Jesus: Forgiveness and light

John 8:1-20 (New Living Translation)

1Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, 2but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. 3As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.

4“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery.5The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”

6They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. 7They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” 8Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.

9When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. 10Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

11“No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”

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12Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

13The Pharisees replied, “You are making those claims about yourself! Such testimony is not valid.”

14Jesus told them, “These claims are valid even though I make them about myself. For I know where I came from and where I am going, but you don’t know this about me. 15You judge me by human standards, but I do not judge anyone. 16And if I did, my judgment would be correct in every respect because I am not alone. The Father who sent me is with me. 17Your own law says that if two people agree about something, their witness is accepted as fact.18I am one witness, and my Father who sent me is the other.”

19“Where is your father?” they asked.

Jesus answered, “Since you don’t know who I am, you don’t know who my Father is. If you knew me, you would also know my Father.” 20Jesus made these statements while he was teaching in the section of the Temple known as the Treasury. But he was not arrested, because his time had not yet come.

Who is the last person you had to forgive ?

This passage makes a significant statement about judging. Because Jesus upheld the legal penalty for adultery, stoning, He could not be accused of being against the law. But by saying that only a sinless person could throw the first stone, He highlighted the importance of compassion and forgiveness. When others are caught in sin, are you quick to pass judgment? To do so is to act as though you have never sinned. It is God's role to judge, not yours. Your role is to show forgiveness and compassion.