In John chapter 8, the religious leaders tried to set a trap for Jesus. The whole story reeks of hypocrisy. They brought a woman, who they say was caught in the very act of adultery, but somehow forgot to bring the man. They really didn’t care about the man or the woman; they were just pawns in the religious leader’s silly game. They were looking for a way to accuse Jesus of breaking the law. If Jesus said the woman should not be executed, He would break the law of Moses. If Jesus said the woman should be executed, He would be guilty of breaking Roman law because only a Roman judge could sentence someone to death.

As the crowd gathered to see what He would do, Jesus responded by seemingly ignoring them at first. He bent down and began to write on the ground. As He continued to write, curiosity built, and the accusers demanded an answer. Jesus finally replied by saying that anyone without sin could cast the first stone, and then He went back to writing on the ground. One by one, the accusers left. When they were gone, Jesus looked at the woman and asked her, “Where are your accusers?”

We need to be careful when we are eager to cast stones at other people’s transgressions. While we may not be guilty of the same sin, as the Bible reminds us, “There is none righteous, no, not one.” I’m just thankful that we serve a loving, merciful, and forgiving God who tells us to pick ourselves up and sin no more.