John 7:11-8:59

The timeline of Christ’s ministry has jumped forward about 3 years, and it is about 6 months before His crucifixion that He goes up to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles (or feast of booths), which occurs in the Fall of the year. 

Until this time Jesus had been primarily teaching and healing people in the northern region of Galilee, but now He has gone up to Jerusalem to present Himself before the people, and to openly declare Who He Is.  He makes very clear that He was sent from God, His Father, and that everything He said and did came from the Father.

The Pharisees devise a scheme to try and trap Jesus, Who they hate because He is constantly helping people, and drawing people away from being under their control.  They bring a woman who was caught in the act of adultery (but they didn’t bring the man), and they demanded that Jesus judge her appropriate punishment, which is clear in the law of Moses.  In the law there is no provision for sacrifice or forgiveness for intentional sins, like adultery and murder, so she was clearly guilty, and clearly deserving of the death penalty.  They know that Jesus doesn’t want to condemn anyone, so they want Him to be trapped between the law and His desire to show mercy.  This grieves the heart of Jesus, and He finally tells them that the one among them who is without sin can throw the first stone.  Each of her accusers become aware of their own guilt, and disappear, and then Jesus tells her that He also does not condemn her (“go and sin no more”).  It’s impossible to trap God, no matter how sly and cunning the enemy might be.

Jesus ends a heated debate with the Pharisees in John 8, by again telling them clearly that He is from God, and that God is His Father.  He likewise tells them that they are of their father, the devil, who was a murderer and liar from the beginning.  At the end of this, Jesus tells them clearly that He is the “I AM” of the burning bush, and they tried to kill Him, but without success.