Unlike the 27 chapters of constant words by Job’s accusing friends, Jesus says only a few – but His words penetrate to the heart. Unlike Job’s friends who kept their comfortable distance, Jesus physically positions himself between the broken accused woman, and the powerful angry accusers. Jesus quietly takes a stick – maybe the one he’s been using for walking. I can see the woman filled with fear and panic cover her face sensing that she is going to be struck. Instead of feeling blows hears – scratch scratch scratch – one red swollen tear filled eye opens and see’s Jesus pushing the stick around in the dirt. She can’t see what he’s drawing and to scared to raise her head, but her accuser can see it. Quietly, sadly, yet with authority she hears Jesus say, “Let the one without sin cast the first stone”. We have no idea what Jesus scratched in the dirt, I find not knowing more dramatic, whatever it was, each of the accusers saw, and it confront them. She hears, ‘thud, thud, thud’ of the stones dropping, harmlessly into the dust, and then sound of feet quietly shuffling away.
Jesus and the woman are now alone. Her questions? Her mind must have been filled with them. ‘Why?” “How?” “Now what?” – Instead of confronting her with her obvious sin, Jesus answers none of her unspoken questions, nor adds to the accusations, He poise another, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours?”
Is she innocent? No. Where the accusers wrong? No. Did her sin not matter to Jesus? No. Did Jesus give her a get out jail free card – Yes and no, free to her, crucifixion for him.
She knows what has happened she expected death. Jesus has turned certain death, into radiant life. He has given her an opportunity – She was found in her sin – guilty as charged, deserving of the full effect of the law. Yet Jesus has faced and turned away the accusers.
The reality is I am found more often in the category of the woman than Job. I’m caught between the reality and effect of my own sin and the truth of the Law and my accusers. They even may have the right accusations, but not the right to accuse. By rights, I should be, deserved to be condemned. And still Jesus moves between my accusers and I – and writes in the sand. What does he write –maybe he writes “gossiper, liar, lust, selfish, hate, judgmental, anger, addiction, uncharitable, self-centered, we can probably see all kinds of things in our life that he could write. Sometimes I’m the person being accused – but it is easy to find myself, and I hate to admitted it, as one of the self righteous accusers. Bringing someone before Jesus, casting them down and pointing them out. “Look, look what they have done, it must be dealt with”. Calling to others to stand with me and pick up stones
We need to stand for truth, speak truth, challenge for truth, hold to truth, it is not that our sin does not matters and we don’t need to change – on the contrary it highly matters, and much needs to change – but it is how.
I think things would have been different depending how the woman answered Jesus’s question, “Where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?” he asks. If she had entered into a tirade of how self-righteous they were and they no right to accuse her, because she knew stuff about them and who where they to accuse her – Jesus response would have been to once again pick up his stick and write a few well targetted words in the sand. The role of accused and accuser can jump around a bit. Ironically, Jesus is as available to the accusers, they just don’t know it, or are willing see their actions.
As I was preparing this, I came across this interesting article:
Jesus and the woman are now alone. Her questions? Her mind must have been filled with them. ‘Why?” “How?” “Now what?” – Instead of confronting her with her obvious sin, Jesus answers none of her unspoken questions, nor adds to the accusations, He poise another, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours?”
Is she innocent? No. Where the accusers wrong? No. Did her sin not matter to Jesus? No. Did Jesus give her a get out jail free card – Yes and no, free to her, crucifixion for him.
She knows what has happened she expected death. Jesus has turned certain death, into radiant life. He has given her an opportunity – She was found in her sin – guilty as charged, deserving of the full effect of the law. Yet Jesus has faced and turned away the accusers.
The reality is I am found more often in the category of the woman than Job. I’m caught between the reality and effect of my own sin and the truth of the Law and my accusers. They even may have the right accusations, but not the right to accuse. By rights, I should be, deserved to be condemned. And still Jesus moves between my accusers and I – and writes in the sand. What does he write –maybe he writes “gossiper, liar, lust, selfish, hate, judgmental, anger, addiction, uncharitable, self-centered, we can probably see all kinds of things in our life that he could write. Sometimes I’m the person being accused – but it is easy to find myself, and I hate to admitted it, as one of the self righteous accusers. Bringing someone before Jesus, casting them down and pointing them out. “Look, look what they have done, it must be dealt with”. Calling to others to stand with me and pick up stones
We need to stand for truth, speak truth, challenge for truth, hold to truth, it is not that our sin does not matters and we don’t need to change – on the contrary it highly matters, and much needs to change – but it is how.
I think things would have been different depending how the woman answered Jesus’s question, “Where are your accusers? Has no one condemned you?” he asks. If she had entered into a tirade of how self-righteous they were and they no right to accuse her, because she knew stuff about them and who where they to accuse her – Jesus response would have been to once again pick up his stick and write a few well targetted words in the sand. The role of accused and accuser can jump around a bit. Ironically, Jesus is as available to the accusers, they just don’t know it, or are willing see their actions.
As I was preparing this, I came across this interesting article:
Thursday, September 27, 2007 in Santa Barbara, Calif.
WASHINGTON -- Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani compared the scrutiny of his personal life marked by three marriages to the biblical story of how Jesus dealt with an adulterous woman.
In an interview posted online Friday, Giuliani was questioned about his family and told the Christian Broadcasting Network, "I think there are some people that are very judgmental."
Giuliani has a daughter who indicated support for Democrat Barack Obama and a son who said he didn't speak to his father for some time. Giuliani's messy divorce from their mother, Donna Hanover, was waged publicly while Giuliani was mayor of New York…
"I'm guided very, very often about, 'Don't judge others, lest you be judged,'" Giuliani told CBN interviewer David Brody. "I'm guided a lot by the story of the woman that was going to be stoned, and Jesus put the stones down and said, 'He that hasn't sinned, cast the first stone,' and everybody disappeared.
"It seems like nowadays in America, we have people that think they could've passed that test," he said. "And I don't think anybody could've passed that test but Jesus."
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A lot of times we’d like to stop at the response of Jesus when she answers “ No one, Lord” an incredible relief statement “Neither do I condemn you” and use that statement as a weapon or excuse, “you can’t judge me, I can do what I want and God will defend me”. We want to use it as a excuse for our situational ethics. However, there is another connected statement “Go and sin no more” that is not situational at all.
Paul writes these words in Rom 2:4 “It’s His kindness that leads us to repentance”. Paul goes on to say that the problem is with hard and unrepentant heart that gets us into trouble.
I need to be continually checking my heart condition.
With Job, God had to wait until Job was truly willing to listen – and learn that regardless of circumstance to depend. Job did not get the answer that he wanted, but he was given the answer that he needed. And out that experience Job discovers something far more valuable than physical health or wealth.
Job 42:5 “I had heard of you and about you, but now my eyes have seen you”
The woman had a similar revelation – Although just previous to her trouble, she didn’t know she need Jesus, she found him there anyway. She had heard about God from the religious leaders, but now she, while in her deepest darkest sin – encounters Him, and finds grace, mercy, forgiveness and real hope for a new life – for who Christ makes free is free indeed.
God brings both Job and woman to the other side of their very different, but equally desperate journey’s one who did not chose the path of trouble, and one who had a large hand in her present state of disaster. Both encounter God, Both have questions, both are given answers. Not answers that perhaps they wanted like 1 + 1 =2, but a need answer that the One has no equal.
Regardless of whether we are Job or the woman – the solution is the same – letting His kindness lead us deeper into holiness, purity and Light.
Anyway I was just thinking,
Neil
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