gathered a question. Instead of changing minds, he is ridiculed by the others, accused of being from Galilee. Nicodemus goes back into "hiding"- he's still a believer but not a fully committed disciple. We will watch this Christ-follower, somewhat undercover among the religious crowd of Jesus' day.

Do you know any undercover Christians? The kind who says their relationship is personal and meant to be kept in the privacy of their thoughts and life? Are you a secret follower? Many are there- and that's okay. It's okay for a while. But You can't stay there.

When Jesus returned from the Mount of Olives, a woman was brought before him who had committed adultery. So many questions come with this account. How was she caught in the act? Was this a setup of sorts? Was she simply a pawn used against Jesus? Where is the man caught in adultery with her? Was he not just as guilty? Why is he not presented as well before Jesus? Why only the woman? Something smells fishy to me. I think a plan had been made by the religious leaders the night before, and it is about to backfire in the faces of those who planned it. The scribes and the Pharisees have heard that Jesus is a friend of sinners and seize the opportunity to use this against Him. They bring this woman, who I am sure is scared to death, and place her in the center of the court, quote the law of Moses to Jesus, and ask him, "What do you think needs to be done with her?"

This is a trap. If Jesus had said stone her, he would have been cheered as a law keeper, but as word spread throughout the land, every prostitute and sinner would run from him. Interestingly, in Jesus' day, prostitutes and sinners ran to Jesus for grace and forgiveness. Today, most prostitutes and sinners run as far away from the church of Jesus as they can get. What's that about? If you ask them, you'll find that they anticipate condemnation and not love, forgiveness, and grace. Where have we gone wrong?

Jesus knows it's a trap and turns the tables. Standing next to the woman, he begins to write in the dirt. I wonder what he wrote? Through the centuries, Christians have debated what Jesus wrote in the sand. Some say He drew the early Christian symbol of a fish. It sounds cool... ish. But it says he wrote something, not drew something. Others say he wrote the ten commandments that Moses had given the people, which the religious elders quoted when they brought the woman to Jesus. He makes them think back to His teaching from the day before: "Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law" (John 7:19). They persist and refuse to get the point, so He stands up and says, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her" (John 8:7). Then notice what Jesus does. He doesn't back up or run away. He stays there right beside her and continues to write. Maybe he was now writing out their sins: lying, deception, gossip, backstabbing, greed, revenge, etc. As Jesus continues to write, the crowd disperses, beginning with the oldest. Not one person threw a stone at her. When all had left, Jesus stood up and said, "Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin". (John 8:11). We can always look to Jesus, "…for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness" (Lam. 3:22-23).
 
So, how well do you live with compassion? Do you condemn? Would you have been in the crowd yelling, "Stone her!"? How quickly would you have walked away?
I'll confess I struggle with compassion in many situations. Sometimes we suffer from the consequences of our sins. The best way to prevent the painful consequences is to stop sinning. Sometimes I want to yell, "STOP!!! JUST STOP SINNING!" I don't want to stone anyone,  but a small pebble to the head might be helpful.

But then I look at my life. I see my sin. The sin that's not so visible. The sin in my heart, in my mind. It's easy to see the adultery in that woman's life, but not so easy to see my judgemental attitude. My pride, jealousy, envy (and all the other issues I may carry) aren't as visible. They are much easier to hide.



Or maybe you would have been the one lying beside Jesus, fearful of the death you deserved according to the law? Your sin is evident to all around. Maybe you're the person I talk to weekly who thinks the walls will cave in if you walk into a church.

No matter where you see yourself, the words of Jesus apply, "Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin". (John 8:11)

Jesus came not to condemn but to save.

Read John 3:16-21.

We need to share that grace-filled Jesus with the world around us.

And you and I need to live in response to the grace we've received (John 3:21)

We must share the grace and live right in response to what Jesus has done for us. Or, in the words of Jesus,

Go and leave your life of sin.