1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them.  3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?"

This week we are going to look at the story of the woman caught in adultery. The teachers of the law wanted to catch Jesus in the dilemma of choosing death or mercy, law or grace, holiness or sin.  There is much debate today, over how churches ought to handle sin among the members. Ought it to be private matter or a public matter, and what ought to be our attitude toward it?     

The story of Marian Guinn made national news some years ago.  She was a 36-year-old divorced mother of four. She had gotten mixed up in an affair with the town mayor in Oklahoma. The elders of her church visited her and she admitted the affair and promised to break it off. She understood that her confession was to remain confidential.  The elders insisted that she repent publicly before the church congregation. She refused. The elders insisted that if she did not do so in two weeks, they would issue a formal statement to the congregation branding her as a fornicator and admonish the congregation to withdraw fellowship from her.  She withdrew from the congregation, but they went ahead anyway.    

She became angry and filed a million-dollar lawsuit. The Tulsa jury agreed with her and awarded her a judgment of $390,000 - more than the entire income of the church for six years. Was the woman right? Was the church right?  Is there a place in our society for church discipline described as mentioned in Oklahoma? Is there a place for church discipline at our church?   

We live in a culture where there is placed a great deal of attention on sex.  Sex sells.  Much of the advertising has sex appeal. We can watch our television sets and media in the US and quickly conclude that the values of society have changed drastically.  People are continually having sexual encounters before marriage, after marriage, and with homosexual couples.  In our day it is considered almost abnormal to be a virgin by classmates in college, not to mention the sexual pressure within high school dating.  If you think that church in Oklahoma was tough, consider the scene when a group of religious leaders brought this woman before Jesus who was caught in the very act of adultery.  What ought they to do?  The law said to stone her.   

As we look at this story, we will consider sin and the different responses to it. Sin, that we think is private, ends up being public whether we realize it or not. It affects a lot of people in families, among friends, and in the church. Ignoring it seems to only make matters worse.

Prayer:  Lord, give me a heart like Yours who sees not what is wrong with others, but who they are or can be in You.   

Dale