The Fake Jesus Changes the Meaning of John 8:1-11: the Woman Caught in Adultery

Part 3 in The Fake Jesus series.

The fake Jesus doesn't judge sin or sinners, with one exception: he judges anyone who judges sin or sinners. 

His favorite story is the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11). But he reshapes it to fit his "no-fault" teachings, claiming it proves we shouldn't judge people.

What we should know about the story of the woman caught in adultery:

1. It wasn't in the oldest, most accurate translations of Scripture, but it doesn't disagree with God's Word. (See more explanation.)

2. It's not really about adultery. It's about hypocritical men trying to trap Jesus (verse 6).

3. It shows Christ's indirect and gentle judgment of these hypocrites. Instead of judging them, he let them judge themselves (verse 7). And, to their credit, they were convicted of their sinful motives (verse 9).

4. He didn't "condemn" the woman to death by stoning according to Old Testament civil laws of Israel: "Neither do I condemn you" (verse 11). (See Laws, Commands, and Errors.)

5. But He directly and gently judged the adulterous woman and told her to leave her life of sin (verse 11).

Judging sin and calling people to repentance was a key element of Christ's earthly mission (e.g., Matthew 4:17; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 13:1-5). It's why people hated Him (John 7:3-7). 

But it's a necessary part of sharing the gospel, and it's part of our mission as Christ-followers (Matthew 28:18-20).

Why do you think people take the words "Neither do I condemn you" out of context? 

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See Discipline, Punishment, Condemnation to understand the different ways God deals with the sins of believers and unbelievers.

John 8:1-11: 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?” 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”

Bible Love Notes