Let’s look at John 8 to gain some insight into what Jesus taught about sin. What is sin?
In John 8 we see first a woman being dragged before Jesus for judgment. She has been caught in the act of adultery. The religous leaders want to test Jesus, to see how He’ll deal with the situation, which is clearly a sin punishable by death.
‘What will Jesus do?’ they wonder, plotting to catch Him in disobedience.
Jesus offers a rainbow
The men surround the women. They impress on Jesus — What are you going to do about this woman who has sinned against the Law of Almighty GOD?
He waits, He draws in the sand, He says, ““He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.”
And they all walk away.
He then says to her “…sin no more.”
What is sin?
She broke the Law but Jesus let her go. But didn’t she sin? Does he really let her off?
Not entirely. Yes, He let’s her leave, but with a warning — a yellow card! He says, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” There is a warning in that. There is a condition inherent in what He has done. She has a second chance.
The rainbow signals a promise to mankind. GOD sent the rainbow to mark a promise: He’d never flood the earth again.
“Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.” (Genesis 9:11)
Jesus says “sin no more” because He’s giving her a chance to change. He’s giving her a chance to repent. He’s giving her a chance to walk in freedom — not only from the harsh judgement of a death sentence, but also free from the oppression and shame of sin.
Like the rainbow, He issues a promise: sin no more and you will live.
The accusers
And what about the men who judged her? What does Jesus do for them? He offers them freedom too. He has facilitated their conviction, just as they facilitated the woman’s. “He who is without sin among you…” And they all depart. They have an opportunity to repent, and they will be set free from judgment.
Sin is the opposite of freedom
Are the men forgiven?
A closer look at the text will reveal their hearts . They admitted their sin, by declining to throw a stone. But then what? It is, of course, what is in their hearts that matters to GOD most of all.
What is sin?
In a nutshell, sin is not directly about our actions. Sin is not simply about what we do. Instead, sin is rebellion against GOD.
Next time I’d like to continue into John 8, to look more deeply at those who had condemned the woman. They didn’t leave as she did. They continued on — questioning and debating Jesus.