Top X July 26, 2025 Devotional

JOHN 8:3-11 | ³ The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, ⁴they said to him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. ⁵ Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" ⁶ They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. ⁷ When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." ⁸ And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. ⁹ When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. ¹⁰ Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" ¹¹ She said, "No one, sir." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again."

1 JOHN 1:8-9 | ⁸ If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹ If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all          unrighteousness.

Anytime we talk of God’s intention for marriage we’ll evoke some pain and sorrow. Some who are married will feel the gap between marriage as "meant to be" and their own perplexities. Some who long to be married will be upset they’ve never had the opportunity. Some who’ve known failure or regret in marriage will feel guilt or regret.

Today we remember that marriage in our day is hard. The general culture, media, and entertainment channels prioritize pleasure, excitement, and self-expression above covenant and promise keeping. There is little sense of marriage as sacred or of God as its designer and partner. Pornography is a plague, our storytelling has become over-sexualized, and the boundaries of identity are complex and shifting.

We also remember that sexual sins are not the greatest ones, according to Jesus, who offered mercy to those who have brokenness in their intimate lives. His forgiveness is real, effective and available!

Pray for everyone who is alone, who parents alone, who has suffered through divorce, or who feels guilt and shame.

Gracious God,

Forgive my wrongs. Cleanse me from all my unrighteousness. Let your mercy be a fountain in my soul, that refreshes and makes new.

Amen.