.
Love Letters in the Sand
She longed for love. To the nameless woman in the eighth chapter of the Book of John, itwas like a meteor which briefly lit up the night sky, only to fade away to nothingness. Perhaps, this time, with this man, things would turn out different. Suddenly, the door flew open, banging against the wall. Several men, dressed in priestly garments, came bursting into the room and dragged her out of bed into the street.....
Sitting in the temple, Jesus was teaching the people. From all corners of Jerusalem, the people came. Rich, poor, blue collar, white collar, all races, all sizes. His words done what no other could do, and that was to give life, and to give hope. And so He sits teaching when a sudden commotion outside the temple causes all heads to turn. It's the group of Pharisees dragging the woman caught in the act of adultery. These men did not care about the woman. To them, she was just simply bait to trap this One who was called Christ.
"The law says we should stone her," they cried in unison, "but what do you say?" Jesus acted as if He did not hear them and casually wrote in the sand with His finger (John 8:6). Weary of their continued asking, He finally lifted Himself up and spoke, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."
What followed was stunned silence. How could they answer Him? Throats clear. Feet shuffle. Finally the sound of stones falling to the ground breaks the silence. As one they came, but they turn to leave one by one. Then Jesus turns to the woman, "I do not condemn you; go and sin no more."
What Jesus wrote that day in the sand was an essay on love and a rebuke against man's arrogance and self-righteousness. Just a few days later, He would write another essay in the sand, written in red. Each drop of blood which fell from His wounds and splashed upon the ground was another essay on love, and a rebuke against religious arrogance. Don't think it's the nails which fasten Him in place on the cross, but it is love which holds Him there. And what Jesus spelled out so plainly that day were the words, "I do not condemn you, go and sin no more."
.