Mercy and Grace

Wednesday, January 23, 2018

 

She was caught in a sin punishable by death. We know very little about her. Actually, the only thing we know about her is that she was an adulteress. We know nothing about where she came from, her family history, we don’t even know her name. What we know is that she was caught in the act and she was guilty. We know that there were multiple witnesses available to testify against her and not a single one to testify in her favor and this includes her accomplice who apparently was let off the hook. As I read her brief story found in the 8^th chapter of the Gospel of John, for reasons unknown, I want to unearth some mitigating factors that would allow for a pardon but there are none.

 

They brought her to the temple courtyard where a crowd had gathered to hear Jesus speak. Her accusers, the religious scholars and the elites pushed through the crowd and set this unnamed woman in front of Jesus and said to him: “This woman has been caught in the very act of adultery. The law of Moses commands us to stone her to death, what do you say?”  Jesus ignoring them he stooped down and began writing on the ground with his finger. The religious scholars and the elites paying no attention to what he was doing insisted that Jesus give them an answer. Jesus then stood up and said to them, I invite anyone of you who has not sinned to cast the first stone. Jesus stooped down again and continued writing on the ground and when he stood up for a second time all the accusers had vanished leaving the woman and Jesus alone standing in front of the crowd.

 

Let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most. – Hebrews 4:16 NLT

 

The adulteress woman is face to face with Jesus the Son of God and she has not spoken a single word in her defense. How could she? After all, she was caught in the act. Jesus in turn asked her two questions and it is interesting to note that neither one addressed her sin. He asked her, “where are your accusers? And, no one condemned you?” To which she replied, “no sir”. Jesus then said to her, “Neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin.”

 

Observations:

God’s grace will not condone or excuse your sins but will always show mercy towards them.

 

It is interesting that the religious scholars and the elites accused this woman of a single act yet Jesus reveals that her condition was far worse; he revealed that she was living a life of sin.

 

God’s grace will not minimize or embolden you to sin on the contrary it will uncover the magnitude of your sins and encourage you to walk away from them.

 

Jesus did not offer any mitigating factors to excuse this woman. There was no excusing her behavior; on the contrary, Jesus took it one step further than her accusers who accused her of a single act. Jesus revealed she was living a sinful life. Nonetheless, his mercies forgave her sins and his grace helped and encouraged her to walk away from her sins and the mess she had created for herself.

 

Questions:

1. Who do you best identify with the woman or her accusers and why?
2. We tend to excuse and offer mitigating factors for our sins. Do you think that your reasons are enough to exonerate you before God?
3. When entering God’s presence, would it be wiser to excuse your sins or simply remain quiet and why?
4. Has God’s grace ever gotten you through a mess that your sins caused? If so, how?

 

Prayer

Dear God, there are no excuses that I can possibly offer that would excuse my sinful life. Therefore I come before you trusting that your mercy and your grace is sufficient to forgive me my trespasses. I thank you for your goodness and your love, and commit my ways to you, help me to live a life that honors and pleases you. Amen