Preschool
God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid (Isaiah 12:2).
Neither Do I Condemn Thee
Memory Verses
Primary
Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid (Isaiah 12:2).
Junior
Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation (Isaiah 12:2).
Background Scripture: John 8:1-18
Lesson Scripture: John 8:1-11
Introduction
God is not focused on condemning but on saving humanity (John 3:17). God did not send Jesus into this world to convince people of their sin and guilt.
Today, condemning has been broadened to include not agreeing with a person’s words or actions. The Bible’s definition, though, means to declare as guilty, to censure a person, to place judgment on purposes, words, or actions. Condemnation and damnation are at times used in the same context in the Bible. God does have the authority to condemn, and ultimately, the law does condemn us all.
Our heavenly Father, however, does not only condemn us, He also loves us. His shocking love subjected his only Son to a shameful death to save us from condemnation. Christ did not come to strengthen the law against us, but by affirming the validity of the law, He satisfied its just demand. He took our place, our condemnation, because He loves us. We may learn from Jesus to not be accusing or labeling, but forgiving. We are to reflect Christ by pointing others to his redeeming forgiveness and love.
Key Verse
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved (John 3:17).
Lesson Scripture
John 8:1 Jesus went unto the mount of Olives.
2 And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.
3 And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst,
4 They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act.
5 Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?
6 This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.
7 So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.
8 And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground.
9 And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.
10 When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee?
11 She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.
Studying the Lesson
The drastic repercussions of disobedience to God have continued since the garden of Eden. In one sense, man needs no condemning; what man has always needed was a just and perfect Rescuer. Part of the law’s purpose was to educate humanity on their inability to clear their condemnation by works of righteousness.
The scribes and Pharisees labored to please God by being good and right. In this atmosphere, they criticized those who did not obey the rules as they understood them. Rome’s power and influence in their daily lives frustrated the Pharisees even as they enjoyed the influence and power that Jewish society, religion, and law gave them. As their power increased, their compassion waned.
When Jesus began his ministry, the attention that ordinary people gave Jesus troubled the Pharisees. There seemed to be legitimacy to his work and words, yet it so opposed their route to righteousness that they desired to reject it as impossible. Jesus opposed their expectations of a Messiah and Rescuer. They had incorrectly placed value on obedience by determination, material prosperity, and in their own importance of maintaining a standard for everyone to live by. The humility and authority of Jesus troubled and confused them. He frustrated their well-studied deliberations on the law and its meanings. They knew the “thou shalt nots” and the punishment accompanying each trespass. Jesus loved the carefully religious and the financially strong as well as the simple men and women eking out daily survival. The temptations of the rich and poor may differ, but all are reduced to doubting God’s ultimate authority and taking matters into our own hands. Jesus talked of mercy and love, but the Pharisees knew the law could not be ignored. They brought the woman to test Jesus, not knowing they were exposing themselves to a lesson on God’s grace.
With his finger, God wrote on tables of stone. We cannot satisfy this law; it exposes our failures and inabilities. We know we need a pardon. With his finger, Jesus wrote on the ground. Was He retracing God’s laws that convict all men of guilt? The Pharisees were reading, God was speaking, and their consciences condemned them.
Jesus, standing to face the sorrowing, shamed woman, asked about her accusers and their condemnation. “No man, Lord” was her reply. Praise God, we have an advocate, Jesus the righteous. We need not fear man’s power or condemnation, only He who has power both to judge and to save. God has no pleasure in the death of the sinner. He is able to rescue and restore the sinner.
Practical Truths for Today
Is it ever our work to inform someone that their actions or lifestyle are wrong? A measure of satisfaction is found in placing approval or disapproval on the actions of others. If we conclude that condemning is wrong, must we then condone all things?
God’s law, together with the law written on man’s heart, introduces man to his need (Rom. 2:15). Recognizing my guilt and calling sin “sin” in my life or another’s is not condemning. No one can remain standing before God without our Advocate (Ps. 130:3). When facing the law and our own deficiency, none of us can condemn another without implicating ourselves. We are ignorant of God and his law if we attempt to condemn anyone to make ourselves look better. In the “Pay Me What You Owe” story of Matthew 18:21-35, Jesus teaches that a debtor has no right to demand a payment from someone else when he has been forgiven a much greater debt.
The scene portrayed in our lesson text has four groups: Jesus, the scribes and Pharisees, the adulterous woman, and the disciples and spectators, or others not directly involved. Let us briefly fit ourselves into the woman’s place. We have all been unfaithful and have had an illicit relationship with the world. Materialism, entertainment, lust, doubt and fear, and other works of unbelief have beckoned us, and we have been caught in the act of loving these things. We stand before Jesus, stripped of dignity. The law demands death. With authority, Jesus tells the accusing law, “I have given my life for his sin, he is free to go.” To us, Jesus says, “You are free from guilt and condemnation. Do not sin anymore lest you come under its shadow once again.” Satan’s power and rightful claim to condemn us has been broken by Christ’s atonement. He can no longer legally condemn us before God since Christ has paid the debt the law demands.
God does not take pleasure in the death of the wicked. Jesus gave an illustration of this in Luke 20:9-16. A landholder finally sent his son to receive fruit from his vineyard after numerous of his servants had been mistreated at the hands of the husbandmen. He was not seeking to retaliate against these husbandmen but was extending forgiveness and another opportunity, but the husbandmen were not thinking rightly. They killed the landholder’s son and by doing so became condemned. Only after all their chances for redemption were expended did the landholder give them due judgment. The landholder respected their choice and removed them. They cut off the branch that held them up.
Our corrupt flesh is condemned; nothing is good in our fallen nature (Rom. 7:18). This is why it must be crucified. We live in hope of a new body and do not identify with our flesh but with Christ ruling and reigning within. Christ guides us back into our original identity and purpose.
Seeing a brother or sister stumble or fall into sin does not give us a reason to condemn, but we do have a work to do (1 John 5:16). God gives his church authority to judge and to bind and loose. Without God’s light, condemnation is dark and without hope. With God’s light, condemnation reveals sin and shows the way of returning. When we see inconsistencies in one another, let us share Jesus’s light, love, and grace so that we may be workers together with God.
Parents, teachers, and leaders must not be afraid to point to God’s abounding grace. Are we as familiar with offering God’s grace as we are of warning of God’s wrath? What are we focusing on? Parents are to train children, condemning wrong but not belittling the child. Children will be forgetful and naughty but will also explore and learn. By God’s grace, we must practice faithful discipline that builds confidence, not fear.
Questions
- What is wrong if a person feels God constantly condemns one’s desires, actions, and thoughts?
- When we criticize or place some judgment on someone’s lifestyle or actions, does this hinder God? Could this hinder a person from true conviction?
- How may we love and accept a person like Jesus did but not condone or accept sin?
- Is it our duty to forgive unrepentant people? Do they need to know how I feel about their lifestyle and choices?
- Discuss: Being critical of someone’s bad behavior points to a wrong concept of God.
- Is there a better reaction to someone’s bad behavior than criticizing or ignoring?
Source: COGICM Daily Bible Readings (Daily Bible Readings, PO Box 124, Glenn, CA 95943).