Jesus Writes In The Sand

Some things aren’t meant for us to know.  When Jesus was confronted by a group of people wanting permission to stone an adulteress they were expecting Him to give the go ahead, but Jesus delayed His answer.  People still ask today, what did Jesus write?

It could be the actual words He wrote were not words at all but doodles in the sand.  Whether the sand was in a desert for the wind to blow or on a beach for the water to wash away, writing in the sand doesn’t last long.  Nobody had cameras and the Bible doesn’t give an account of anyone reading the actual words or figures, yet people are still talking about Jesus writing something in the sand.

The most important thing about His writing in the sand is the anticipation of all people involved.  The people wanting to stone the adulteress were eagerly waiting for a nod of approval.  The lady who committed adultery was nervously waiting to be excused.  Other bystanders were waiting for an outcome they could talk about.  All people were quiet.  All focus was on Jesus.  All attention to Jesus was the type that nothing could interrupt.  Therefore it’s not about what He wrote but the focus was fully on Him for His perfect answer to a complex situation.

When He stood, His answer was perfect.  The group was given an opportunity to follow through on their plan to stone the adulteress but they chose not to.  The adulteress was excused and the bystanders went away with focus still on Jesus instead of a morsel of gossip.

Jesus does the same for us.  We seek answers from Him for very complex situations that involve a lot of people and things.  During the times we feel the answer is taking too long He is still writing in the sand.  He is waiting on our full attention to be placed on Him and only Him, not the situation.  Waiting on a prayer to be answered involved two people waiting, Jesus and us.  Many times it has nothing to do with the complex situation but where we place our focus.  When all eyes are on Him, He will stand and His answer will be perfect.

John 8:6-7  New American Standard Bible

They were saying this, testing Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground.  But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”