Are You Throwing Stones or Building an Altar? (July 10, 2022)
Pastor Andy Lambert
PASSAGES: John 8:2–11; John 8:7; John 3:17; John 3:19; Romans 3:10; Matthew 7:3–5; Romans 3:9–12; 1 Kings 18:30
Many times in the church world it is easy to have the holier than thou attitude, especially within the ministry workers. “I must be good, cause I am the Piano Player, Sunday School Teacher, Praise Team Singer, Nursery Work, Pastor’s Wife … PASTOR!”
We must all realize that we have ALL sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. As the Pastor, I am no more holier than anyone else in this room. HOWEVER, we must all continue to grow together, pray together and build together if we are going to make it. Even though we do things together, we will stand before God alone.
Let’s take a look at this played out in the Scripture:
John 8:2–11 (ESV)
2 Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them.
3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst
4 they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery.
5 Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?”
6 This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.
7 And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”
8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground.
9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.
10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”
11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”
The atmosphere of sin, just as in these verses, corrupts even those with the best intentions and the highest morals.
There is more sin in our Scripture than just adultery. There was guilt of the witnesses and the religious leaders.
• The witnesses who caught the adultery act were great sinners – they were vindictive and revengeful. They wanted to strike out and get back at the woman here publicly. Under the Jewish laws, she should have been held in custody in some private place until judgement, however, she was unmercifully dragged before the public to expose her sin and shame and punish her.
• The religious leaders and the public had great sin as well. When the accusers dragged the woman to the religionists, people along the way joined in, as the case so often is. The religionists saw a chance to test Jesus, so they took the women before Him hoping to discredit Him.
• If Jesus said the woman was not guilty, He would be breaking Jewish law and be leaving Himself open to the charge of being too lenient with sin.
• If Jesus said the woman was guilty and should be killed, He would be breaking Roman law which did not consider adultery a sin worthy of death. He would also be criticized as lacking mercy, love, compassion and forgiveness.
Note several things about the dark nature of all seen here …
• There was a sinful spirit among all these involved, a spirit …
• of self-righteousness that lacked forgiveness
• of criticism that lacked love
• of judging that lacked compassion
• of censoring that lacked understanding
• of condemning that lacked sympathy
• of punishing that lacked restoration
• of savagery that lacked curing
• of destroying that lacked the second chance
• There was also hypocrisy. Those there felt and claimed that they were religious, better than the woman, free from any sin serious enough to be exposed. They even used Scripture to condemn her sin and to support their right to condemn her.
Now, let’s go to verse 7 –
John 8:7 ~ “And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.””
Let’s not kid ourselves, she was guilt of sin. So was everyone else around her. I am NOT asking that judgement not be given, for example, if someone robs a bank and they should be set free. Not at all. I believe that we should be held accountable to our actions. Our actions have consequences.
She was guilty and to be condemned to death. Her accusers and the people were right, legally justified in their charge. If they were to be stopped from killing her and if they were to be corrected and rebuked, something phenomenal would have to happen. AND IT DID!!!
“Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”
No person is without sin. Everyone of those there and here today knows it and everyone of them were convicted within their own conscience.
John 3:17 ~ “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
John 3:19 ~ “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.”
Romans 3:10 ~ “as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one;”
Castings stones is not based on how much Scripture a person knows, nor on how great a person’s calling and gifts are, nor on the position a person has. It is based upon moral goodness and perfection and no person has achieved that.
Matthew 7:3-5 “3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”
Romans 3:9-12 “9 What then? Are we Jews any better off? No, not at all. For we have already charged that all, both Jews and Greeks, are under sin, 10 as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; 11 no one understands; no one seeks for God. 12 All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.””
What we should be doing is taking those stones and building an altar. The words rock and stone, referring to the prime elements in ancient foundations, are used in the scriptures as metaphors signifying strength, steadiness, and durability.
The world around us has tried its best to destroy the church and more importantly the altar of the Lord.
It is time for the church to stop casting the stones and start rebuilding the altar and get back to offering a sacrifice of PRAYER to God.
1 Kings 18:30 ~ “Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down.”
Pastor Andy Lambert ~ pastorandy@cvcog.church
Call/Text: 205.642.8744 ext 101