While I won't tell people to shut their mouths, perhaps it is time we re-examine our role in relationship with our servitude towards God.
In John 8 starting at verse 2, an adulterous woman is brought before Jesus by the Pharisees and a challenge was made. In verses 4-5 the Pharisees state, 4. "Teacher," they said to [Jesus], "this woman was caught in the act of committing adultery. 5. In the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say (HCSB - all verses will be from this version unless otherwise stated)?"
Now Jesus did not answer right away. Instead, the Bible states Jesus stooped down to the ground and started writing in the dirt. Finally, in verse 7 after much persistence by the Pharisees Jesus answered, "The one without sin among you should be the first to throw a stone at her."
Verse 9 states that one by one the Pharisees left with not a stone cast at the woman being accused.
Many people use this event as the lesson that no one is to judge others because of their sin, and while they are technically right, do they know why it is not our place to judge sinners?
The answer lies surprisingly in the statement made by the Pharisees to Jesus when they said "in the law [of] Moses". The law the Pharisees were referring to concerning adultery is found in Leviticus 20:10 and Deuteronomy 22:22-24. Both verses do contain condemnation for people caught in adultery. However, the Pharisees were wrong in that the adulterous woman must be stoned, but we will get to that point soon. Also wrong were the Pharisees in attempting to carry out the judgement against the woman and for tempting Jesus to do wrong as well.
The law of Moses was for the children of Israel to follow in order to keep themselves pure as this was a time before Jesus' crucifixion and thus no grace existed for their sins. The law gave very strict guidelines on moral conduct. To enforce it, God appointed 70 elders who would be the judges (see Numbers 11:16). They were called the Sanhedrin. It was appointed to the Sanhedrin to serve as judges and to enforce the law of Moses. This authority was not given to anyone else. Keep that in mind.
At some point two influential entities came to power within the Jewish religion: the Sadducees and the Pharisees. These were not groups appointed by God (like the Sanhedrin had been) but rather formed from positions of power and of tradition practiced outside the will of God. The Sadducees were of the rich class while the Pharisees were of the middle class. The Pharisees were considered representatives of the common man not unlike today's Democrat Liberals. The Sadducees were more political and sided with Roman occupation, thus earning the scorn of the common people. The Pharisees were more religious and opposed Roman occupation, therefore earning the praise of the people. Because of support from the people, the Pharisees had major influence over the Sanhedrin.
So why is all this information important to the adulterous woman event? Because in the account, the Pharisees challenged Jesus on whether or not the adulterous woman should be stoned. They used the law of Moses as their reasoning. However, because Jesus knew the law of Moses (He had written it after all for Jesus was there in the beginning; see John 1), He knew this was a trap.
If Jesus had said she should definitely not be stoned then the Pharisees would accuse Jesus of defying the law of Moses and thus discrediting Himself. Remember, Jesus said he came not to replace the law but to fulfill its purpose. Defying the law would strike that statement down and thus Jesus would lose His validity. However, if Jesus had said "yes" to stoning the woman, then the Pharisees could accuse Jesus of performing the duties that He should not perform as they were only for the Sanhedrin to perform. Also, the Pharisees knew full well that the adulterous woman was not punishable by being stoned to death unless she had been engaged to one person and yet had sex with another man (see Deuteronomy 22:23-24), thus Jesus would be supporting the illegal stoning of her. The Pharisees thought they were being clever. However, Jesus is the Son of God, and He is the author of cleverness.
Jesus turned the challenge around against the Pharisees. At Jesus' statement of whoever is without sin throw the first stone, if any of the Pharisees had casted that stone then they would be usurping the Sanhedrin, losing the influence they had on the judges and thus losing the support of the people. If they wanted to maintain their position with the Sanhedrin and maintain the support of the people, they had better know their roles and stay within the confines of their role.
Jesus' statement of whoever is without sin to cast the first stone was a direct challenge to the Pharisees because not only were they purposefully misquoting the law of Moses in front of many witnesses and at the risk of losing their validity, but they would also be in violation of that law for performing the appointed duties of the Sanhedrin.
This serves as a challenge to us today; God's people, those saved by accepting the gift of Jesus. God is the appointed Judge, and the judgement lies with Him. To condemn others because of their sin would be to usurp God and that is sin upon itself far greater than the act of adultery. Just as the Pharisees were not the Sanhedrin and therefore not allowed to perform their duties, so too are we not God and should not perform any responsibility that lies solely with God.
What is your role in God's Kingdom? We are to be Jesus to others. We are to be a lighthouse guiding the lost ships in. We are to be an example of God's love to others, and if our light shines so bright because of the love we exercise towards others, then we will fulfill the Great Commission.
Know your role, and leave God to do His role.
Until next time...
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