Don't Stray, Stay!

There are times when we all need help finding our way. As we navigate life we're faced with decisions, choices, options and opportunities. The steps we take and the turns we make matter. We need to navigate life wisely, and carefully.

To wisely navigate life we need the help of the right people. When we seek the right kind of help from the right people, we're better able to stay on the right path.

There's a great lesson about this in John 8. In the first part of the chapter we find one of the most familiar stories in the Bible. It's the story of the Pharisees, along with some other religious leaders of the Jews, bringing a woman to Jesus who had been caught committing adultery. While there are lots of lessons for us to learn from this recorded event, let's pay attention to what these men asked Jesus after presenting the lady to Him:

The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” — John 8:3-5 (NIV)

These men had a clear agenda. While they came to Jesus under the pretense of concern over this lady breaking the law of God, their real goal was something very different. The Bible tells us what they were after:

They were trying to trap Him into saying something they could use against Him … — John 8:6 (NLT)

These fellows didn't really care about God's law, and they certainly didn't care about the spiritual needs of this lady. They were interested in one thing, and one thing only, discrediting Jesus — making Him look bad — and thereby undermining His influence.

But although they had wrong motives, they actually did one thing right. They came to Jesus and asked Him one simple question that we would all do well to remember:

… Now what do you say? — John 8:5 (NIV)

This question set them up to hear what they needed to hear from the wisest, greatest Teacher and Guide available. Because of the darkness of their own souls, these men later regretted asking this question. They weren't prepared for Jesus' answer! He turned the tables on them. He showed them the error of their ways. As only Jesus can do, He momentarily removed the spotlight from the adulterous lady and shined it on their sinful hearts.

Here's a valuable lesson for us. As we navigate life we need the right perspective, the right input, the right insight. Only then will we think and do the right things. The best way to get what we need at times like these is to ask the right questions to the right people. It's to go to Jesus, and to the people Jesus appoints in our lives who are godly, mature and wise, and ask “Now what do you say?”

Unfortunately, all too often we seek advice from the wrong people. Sometimes we're asking the wrong questions to the wrong people. They may even be nice people, but they lack the biblical understanding, the spiritual focus and maturity, and the “Jesus perspective” we need. When this happens we inevitably make bad decisions, operate with faulty understanding, and end up seeing things through lens that distort and warp our view. The result is, we stray from God's highest and best.

The best person to ask for wisdom is Jesus, and the best question you can ask Him is, “Now what do you say?” This is the way to stay on the right path!

Dale O'Shields

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