A Life Worth Dying For

Admirable stories of martyrdom cause us to press pause on our daily lives and reflect on the noble actions of everyday heroes who willfully lay down their lives to save others. Parents die while saving drowning children. Warriors lay down their lives to protect people they don’t even know. Demonstrators and social leaders may be killed taking a stand for human rights or political causes. Missionaries die for spreading the Gospel in foreign lands. Martyrs shine a light on our shallow, self-centered souls. The death of the righteous brings life.

We also witness martyrs deceived into forfeiting their lives for the cause of their sins. A life of drug addiction leads to an early death for the user and lifelong scars for family and friends. A life dedicated to pursuing riches, status, or endless adventures will leave us short-changed when we take our final breath. Martyrs propagating violence and oppression will find anguish and despair that lives on even after death. 

In the gospel of John, we find the story of a woman caught in the act of adultery. The Bible does not tell us anything about this woman other than she is an accused adulteress. We aren’t even told her name. She is only identified by her sin. Despite all that her life may have been, she is only remembered for her sin. And, her sin carries a death sentence.

On this day, the woman has the misfortune of conveniently being used by a group of male Jewish religious leaders. They were devising yet another ploy to trap Jesus into breaking the Jewish law. They remind Jesus that Scripture warrants a death sentence for the crime of adultery. Imagine the audacity of these men trying to trick the source of God’s Law into tripping up when interpreting and applying his own Law! 

The woman fearfully awaits her fate. The group of men badger Jesus, eagerly waiting for the verdict. This Jesus, who heals the sick and speaks of the Kingdom of Heaven, will he follow the Law and join them in stoning this woman who has committed adultery? Jesus tells the men that whoever among them is without sin may cast the first stone at the woman. He kneels down and begins writing in the dirt with his finger. He doesn’t even pick up a rock to write with, let alone throw at the woman! He writes in the dirt he created. Dirt that God formed dry land with so that we could live on this earth. Dirt that God knelt down in to form Adam with. Dirt for plants to grow in to feed us. Dirt that one day Jesus would wash off his disciple's feet. Dirt that Jesus would use to restore the sight of a blind man. Dirt that we will one day be buried in. Dirt he uses in this story to teach a lesson that his followers will remember throughout the ages.

The world will never know what Jesus wrote on the ground that day. The winds of time erased the words from the earth. But, those words scribbled in the dirt are forever sketched in the hearts of the men who were prepared to execute the adulteress for her crime. The Bible tells us that one by one, from the oldest to the youngest, the accusers walked away. After they leave, Jesus stands up to tell the woman that he does not condemn her. But, he instructs her to abandon her sin.  John 3:17, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

We don’t know what became of this woman, nor the men. I do hope they recognized that it was the Messiah who gave them an opportunity for a new life on that fateful day.  I hope they all turned from their sins and filled their lives with joy in their savior!

Jesus’s ultimate sacrifice demonstrates that our lives are worth dying for. In God’s kingdom, sacrifice and selflessness are rewarded with life. Christ is the ultimate example of a martyr. He lived in a way that was worth dying for. He is light. He is the truth. He is the way to eternal life. He willingly laid down his life so that we might live new lives, forever. Holy Spirit, prod us to spend our lives worthy of our calling to become children of the King. May we not be remembered for our sins. May we be remembered for your glory.