Did You Hear What He Wrote?

“But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people were coming to Him; and He sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, they said to Him, ‘Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act. Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?’

They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, ‘He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.’

Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court. Straightening up, Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘I do not condemn you, either. Go from now on sin no more.’” John 8:1-11

No one knows what Jesus wrote in the dirt the morning the woman caught in adultery was brought to Him. Some say He wrote the Ten Commandments. Others think He simply wrote the word forgiven. Regardless of the written message, the principle was clear - grace would abound.

We can’t earn God’s grace. It is a gift He gives to all who come to Him. Scantily clothed and lying at the Savior’s feet, this woman probably thought her fate was sealed. The punishment for adultery was stoning. Yet suddenly and unpredictably, Jesus offered her a second chance. Warren Wiersbe writes: “For Jesus to forgive this woman meant that He had to one day die for her sins. Forgiveness is free but it is not cheap...”

Jesus was not soft on sin. “Nor is Christ’s gracious forgiveness an excuse to sin,” continues Wiersbe. “‘Go and sin no more!’ was our Lord’s counsel. ...Certainly the experience of gracious forgiveness would motivate the penitent sinner to live a holy and obedient life to the glory of God.” Grace is given so we may know and accept what Jesus Christ did for us at Calvary. Forgiven and blessed by His matchless grace are those who call Him Savior.

Without the Cross, even God couldn’t give us a second chance.