ALONE: Lenten Devotion Day 38

Lenten Devotion Day 38

ALONE

When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, 

"Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." 

And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. 

When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; 

and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 

Jesus straightened up and said to her, 

"Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" 

She said, "No one, sir." 

And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again." 

John 8:7-11

Close your eyes for a moment and let the powerful image of this story sink in. A lone woman, dragged to the middle of a crowd of men who seek to condemn her to death for adultery. Her terror and her shame are palpable as John recounts the story. She is brought before Jesus and probably never once realizes they are just using her as a trap - they could care less about her and her fate.

Then Jesus writes in the sand

Who will cast the first stone? I'm sure none of you have ever done wrong - let the one who is completely innocent throw the first punishing blow.

Then Jesus writes in the sand

The earth must have twitched as each stone was dropped...the women must have felt the weight lift off of her own shoulders in disbelief. One by one the men walk away and the woman is 

ALONE 

with Jesus.

A sinner standing with a Savior

forgiven

and alive.