January 17, 2012 – Daydreaming Doodlers or Drawing Lines in the Sand?
6 This they said to try (test) Him, hoping they might find a charge on which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger. 7 However, when they persisted with their question, He raised Himself up and said, Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone as her. 8 Then He bent down and went on writing on the ground with His finger. – John 8:6-8 AMP
The religious leaders had what they needed. Surely they could back Jesus into a corner now. They brought an adulteress before Jesus so He could pass judgment on her. This was the opportunity they had searched for so long. His judgment would allow them to discredit His teaching and His followers would dwindle away. As Jesus was teaching the crowds in the temple, they brought the woman before Him. What was His response? He doodled on the ground with His finger.
I can see the looks on the faces of the religious leaders. I can even hear their thoughts. We’ve got Him now. How’s He going to get out of this one? Look at Him, drawing pictures in the sand like a silly child. He doesn’t know what to do. Then, as quickly as these thoughts and other similar ones poured over their minds, He stood up. His directions were simple. Whoever has no sin can throw first. Then it was back drawing in the sand.
Suddenly the thoughts of the leaders drastically changed. How does He know about that? I can’t openly confess what I’m hiding. Man He’s good. Did He draw a line in the sand just before He stood up? One by one, the leaders were struck with the guilt of their sins. Jesus in turn forgave the woman and told her to sin no more.
Children on playgrounds all over the world play games in the sand. Girls play hopscotch while boys many times dare their peers to cross over a line they draw in the sand. An ex-President of the United States over twenty years ago even drew an imaginary line in the desert sand of the Middle East and dared a ruthless dictator to cross it. But his line, like the one Jesus could have drawn in the temple court, was a far cry from a childhood game.
There are many lines in the sand Christians should never cross. Crossing such lines lead to adultery, addictions, and every form of sin imaginable, yet Christians cross these lines daily. They even dismiss these activities and say things like a little sin every once in a while is okay or I’ll ask for forgiveness tomorrow. Such comments are signs of hypocrisy. Read the Book of Matthew. Jesus has so many stern words for hypocrites in there that it should literally scare people living in hypocrisy. Here’s one of my favorites.
7 You pretenders (hypocrites)! Admirably and truly did Isaiah prophesy of you when he said: 8 These people draw near Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts hold off and are far away from Me. 9 Uselessly do they worship Me, for they teach as doctrines the commands of men. – Matthew 15:7-9 AMP
Think about the line in the sand like this. If you cross over a line in the sand in order to sin, where is Jesus? If you have a relationship with Him, you left Him to enter into your sin. You crossed over the line to join the religious leaders in their sin and accusations. To you, Jesus is just a daydreaming doodler.
But Jesus was not a daydreaming doodler. He was a confronter. He drew a line in the sand and dared the religious leaders to cross it. It wasn’t that He was on the playground ready to fight. He just knew what to say and when to say it. Even though the leaders were enraged with Him, they would hardly let their anger turn physical around so many people. Then, when confronted with their sins, they fled.
The best part about the line in the sand is that Jesus awaits you on the other side. Are you living in sin? Are you one of the Christians keeping hidden sin in your life and justifying it? Are you one of the religious leaders of Jesus day, living in spiritual pride, thinking you know it all? Those men were the most educated theologians of their day. But they had the Savior of the world in front of them and were so blinded by their own ideas and perceptions of who Christ was that He past right under their noses.
Are you ready to cross the line in the sand to where Jesus is? Are you ready to cross over and turn your back to sin forever? Or will you be like the religious leaders and turn your back to Him and flee? If you do, Jesus will always be a daydreaming doodler.
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