Grace not Judgment

Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them. ³The 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. ⁵Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” ⁶They 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. ⁷When 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.” ⁸And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. ⁹When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. ¹⁰Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” ¹¹She said, “No one, sir.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.” John 8:1-11

One of the most natural human tendencies is to judge others. We judge how people act, how they parent, how they spend their time and money, how they dress, and on and on. We judge others silently even more than we ever let on. And there is a perverse side of us that enjoys seeing others who we can judge as worse than ourselves. The truth is, in God's eyes, we all sin and fall short. We all deserve judgment from God and no one is truly better than anyone else. Without God's grace we are all in big trouble. So why then do we persist in judging when we should know better?

The story of the woman caught in adultery exemplifies how Jesus understands human brokenness and sin. There is no denying that adultery is a sinful behavior. The text makes it clear the woman was guilty (although the man is not implicated for his role in the adultery which is quite telling). The Pharisees' and scribes' approach to sinful behavior is punishment. Punishing wrongdoers allows us to feel superior and in control, but does not bring change or transformation. Jesus' approach on the other hand, does not deny the sinful behavior but offers grace rather than punishment. He refuses to condemn her and tells her go and "do not sin again." This is a moment of pure grace and one that would certainly shape her life from then on. He also does not allow the self-righteous crowd off the hook, but forces them to reflect upon their own sin. No one is perfect and we all deserve God's wrath, but by the grace of God we have peace with God.

Judging is God's work not ours. God has given us the gift of grace, through which we have peace with God and the promise of eternal life. We did not earn it and do not deserve it. When we judge others for their behaviors, choices or lifestyles, we deny God's grace and subject ourselves to judgment from others (cf. Matthew 7:1-5). If we truly receive God's grace our response to brokenness and sin would be graciousness and mercy rather than judgment. As humans, our instinct is to judge and condemn but the Spirit working within us can help us to remember God's grace and share it.

Prayer: Lord, help me to truly understand and receive your grace and love. Help me to understand not only my deep need for forgiveness and mercy, but also your deep love for all people. Help me to not judge others, but share your love and grace, in Jesus' name, AMEN.