A Message in the Dirt

The story in John 8:1-11 is where the title of my blog is from. In these eleven verses, there is a woman that you and I can relate to and the message she received from Jesus, we can also receive.

Jesus is on the Mount of Olives and as always a crowd appears to hear His teachings. All of a sudden ruckus  strikes near them. The Pharisees bring a woman caught in the act of adultery out for the crowd to see.

Now at this time the law of Moses said that anyone caught in adultery were to be stoned to death.

Let's take a moment and think about how insane stoning really is. I mean its a brutal way of dying: getting hit repeatedly by a bunch of stones until you die... pretty harsh.

Anyways, the Pharisees try and trap Jesus by asking Him what they should do to the woman. Now, to the Pharisees, Jesus has only two options...let her be murdered, and break the commandments he has taught about, or break the law of Moses, and let her go?

Now this is the interesting part. Without a word, Jesus stoops down to the ground and starts to write a message in the dirt.

Can you imagine being a part of the crowd and this intense scene is going on and you're on the tip of your toes waiting for an answer to come out of His mouth... and He just bends down and marks in the dirt?

Well the Pharisees become impatient at this and demand an answer. So Jesus gives them the greatest comeback of all time,  “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then He stooped down again and wrote in the dirt.

The accusers hear this and one by one they slip away from oldest to youngest.

This next part is important. He says to the woman, "Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”

As Jesus saved this woman from the brutal death of stoning...He can also save us. From depression, doubt, self-harm, anger, adultery...from sin.

This is why I am starting this blog. I was that woman. We are all like her in a sense. "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." I hope to show people that just because they have made mistakes doesn't mean that Jesus wont accept them. We are all His creations and He wants each and every one of us to run away from our sinful and dirty lives into His pure and comforting arms!

No one  knows what the message in the dirt said but it's powerful because it wasn't a huge show... just a simple message in the dirt. Despite what it was, the message saved the woman's life, and Jesus forgave her of her past life of sins just like He can do for us.

I feel like I've been called to write this blog to show people that Jesus can send them forgiveness too... even in a message in the dirt.