John Chapter 8:1-11

If you just feel bad and you never do anything that's not spiritually productive as America spiritually unproductive and it can harden your heart wall lets us know that we've done wrong and we need forgiveness and grace comes in without forget welcome to cross the bridge with David McGee. David is the senior pastor of the bridge in Kernersville North Carolina. Today we have with DA Brown David's associate pastors here at the bridge when the studio started be here thankful for God is doing to this program so you hear how many people been blessed by today once again positive.

A special word for it's important that we remember there must be conviction in our hearts before there can be conversion not quite sure what that means is David McGee with his teaching conviction John chapter 8 verse one Jesus went to the Mount of olives now early and in that's a continuation we talked about last week. That's a continuation really of verse 53 from the previous chapter says and everyone went to his own house. But Jesus went to the Mount of olives verse two now early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came to him and he sat down and talk them.

The Mount of olives.

It is overlooks the Temple Mount is the family there that contains the garden of Gethsemane, and then you rise up again to the Temple Mount. And so Jesus very likely had been there, praying that night before he went into the temple and what did he do in the temple again. He was teaching, I believe that a church that is following Jesus has to be a teaching church. Why because that's what Jesus did for modeling Jesus then we should be teaching not shouting at people necessarily not so in Bibles. Adam me you know they not offer something but teaching the Bible not getting caught up in a hoop but just explain in simply what the Bible says and I don't think there's any way that a body of believers is following Jesus cannot be a teaching church. It's weird that we actually define what teaching church as is and it's true.

It's in the minority. That's sad to me as a Bible teacher first. Life lesson here as a church we should be teaching the Bible. Two things reach and teach are so important to reach out into the community and to teach the Bible verse three then the scribes and Pharisees brought to him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst they said to him, teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now let's move back to verse three and let's get the picture.

Jesus is sitting there teaching people are gathered around him and then what happens the Pharisees come and disrupt the teaching with the adulterous woman.

Obviously, this was a pretty major disruption you have to say verse five they continued.

Now Moses in the law commanded us that such should be stoned. But what you say verse will notice something or is the man. Many said they caught her in the very act adultery takes two people. Where was the man that in bringing life well lived. Probably because it will. My guess is he was probably a Pharisee. One of their friends but that's that's just a guess, but that time that culture.

They play were women were discriminated against pretty heavily. That's amazing to me that people think outside the church. They think Christianity discriminates against women.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

A godly man treasures his wife way above what the world values her as you look at other places wherever Christianity goes into the world.

Women are elevated in their status in a culture everywhere but where was the Manson Deuteronomy 2222 says of a man is found lying with a woman married to her husband and both of them shall die. The man that lay with the woman and the woman so you shall put away the evil from Israel or Leviticus 2010 says the man who commits adultery with another man's wife. He who commits adultery with his neighbor's wife.

The adulterer and the adulterous. So surely be put to death where's the man is not in the picture understand something. I understand that the world says that what's happened in this chapter is okay old but it's even natural. It's part of the normal married life, that adultery gets committed because we can't look to the world to instruct us on how to live our lives. We have to look to the Bible and so often in conversations with people that say their Christian sailor say they say yeah but you know this guy said this and this therapist said this and then this psychiatrist at this and this guy said that no and I'm not really interested in what they have to say I'm very interested in what the book has to say about what is right and what is wrong. We watch the video clip affords an amazing video that they go around and ask people, can you really know right and wrong. Scary thing is all uncertain out again.

How can we know right from wrong. In fact, one of them as it is pursuing his Masters in theology goes well and I can't really tell because what used to be wrong, is no longer wrong in what used to be rights no longer write, I don't find that as a matter fact I don't think anybody else buys into it now tell you why. During this video clip they say you know it well is it wrong to push an elderly lady in a wheelchair downstairs and one of them says well it might be wrong. For some people it might be wrong. For some people. But here, let's change it up a little bit.

Is it wrong to push your grandmother in a wheelchair down some stairs. I think most people so deftly.

That is all about what happened. All she became your grandmother. People talk about anarchy not believe in anarchy know you know no control, no government, just you know, no rules, no wrong walls no regulations yet you know what, I don't think anybody believes that I don't think anybody believes that now tell you why, because now never done this. I don't think anything weird but you know it when somebody says that I wonder what they would say I wonder what they would do if I just drilled him right in the mouth, what you do, you didn't want to really feel it was wrong. I mean, I didn't really you know I didn't. Now get you know if it's wrong to you should hit me back but I didn't really feel like it was wrong for me to do that. So you know right now.

At that moment. I think they would be convinced that there are absolutes that there are absolutes. And we get are absolutes from the Bible and God's adultery is absolutely wrong is very damaging. It's not an indiscretion. It's not a midlife crisis is not sowing wild oats and I don't care if the world says it's okay we should look to the Bible to tell us right from wrong. We should look to the Bible to tell us right from wrong. This book has so much to say about how we are to live, how we are to conduct our lives. This book is enough for me to work on for the 70+ years on here. Amen. I don't really need to go outside this book to find other things to work. I'm still working on the simple stuff you don't love thy neighbor short blaming when we clarify to before removal. Adultery is a sin that can be forgiven and adultery doesn't always mean the marriage is destined to fail. I've seen many marriages recover from the pain of adultery. But you know what you understand God there's a price to pay. There's a big price to pay, because you know it years after that both partners still feel the pain of that action does affect things can go well for years and the other partner can reach out discount of touch that scar the wrong way and the pain can flare up, it's not worth it is not worth it. As followers of Jesus we need to think about the consequences of our actions and then this action. There's a lot of damage to the marriage to the family for just a few minutes of pleasure, is not worth it.

If we consider the consequences.

We won't do it but if you just get isolated if you listen to the wisdom of the world to go well you know it's a few minutes of pleasure and and and hey it's okay and everybody's doing it. We can talk ourselves, and that said and they will suffer the consequences. We will begin to reap what we sow and we just stopped for a moment and consider the possible damage that it can do. We won't do it.

And I guarantee you guys.

I guarantee you there are people in this room right now who are in danger because are terribly close to this line.

They're messing with this line and there think it all while I haven't crossed the line yet. I just want to see how close I can get to the line. The Bible says you know what you can't take a burning coal to yourself and not get burned. And if that describes you to be careful and if some of you have crossed the line. You need to repent and change your action. I can forgive you but you need to quit crossing that line because let me tell you what happened if you don't repent.

If you don't take the action to repent, God will reveal what you're doing and is probably going to be in a much more painful way than if you deal with it this morning if you said, Lord, you know what that that describes me across line or call right up to the line. I need to forgive me and I need to give me more discernment so don't place myself in that position, and since were talking about this if you're young and you're unmarried and in here we careful, be very careful. I don't think you'll ask one person in here who had sex before marriage. That would say you know what it is all is great. I recommend it for everybody say no you know what I'm I'm sorry that I blew it. Serve your young person in here.

Remember, God has created you and made you an awesome gift to offer to your husband or your wife on that day that you get married and it's an awesome gift is to be treasured. It's to be valued and if you ever cross that line.

Realize you can never, ever again have that gift to give the sunlight be careful, careful.

You're listening to Pastor David McGee on crossed the bridge. He'll be right back with more just a moment, but I want to remind you of the free resources available to you on crossed the bridge.com there's a team of hundreds of people that will pray for somebody to be safe.

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You need someone to present God's word to them every day were present in God's word to them here on crossed the bridge with Pastor David McGee. We can pray for them as well. Just by simple going to cross the bridge.com and click on the pray for the lost button. All you need to do is put in the first names of the people you love, that need to know Jesus as Savior. Click on submit and immediately hundreds of people begin praying for your lost loved ones. What an awesome way to bring your love ones to Jesus. Here's a word from associate pastor DA Brown Bob want to take a minute to pray for our listeners and a few cities in Florida, Panama City, St. Mark's, Tallahassee, West Palm Beach, and also in Georgia, Athens, Blue Ridge and Brunswick God, we thank you for those listening today we know that you have a special word just for them in God.

We pray that they would be encouraged in following you do today they would put their trust in you with no holding back an Lord that they would be an encouragement to others with what you're doing in them. Lord, we pray for the pastors in the cities that you give them wisdom and discernment that you will be honored in the mitts that in Jesus name, amen. Hey man, thank you brother and now get back to David McGee as he continues teaching verse by verse verse six. This they said testing him, that they might have something of which to accuse him. But Jesus took down a road on the ground with his finger, as though he did not hear now.

Incidentally, some of you in a couple of people that asked me this question before this week that some of you may have notes in your Bible that say some of the translations are some of the manuscripts don't have this piece of Scripture in the manuscript you can just cross through that. If it says that your Bible because there is plenty of manuscript evidence about this passage being in the Bible that this was an ingeniously waypoint the Roman government had taken away from the Jewish people the right of execution they had said you no longer have the right or the ability to look at somebody and so you have to be executed.

You have to be stoned.

You have to be put to death. You no longer have that right. So here's Jesus.

If he says yes. Stoner is broken Roman law if he says no, don't Stoner then is broken.

The Mosaic law. Either way he would go well so it seems. Either way, he wouldn't go he would be in a mess. So this trap is is ingeniously laid now this is a road on the ground. You know what he wrote me. I don't know either. I was just asking you this is this is a real topic of conversation for for believers.

But you know what was. Nobody knows nobody knows what he was writing. Now I have. I'll give you my two theories if you will that are supported by Scripture. But understand this is file this under conjecture.

Okay, whenever I'm throwing some out there may be maybe so make. I'm always going to let you know about that couple thoughts here and in all of the sand where the Bob where the Bible is silent we should be okay break that no just to tell you what the theories of Jeremiah 1713 says, old Lord, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you, shall be ashamed those who depart from me, shall be written in the earth because they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living waters. I think this may have been what was going on he was writing their names in the dirt walk because they had forsaken the Lord, and so he might've been at writing their names in the earth. The other theory that I think holds water is perhaps the 10 Commandments Exodus 3118 says and when he had made an end of speaking with him on Mount Sinai. He gave Moses two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God to perhaps use writing their names or perhaps the 10 Commandments but were not not sure verse seven.

So when they continued asking him, he raised himself up and said to them, he who is without sin among you, let them throw a stone at her first and Jesus also had a feeling that it everybody that approached him with an impure motive and ask him a question or put them in a situation always regretted it now and and then then want to passage it says, and after that they didn't ask him anything else they got tired of the way that Jesus always could turn it around in here. He does the same thing. He turns it around.

He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at you at her first don't understand a couple things. A lot of people use this passage to say that Jesus didn't condemn the adulteress there and and and by some quantum leap in logic.

They then say so Jesus really was okay with her being an adulterous that that's a huge leap in logic and were told that the spiritual man judges and discerns all things now know people near the Serra Matthew 71 Judge not activate – that's one of those that you know that we throw around, but then the offset is that the spiritual man judges and discerns all things. So we are to drip which we are to discern as believers in this Christian the thing that we get in danger of sometimes is condemning people condemning people looking around enough believers have said well I like it animated no hope in Jesus for him to get gotta twist your face when you say simply, but if there's no hope in Jesus for him.

There's no hope for me. There's no hope for you and who are we to say there's no hope in Jesus for somebody else I'm not comfortable playing that role or making that decision. God has not given me that roller that decision.

Verse eight and again he stooped down and wrote on the ground than those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone and the woman standing in the mitts of the older guys they they had the sense to get out of there quick verse 10, when Jesus raised himself up and saw no one but the woman he said to her, woman, where are those accusers of yours has no one condemned you. She said no one Lord Jesus said to her, neither do I condemn you go and sin no more understand something.

Jesus didn't say she had an indiscretion. He called what she did send when he said go and sin no more, and he was extended to her mercy. What is mercy mercy is not getting what you deserve. We deserve punishment. Mercy is not being punished on their forget when JD is about seven years old when the devotions. He said that can explain mercy to me and I gave this definition mercy is not getting what you deserve man. He locked on the list definition because every time after that when he would do something and we we be disobedient and I would be prepared to correct him through biblically advise spanking he would look at me go mercy that mercy and man. It was really effective but mercy is not getting what we deserve, but understand we have to we have to get a picture that were condemned under the law. On the next life lessons.

There must be conviction before there can be conversion.

There must be conviction before there can be conversion but let your conviction draw you to the Lord.

If you just feel bad and you never do anything that's not spiritually productive. As a matter fact it spiritually unproductive and it can harden your heart respond to that conviction asked the Lord to forgive it. Early on I thought you know that you had to feel bad enough long enough before you can ask for forgiveness. While it just did that.

So I gotta wait a few days before I asked for forgiveness. But you know what it got harder to ask for forgiveness, not easier than a starting as soon as I messed up as an old Lord forgive me of that. So sorry, here we see the beautiful thing of law and grace working together. Don't guess we'll all never saved anybody but I don't think anybody ever got saved without realizing they needed to be saved.

The law lets us know that we've done wrong and we need forgiveness and grace comes in with that forgiveness is a necessary part and I know part of us will still run with our sin away from Jesus. Perhaps you sit in here this morning than any of done stuff that is been wrong. Maybe even adultery in your sit there and you're just you're feeling are cash he was looking right at me when he said that I sent were you sent sit in the church service and feeling horrible and you know what service after service after service. I did nothing. I sit there. Felt bad thought that's what I was supposed to do. That was all there was to it. You don't have to feel overwhelmed with your sin, you can bring it to Jesus and let them have it. You were never meant to carry that and if you reject Jesus if you say you know what I don't need this forgiveness. You keep talking about understand what you're saying is I want to stand before a holy, righteous God, and I want to stand on my own merits.

I want to stand before the wall, I think I can pull it off. Friend, you can't do it and let me tell you a lot better. Men and women than you and I have tried to do it. Couldn't do it were depended upon grace did Jesus at this moment break Mosaic law, no know what he did. Sounds almost too good to be true, but it's true.

What he did as he placed himself in the cross between this woman and her punishment and understand when he did that he was making the statement that he was going to die for her sense. She deserve death, but he stepped in and said you will live in instead of you done I'll die for you staggers imagination, but this is what we need to do with your sin, not just one time guys, but in your life allow Jesus to come between you and your sin put the cross there because and again the mind staggers at this Jesus Christ forgives sin. Jesus Christ forgives sins. And that's why they call it the good news. He's willing to do that this morning. He's willing to forgive you something you're trying to carry the stuff around when you were never meant to carry it around you trying to carry around and you know what people around you see men there like what was wrong with him.

What's wrong with her and then they got 500 pounds of luggage on their back and lay it down this morning or you can carry it back out like you carried it into what a tragedy to come here that you can be unburdened and to decide to carry this with you and not let the cross come in between you and your sin is Jesus is the same thing to you this morning.

All you deserve death but you know what I'm willing to die that death for you. What an amazing thing and understand Jesus didn't say that lightly is why forgiveness is free. It is not cheap. It was bought for you precious blood of the son of God on the cross, Jesus died for you because you do stand condemned under the law, but he stands here this morning willing to offer you forgiveness friend you know for sure that your sins have been forgiven.

You can know right now only Legion a short simple prayer simply telling God you're sorry and asking him to help you to live for him. God wants you to pray this prayer so much that he died to give you the opportunity and the ability to ask him to forgive you. Please pray this prayer with me out loud right now.

Dear Jesus, I believe you died for me that I could be forgiven and I believe you were raised from the dead that I could have a new life now done wrong things I have sent and I'm sorry. Please forgive me of all those things.

Please give me the power to live for you. All of my days in Jesus name, amen it friend of you prayed that prayer according to the Bible you've been forgiven you've been born again.

Jesus said he would not turn anybody away who comes to him and he came for those people who knew they needed forgiveness. Those who were sick, not the righteous to congratulations bring you just made the greatest decision that you will ever make. God bless you, if you pray that prayer with David for the first time we'd love to hear from you. You can visit cross the bridge.com to receive our first steps package with helpful resources to help you begin your walk with Christ. Or you can write to cross the bridge at PO Box 12, 515 Winston-Salem, NC 27117 and share how God is working in your life will DA before we go.

What are some ways that we can bless our listeners each day. You can wake up with encouragement from Pastor David to the word of God with his email devotional life lessons to consider a daily reading plan and a thought to meditate on throughout your day. From the heart of David McGee. That sounds good for yesterday and again. It's been great to have you with us on the program today but tell us what else can a listers find on cross the bridge.com. If you're not able to make it to your home church this Sunday. Why not join us for our lifestream. 10 AM Eastern time or on Thursday night. Seven. This visit, cross the bridge.com and click on a lifestream link there is a live service from David's home church. The bridge North Carolina again.

That website is cross the bridge.com. Thanks again for listening and join us next time. As David McGee continues teaching verse by verse in the gospel of God