http://bible.org/article/believer%E2%80%99s-unfathomable-riches-christ

Christ returns to earth to play out the drama of human history and because earth, a new earth, is the location of our eternal destiny, as heaven and earth are united. We will live for eternity on a recreated earth.

Rev 21:1  Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea

What does it mean when it says “memory of them is forgotten.”?

This is from Ecclesiastes 9:5, For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten.

This is pointing to the finitude of this life.  For the most part when people die, those who live on, don’t remember them.  Once a generation or two has gone this is almost always true, except those people about whom we write history.

Do you go to heaven when you die?

Yes, when we die we go to the “presence of the Lord” to await the outcome of human history.

2 Cor 5:8  We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord

Didn’t Abraham see God in Genesis?

On the one hand the Bible seems to affirm that Abraham saw God.

Gen 18:1  The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day

On the other hand the Bible seems to clearly state that God cannot be seen

Ex 33:20   But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”

John 6:46 No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father.

1 Timothy 6:15  God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, ¹⁶ who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see.

The answer to this confict seems to be that God cannot be seen in his fullness, unhindered and uncontrolled.  He can only be seen in toned down physical manifestations.  The man in Gen 18, was one of those manifestations.  The unanimous opinion of the apostolic Fathers was that this was Jesus talking to Abraham, in Genesis 18.  Many today agree.

Does God really forget our sins when we confess them? If so….then what is the deal with judgment?

Quick answer:  We are forgiven legally and become Christians, when we place our faith in Christ.  Once we are Christians, we can be forgiven relationally when we confess our sin.  But relational forgiveness does not mean that we are not accountable for lost opportunities that accompany our sin.

Longer answer:  The Bible does promise that he will “forget” our sins.  But this promise is not attached to our confession, rather it occurs when we become a part of the New Covenant Community, or when we believe upon Christ.  This is found in  Heb 10:17Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”(This is a quote of Jeremiah 31:34).  What does this mean?

A moment’s reflection causes us to say that God who knows all things cannot actually and literally forget our sins. If he did, it would mean that he does not know all things.  Therefore it must be a figure of speech meaning that he does not allow our sin to prevent us from knowing him.  This is how it seems to be used in Jeremiah 31:34

“This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel.  After that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

³⁴     No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’

because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord.

“For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”

In the New Covenant (which is the subject here) his law will be on our hearts and we will all know him.  And he will remember our wickedness no more.  I take this to mean that our wickedness will not prevent us from knowing him and being with him, but not that he literally forgets it.   (Longer answer is continued in next question and answer)

What happens when we who are in the New Covenant confess our sin?

1 John 1:9 teaches us that when we who are Christians confess our sin, that we are able to have a healthy relationship with God.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.   When we confess we are relationally forgiven (as opposed to “legally forgiven”, which we obtained when we became Christians) and purified.  Our relationship with God is back on track, after having been harmed by our sin.

However, even with our relationship back on track, there is still accountability for our actions.  If I sin by selfishly refusing to love my neighbor in some way, I can receive forgiveness for that sin, and be restored in my relationship with God, but I have still lost an opportunity to love my neighbor. I am still accountable for that lost opportunity.  Relationship is restored, but accountability remains.

The most important issue then becomes, “What do I do with my confession?”  In my confession do I find grace, enjoy God as the source of my life, and then love him more deeply because of his forgiveness?  Or do I treat confession as a routine religious duty, check off the box and go build up a few more sins for my next bout of confession?

Healthy confession leads to a deeper enjoyment of God and a life that will be rewarded.  Even though we have missed an opportunity, the grace and love we experience from God creates more opportunity to enjoy and serve him, and a greater willingness to step out next time.

Unhealthy confession (a term I just made up) is about getting off the hook.

When He returns there could be shame both for sin that is unconfessed and for lost opportunities that accompany confessed sin.  Please, enjoy his love in confession, find your happiness in Him and in whatever He calls you to.

If we have full memory in heaven we will have memory of loved ones who are in hell?? So how can there be no tears? I’m confused

For sake of time and to most help I am going to refer this question to Randy Alcorn on his website.  Obviously this is an emotional and difficult question, as any consideration of hell must be.

http://www.epm.org/resources/2010/Mar/26/if-our-loved-ones-are-hell-wont-spoil-heaven/

What major events must take place before christs return such as a unified world leader and the mark of the beast?

Though some would disagree, I am of the camp that says that no major event need occur before the return of Christ.  The world is ready for His return at any moment. Matthew 24:50   The master will return unannounced and unexpected

Wont all of us, even those who have done many good deeds, feel like Schindler, from Schindlers List, feeling shameful we could have done more?  

I suppose almost every person in history could say “I could have done more”, if we mean “I could have done more Christian service or activity”.  Yet the call of John in response to his coming is that we “abide” in Christ (1 John 2:28).  My experience is that when we do this Christ calls us live joyful, healthy balanced lives.  As we abide in him, we avoid sin, and we love one another, according to 1 John 3,4 .  Of course we must also work hard and provide for our families.  And we must rest.   When I “abide” in Him, instead of being on a fear induced frenzy of activity, I am attentive to the direction that comes from the voice of God for that moment.

While God expresses the importance of loving one another. Would you consider this to be a commandment? Can or will we be judged by this?

Clearly loving one another is a command.  1 john 3:23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us

Yes we will be judged by this.

How do we confront what holds us back from loving others when we might not love our self based on experiences in our life?

I think it begins with honest confession to God and others.  Then receiving forgiveness, forgiving others, and building our lives on the truth of God instead of the lies of our experience.  It is very helpful to go on this journey with a friend.  Or go to Celebrate Recovery. It is a great ministry. Or sometimes a counselor is the thing that can help.  You are not responsible for what happened to you, but only for what you do with it now.

What if u don’t like your body?

Me: We probably can’t understand what a glorified body looks like completely, just as we can’t completely understand how incredible the new heaven & new earth will be. Also, some of our struggle with our current bodies has to do with societal pressure. If we look at societies through out history there are many different body types that are considered ideal or desired. We won’t have those pressures

No- because he is God, everything is dependent on him.  A wolrd cannot exist that is independent of him.

Regarding sunday’s service – when I was young I used to see the promise of eternal life as bribery. Now I see those promises as putting the sufferings of this Temporary life in its true perspective but could use some help resolving this.

First, let’s define bribe.  A bribe is “a gift bestowed to influence the recipient’s conduct”.  I assume you mean that God is bribing us with the promise of eternal life.  So he would be giving us a gift, eternal life, to influence our conduct.  I assume you mean he gives us eternal life, so that we would choose to love him and obey him.

A couple of thoughts aobut this.

One, God does not need us to love him.  A bribe is illegal because it is an attempt to influence a person of power.  We have no power over God.  He needs nothing we have.  He does not need our love or our good works, nor our obedience.  He needs nothing from us.

Furthermore,  while he calls us to obedience, he does not hold eternal life over us, incase we don’t obey.  Heaven will have some Christians who did not obey very well, and are unrewarded, yet are in the new heaven and earth.

Eternal life is a gift, given to desperate people to prove he is good and to allow us to experience his goodness.  Obedience then brings  reward,  both for this world and certainly the world to come.  Neither of these fits as a bribe because he has the power and we are the needy ones.

 Did God know that Adam and Eve were going to eat the forbidden fruit before they did?

God, who knows all things clearly knew that Adam and Eve were going to eat this fruit.  In fact Christ was chosen to enter the world and die before all things were created.  1 Peter 1:18  For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. ²⁰ He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. ²¹ Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.  He knew that they would sin and prepared for it.

Why did God create Satan and allow evil? How does evil exist if everything God crated is good?

God created Satan as a good creature with the free will to sin.  His decision to sin is generally thought to be described in Isaiah 14:12-14, in which he decides he wants to be like God.  C.f. Ezek 28:12-18.

God allowed evil to exist because he wanted to give mankind freedom to choose to follow him or not.  If he wanted a loving relationship with mankind, then he had to allow for evil.

It seems like there is no free will in heaven. Is this true?  Will we have the choice to love God in Heaven? Will there be consequences to our choices? What makes Heaven different from Creation before sin entered it?

Heaven will be filled with redeemed  and glorified people.  People who have already made their choice and have now “seen God”.  They do have free will, but they would never choose sin once they are redeemed, glorified and in His presence.  There is no hint of people choosing anything but to follow Christ and love God in the new heaven and earth.

Heaven is different from the Garden in that Adam and Eve were innocent but not redeemed and glorified.  They did not comprehend the full Goodness of God, that we will have access to, for to us, he will be the one who rescued us.

How do we as believers approach people who are blaming god for a tragedy in there life?

Weep with them and respond with compassion.  Romans 12:15  Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.

Allow the comfort we have received from God to enable us to comfort others.
2 Cor 1:3ff  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, ⁴ who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.

In the midst of comforting others and loving them through tragedy, we can start to address the “why did God allow this?’ question.  I want to approach this issue really seeking to understand why they are blaming God.  So asking questions is really important.  What did God do that you are blaming him for?  Why is he responsible?  Why must he give us something different? What right do we have to blame him?  Or to demand a different outcome?  Why does God owe us a life with no adversity?  Is it possible God has a reason for allowing this?  Does it help you to blame God?  Etc.

I ask questions to help understand where people are coming from and to get people thinking.

One thing that has helped me is to understand that this response is often emotionally based and not at all logical.  We as humans get hurt and we want to blame someone, and God is the likely target. As long as that explanation works for someone, it might be hard to convince them otherwise.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yXY-q2at_Y

Was Christ able to not sin or not able to sin?
This is a large theological debate I have never been interested in. It seems obvious to me that he was able to sin because the temptations were real, but some maintain that because he was the “God man” he was not really able to sin. They say that he was able to be tempted but he could not sin. So I am not sure that the Scriptures tell us. What is clear is that he was tempted and he did not sin

Wasn’t Christianity going through a ‘falling away’ period after Jesus was crucified? Thus the formation of philosophies and anti-Christ concepts. But as Christians became more organized after the first century “truth” of scripture minimizes anti-Christ philosophies.
As the church was not persecuted, settled down, and wrote things down, they certainly began to clarify what they believed. I think it is accurate to say that Anti-Christ Philosophies were reduced to some extent, at least “in the church”. Yet such philosophies are still rampant today, in the church, in cults, and in the world.

How can god be Jesus, when god states that he gave his only begotten son.
The verse you are speaking of is likely john 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Often times when the Bible speaks of “God”, it is referring to the whole of the Godhead, what we call the Trinity. Sometimes when it speaks of “God” it is referring to the Father. This is the case in John 3:16. John has already made this relationship clear in John 1:18. “No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.”
Jesus is God in nature or essence because he is one with the Father, but distinct as a person who is at the side of the Father.

Are the spirits the same as our souls or are they spirits that live outside of us?
The Bible uses “spirit” to refer to at least three things. 1- it refers to good and fallen angels as spirits. 2- It sometimes refers to the Sprit of God, the third member of the Trinity. 3- It sometimes refers to the spirit of a man, along with the body and soul. 1 John 4:1-6 uses it to refer to the good and fallen angels when it says “test the spirits”.

Kurt Warner a well know but less expressive christian quarterback than tebow recently said that tebow may be more effective if he toned it down and just let his actions do the talking. Are we called to be expressive and polarizing or is there also something to be said for letting our actions show Christ more than our words.
How we express Jesus really varies from person to person. Paul was expressive and polarizing at times. It got him in a lot of trouble. Yet most of us do not feel the call to be Paul. Paul says this in 1 Thess 4:11 “Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you, 12 so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. “ Follow the personality and calling God gives you to determine how to wear Jesus.

How do you test the spirits?
By judging the truth of what they are saying, in this case about Jesus. “Test the spirits” means to see if what they are saying is true. I have also heard of people who talk to demons and do exorcisms who try to question the demons to see if they will confess Jesus as the Christ come in the flesh. Apparently a demon cannot do that. I have not ever had this experience.

Was Jesus a common name in that time, the way it is in many cultures? What does/did it mean?
Jesus means “savior” or “Jehovah is salvation”. It seems to have been fairly common.

How can we tell who the anti-Christ will be?
1 John 4:1-6 is talking about many Antichrists, which would refer to anyone who denies the deity and humanity of Jesus. Someday a figure will come who will oppose Jesus that we often refer to as “The antichrist”. If he tries to put “666” on your hand it is probably him.

How do we practice the righteousness of Christ in difficult situations? Is there anything more to it than abiding?
Abiding is a comprehensive term for walking with God.  It includes the ideas of obedience, finding strength from God and getting his direction.  To abide is to obey him, know him, seek him, depend on him and follow him.  How it fleshes out varies from person to person and situation to situation, but in a sense this is all we need do.

How should we love those who say they are Christians but their acts do not show it? (Certain politicians and public figures for example)

When I have the opportunity to interact with such people, I see if I can clarify the problem.  Some people think that they are Christians, but do not understand the gospel.  So I talk with them to see if they have believed on Christ as their rescuer.  Do they really get it?  If the claim to understand and believe this, I then try to talk with them about obedience and ascertain their walk with God.  Are they abiding? If not, why not?  How can I help them.

If they are public figures I try and remain nonjudgmental, remembering that I don’t have all the information nor understand all the pressure they are under.

Aren’t we called to love and forgive non-Christians too?
Absolutely.  Yet the Scriptures more often call us to love Christians, and with a higher priority.

Gal 6:10- Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

I think this is because of the witness this brings to the world
When will you be giving sermons in how to fight well?

I am not sure.

What Bible verse tells us we will remember life on earth

I was asked this question on Sunday and came up blank.  One reason I did is because once I accepted the fact that in the eternal state you will be you, the real you, the idea of full memory was obvious, since memory is a part of human personality.  If I have no memory I will not be truly me.  This seemed apparent and obvious to me, once I accepted the reality of a resurrected me.

After the service someone said to me “The idea that some will feel shame certainly demands that they remember what they have done.” Duh. Wish I had thought of that.

I also wnet to Randy Alcorns Website and he had 7 reasons and a bunch of verses.  I want to encourage you to check out his answer.

http://www.epm.org/resources/2010/Jan/5/do-people-now-heaven-remember-what-happened-earth/

How do you know when it’s Satan speaking or your heart convicting?

Let me restate this. When I feel like I am not doing enough I ask the question, “What should/could I do different?”  “In light of my priorities, my job, my family, my need to sharpen the saw, what could or should I do different.”  Sometimes an honest assessment causes me to conclude that Satan is putting me on a guilt trip.  Other times I am motivated to make some changes.  Often I listen to my wife’s counsel and input.  When I discover a need to change, I also must confess and receive forgiveness.  All of us are human, and we know that God does not need or depend on us.  Ministry is a privilege, not a burden.  When I loose my happiness and gratitude in doing ministry and am unable to get it back, I know I need to take time to hit “refresh”.

What about when you do for others and people tell you that you are doing too much?
It depends on who tells me that.  If it is a close friend I trust or Laurel, I listen.  Sometimes however, such things are said by people who feel guilty that they are not serving others.

If the Bible tells us that we are a new creation in Christ, how do we have two natures? Doesn’t this minimize the power of Christ making us new?

No.  We just have not yet seen the full power of Christ in making us new.  We do not yet see what we shall be.  The new creature is not yet fully manifest.

How large should love groups be?
It depends on the groups purpose and goals.  Bible study groups generally are around 10-12. READ groups are 2-4.  Community groups can approach 25.

If God created the world, why did He create sin?
He did not create sin.  He created free people with the capacity to sin.  He did this for his glory and our joy.

Over the years those who read and study 1 John have disagreed on the overarching purpose for which it was written. Two options have been suggested. Some maintain that 1 John was written to help people know or test whether or not they are Christians. This is called the “tests of life” view. Others say that 1 John was written to help Christians know if they are in fellowship with God. This is called the “tests of fellowship” view. Let’s look at those views.
The “tests of life” view of 1 John is based on 1 John 5:13. “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” In this view, the letter contains tests to help people to know that their faith is true, saving faith. This view teaches that if a person believes the truth, and acts with love and righteousness (obedience), then they can be certain that they have real, saving faith. The “fruit” of their faith, brings assurance of eternal life. In this view “fellowship” and “eternal life” are generally synonymous with “being saved”.
The “tests of fellowship” view is based on 1 John 1:3 “We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” This view teaches that John wants his readers, who already are Christians, to know if they are in fellowship with God. He therefore lays out various tests, such as truth, love and righteousness to help Christians ascertain if they are in fellowship. The “fruit” of their faith brings assurance that a Christian is growing in fellowship. In this view, “fellowship” and “eternal life” are synonymous with our “relationship” with God.
As I teach 1 John I will teach, the “tests of fellowship” view. I believe this for a couple of reasons. One, is that John repeatedly calls the readers, “Little children” and “brothers”. By this terminology he is assuming that they are Christians. A second reason is that he makes statements that demonstrate that he is assuming that they are Christians. I John 2:12 would be an example, “I write to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name.“

A third reason I teach this view is that the “tests of life” view is maddeningly subjective and for this reason does not at all provide confidence that people might know if they are Christians.

Consider 1 John 1:6. “If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.“
The “test of life” view would interpret this to mean, If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and are not Christians.
The tests of fellowship” view would interpret it to mean. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do have truth in our relationship with God.
The “ tests of life” view becomes very subjective and impossible to gauge. Sometimes I walk in darkness. Sometimes I walk in light. Am I a Christians or not? Sometimes I think I am. Sometimes I think I am not. How much do I need to walk in light, to prove I am a Christian? How much darkness must I walk in to prove that I am not? This is not helpful. It certainly does not help me to “know that I have eternal life”(1 John 5:13). It confuses me.
On the other hand, the “tests of fellowship” view makes perfect sense out of this text. When I walk in light I am in fellowship with God. When I walk in darkness I am not. Period. Simple. Easy to understand. Practical. True to life.
So, in this view, “walking in the light “ (vs 1:6,7), “coming to know him (2:3), “Truth being in him” (2:4) and many other such phrases in 1 John are speaking about our relationship with or fellowship with God and Jesus.
How then do we deal with the statement of 1 John 5:13, which seesm to support the “test of life” view? “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” Very simply this. The words “I write these things”, refer, not to the whole letter, but with the preceding sentences, specifically verses 11,12.
1 John 5:11,12 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
Verses 5:11,12 are written so that people can know if they have eternal life. How do they know? If they have the son, they have life. How do they have the son? By believing. You can know if you have eternal life, because you believe in the son. Sounds like pretty good news.

There is one true “test of life” in 1 John. Do I believe in the Son? The rest of the book contains “tests of fellowship”.

1-      In the OT God clearly passed judgment on nations for their behavior.   The book of Amos and the much longer book of Isaiah are examples of some of the times when God does this.

      This is what the Lord says:“The people of Damascus have sinned again and again, and I  will not let them go unpunished!” (Amos 1:3 NLT)

Passing judgment on nations for their sin is certainly something God did in the OT

2-       Most of the time, in the OT, His judgment was reserved for his people, the Jews, the nation of Israel.  While he does at times judge Egypt, Assyria, Sodom and Gomorrah and others, most of his judgment is directed towards the people of God.  They have been given the law, and seen the hand of God work to protect them. They are his chosen people to be a light to the nations.  With more privileges come more responsibility and more consequences for not fulfilling that responsibility.

3-      Often times, the judgment of God comes as a very natural fleshing out of their choices.  God allows peoples to experience the natural consequences of their choices. This is a good way for us humans to parent.  It is also one way that God chooses to deal with nations.  Romans 1 describes this as “God giving us over to the sinful desires of our hearts “ Romans 1:24.

4-      We rarely see such “national judgments” in the New Testament.  Except for prophetic literature wherein large worldwide judgments occur, we don’t see God promising judgment on individual nations in the NT.

5-      We do see God promising to discipline his children, the church in the NT.  Sometimes this discipline is promised to willfully disobedient children (Heb 12:7).  Sometimes it is directed at whole churches (Rev 2,3)

6-       Individuals who reject the love and forgiveness of Christ clearly face judgment, this however not being promised in this world, but at death.  As Hebrews 9:27 says… man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.

7-      Just because the NT scriptures do not talk about God’s judgment of nations in the NT does not mean it does not occur.  If we think of judgment as being a natural consequence of our actions,  (point number 3 above) we would likely all agree that it does occur.

So was 9/11 a judgment on America?  On the one hand I would say “no” because the passage my friend read to me that morning was a warning to the nation of Israel (Ezekiel 24) not to America.  On the other hand it is weird that my friend felt lead by the Spirit to read Ezekiel 24 to me just before the attack occurred.  And it did “blow me away”.  However,  how am I to understand that?  Was it just luck? Was that God applying this passage to us? Or was it God comforting us by informing us that he was aware of what was taking place?  I am reluctant to give too much credence to one such experience.  Scripture generally provides 2 or 3 such witnesses.

I would also say “no” because I do not see America as more worthy of judgment than any other nation.  In many ways I see us as less “worthy of judgment”.  On the other hand our wanton disregard for life (abortion) and our seeking security in finances are certainly things that God judged nations for in the OT.

In the final analysis I see 9/11 as something that God permitted evil people did to us.  Why did they do it?  Because of a radical Islamic mindset. Why did God allow it?  I cannot know that, since He has not revealed his mind on this.  But it serves as a motivation to me, just as every funeral does, to remind me that life is short, death is certain, and that we will all one day be in His presence.  So 9/11 reminds me to prepare for that Day.  One way I prepare is to be about the task, he called us to…. The being and making of Christ learners!!

Also, the current movie “Soul Surfer”, about the young woman who lost her arm surfing, to a shark bite, is supposed to be good.  The young woman is a christian, whose story is told on the site www.Iamsecond.com.  I have not seen the movie, but heard it is good.

Let me address the last issue first. We have in our possession today over 5,000 copies of all or part of the New Testament written in some form of first century Greek.  These copies contain many thousands of variants or differences between them.  Most of these are quite small, consisting of missing letters or small changes in words.  A few of them are theologically significant.  There are two larger passages that are in dispute, with some of the ancient manuscripts carrying them and others omitting them.  The ending of the book of Mark is one such passage.  John 8:1-11 is the other.   All told however, considering the difficultly of hand copying manuscripts, the lack of adequate paper materials (try writing on papyri – crushed leaves, or Velum- animal skins)  and time span involved, we have remarkably consistent manuscript evidence and a very high number of manuscripts.

The specific problem with John 8:1-11 is that this story is simply missing from many of the earliest manuscripts.  Over 100 of the manuscripts that contain the gospel of John do not contain this story, including the very earliest ones we have, which are from the early 3^rd century.  Likewise many of the early church fathers do not comment on the story, and a number of the translations into other languages which existed did not include it. This evidence has caused many to say that the story is not genuine.

However, the evidence is not that clear.  While 100 manuscripts do not have the story , over 400 of them do.  While the earlier ones do not have the story, there is evidence that these earlier manuscripts were somewhat dependent on each other, and are not independent attestations to the actual story by John.     Indeed, the earliest manuscripts we have which might have contained the story go back only to the early 3^rd century.   This leaves almost 150 years for the story to have been dropped from John’s gospel, intentionally or unintentionally by copyists.   This may well have been what happened.

Jerome, a Latin church father writing around 420 AD says, “in the Gospel according to John in many manuscripts, both Greek and Latin, is found the story of the adulterous woman who was accused before the Lord.”

Augustine, a Greek church father, notes the same thing, and even ascribes a motivation to the copyists who left it out.  “Certain persons of little faith, or rather enemies of the true faith,

fearing, I suppose, lest their wives should be given impunity in sinning, removed from their manuscripts the Lord’s act of forgiveness toward the adulteress, as if He who had said ‘sin no more’ had granted permission to sin.” Some did not copy this story as it might have been seen as giving permission to the wives to sin.  Wow.

Was it a part of the original gospel as written by John.  We cannot know for sure.  But, as I read it, it contains truth found in other parts of the scripture.  And it speaks powerfully of the wisdom and grace of Jesus.  I guess I will keep reading it.