The Adulterous Woman-Conclusion! From Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power

Thank you for joining me for your coffee break today at Chicklit Power. Grab your coffee and let’s get back to you, me and The Adulterous Woman.
Jesus has just spoken fifteen words that create one of the most important lessons we as Christians desperately need to learn. Basically, He’s beat the prideful Pharisees and religious leaders at their attempt to have Him arrested, but no trickery was involved on His part.

Now, at this point, the adulterous woman is sitting on the ground, “in the midst” the scriptures say and I found this painting of her online that I must share with you that captures her so beautifully.



Though there is nothing in the book of John suggesting that her hand was outstretched, all I have to do is close my eyes and put myself in The Adulterous Woman’s place, and this is exactly what I would do, especially after hearing such words of conviction! I would reach my hand out just like this and I probably wouldn’t be able to keep my conviction quiet, either as I begged for mercy and tears stream down my face!

After Jesus spoke, He stooped back down and the Scriptures go on to confirm that those who heard Him, indeed their conscience convicted them and they left the Temple one by one. No one remained except Jesus and The Adulterous Woman. But wait! How interesting is this? Now she’s standing. Can you imagine the disbelief she stood in, mixed with relief? Something tells me her recognition has fully dawned and she realizes she’s looking at her Savior.

Then Jesus raises Himself back up and said to her: “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” And she replies, “No one, Lord.” Jesus thereafter voices His forgiveness of her sins and encourages her to go and sin no more.

Wow! All I can say is HE is the only one with that power and authority to forgive the adulterous woman, aka, you and me. Only He has the videotape of my heart and yours, or any other adulterous woman’s for that matter, and He is who we all will answer to. May we learn to be less and less like the Pharisees and more and more like the forgiven adulterous woman clothed now in humility!

Thanks so much for sticking with me in this series. I hope you can join me tomorrow for a new mini-series called Dancing with a Butterfly.

Humbly,

Evinda

The Adulterous Woman-From Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power

Thanks so much for joining me today for Coffee Hour and more of The Adulterous Woman! Grab your coffee and let’s get back to the conversation about idolatry and adultery!

Before we meet her, we need to do a bit more ground work. It is so very important that we understand the definitions for “adultery” so when we do meet her, we may be able to respond to her just as Jesus did, with a grace that surpasses all understanding and brings home to the heart the reality of the necessity of our need of a Savior.

Because of its depth, I am going to the Strong’s Expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. OMG, I’m so very glad I did. Wait until you hear this. The Greek definition says adultery is: Metaphorically used of those who are, by a Jezebel’s solicitations, drawn away to idolatry.”
There it is; adultery is idolatry, so it’s not just the literal definition of unlawful intercourse with the spouse of another! Oh, can’t you just see yourself in this meeting that’s about to take place? Can you honestly say that you have never felt the pull of something or from another pulling on your conscious thoughts to a place you shouldn’t have gone, to do something you know you shouldn’t do? I know I have! Maybe I’m not so above this adulterous woman.

But let me dig a little deeper for clarity and let’s look at the definitions for idolatry: In addition to being things offered to idols, idolatry is “The sin of the mind against God, and immorality, sins of the flesh, are associated and are traced to lack of the acknowledgment of God and of gratitude to Him.”


Now I feel like I know this woman we’re about to meet, as if we share so many things in common. The only difference between her adultery and mine is hers was committed against and with the physical while my adulterous actions have been dangerously more subtle, acts that have silently and spiritually pulled me further and further from the safety and sanctity of the love of Christ and His position of “first” in my heart and life.

Pondering true adultery,

Evinda

The Adulterous Woman-From Coffee Hour @ Chicklit Power

Thanks for stopping by for a little break today at Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power. Grab your coffee and come on in. We’re in the crowd of people surrounding Jesus in the Temple and He was teaching and then the Pharisees and scribes entered with someone. Grab your coffee and let’s go get comfy.

Who is it that they are practically dragging in with them? Could this be her, the adulterous woman we’ve been waiting to see? As she gets closer and closer, it is hard to see her, what she looks like because her head is looking down. They are heading straight for Jesus, looking straight at him, only daring to look out into the crowd once before they stop right in front of Him.

Wow, these men that brought her in are pretty arrogant, treating her as though she’s an extremely dangerous and sought-after criminal and they should get the reward. If I didn’t know better, I’d say they are wearing an innate mask of smugness.

Let’s get closer so we can hear what they are saying.
Oh, would you just look at them all look around before they begin to address Jesus! Talk about prideful! Ugh. You can just see it oozing out of their pores as they speak. “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.”

Let’s stop there for a second. Now, this is just an Evinda-ism, but I can’t help but wonder if they really caught her or just saw her and knew of her reputation and used her to advance their scheme of tricking and thereafter arresting Jesus. That’s just a thought! Let’s get back to what they are saying.
“Now Moses in the law commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?”
Scripture says thereafter that they said this to test Jesus that they might have something of which to accuse Him, which is why I wondered what I did.

Before we get to one of the most acclaimed responses of Jesus, let’s talk about this woman for a bit. Though she remains nameless in the Word of God, she is such a pivotal example of the reality of The Gospel, the necessity of the reality of the need for a Savior. And though she remains anonymous in Scripture, she is someone we can all relate to, someone we must relate with if we dare to let go of shame, one of Satan’s most powerful ropes that hold us in bondage, an unseen bondage that pulls us away from abundant life.

Now you may be saying to yourself, I can’t relate to this woman; I’ve never committed adultery. Well, I’m so glad you brought that up, and we will definitely dig a bit deeper into this tomorrow, but for now let me leave you with this truth: Idolatry is a form of adultery!

Being freed from adultery,

Evinda