Day 77 – March 18, 2021
Scriptures: Number 26, John 8 The Numbers reading highlights the consequences of sin. There were those who didn’t survive the wilderness because of their disobedience and sin. The Pharisees come to Jesus with the consequences of sin on their minds. They want to know how this radical Rabbi is going to deal with this woman who was caught in adultery. Surely, he will condemn her and have her stoned. It continues from yesterday’s message, of Jesus standing in the gap of our own tendency to condemn, and the need for recognizing our own sin. We are quick to judge others and give ourselves a lot of grace when we fall short, and sin. He asks anyone in the crowd without sin to throw the first stone. They all eventually put their stones down. Jesus stands in the gap, between a crowd and their hastiness to condemn, and turns a mirror on their own propensity to wander from God and His ways. Jesus is there, leading them towards Grace and Truth. The Pharisees lose their minds in John 8. But we know the truth, and who the Truth is, Jesus Christ. And when we read John 8, we are reminded that Jesus was there, in the beginning. A theme that happens throughout John. Forced to recon with the sovereignty and glory of Jesus Christ, the Pharisees chose condemnation and disbelief. Jesus says, “I know you are Abraham’s descendants. Yet you are looking for a way to kill me, because you have no room for my word.” “You have no room for my word” is an indictment on the condemning spirit within the Pharisees. When stones are in our hands, it often reveals the hardness within our hearts. We feel better about our sin when we can shine the light on the failures of others. “Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.” Is there room to hear the Word of God? Is your heart open to Him?
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AuthorJordan Ickes, Minister of Etna Green Church of Christ. Archives
December 2022
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