SINNERS IN THE
HANDS OF JESUS
How are we to respond to sin in our community? How do we
imagine a confrontation of sin playing out?
On July
8, 1741, Jonathan Edwards was invited to preach at a church in a neighboring
town. It was the height of the Great Awakening in the colonies, but the town of
Enfield, Connecticut stood out numbly against the revival. Despite the fact
that he had delivered the sermon “Sinners
in the Hands of an Angry God” to his own congregation with little effect,
Edwards felt led to use it in Enfield.
Edwards’
preaching style was unimpressive. He read his sermons in a monotone voice and
when he did look up he stared at the back wall. Edwards was not theatrical, did
not shout, but spoke with great conviction.
The
result of “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” was unexpected. People began
to moan and cry out that they felt they were going to hell. Some even thought
that the very fires of hell were licking at their feet through the floor boards
of the church. Edwards taught them the horrors of hell and the dangers of sin.
And the people were awakened to Christ and his saving power.
For that
time and context, the message was clearly effective. I don’t think that message
would work today. I’m not saying that the truth of hell and the dangers of sin
should not be shared; I just don’t think people are scared of hell anymore. We
wish they were. Certain sins anger us and we would like for sinners to feel the
heat of hell on their feet and repent. But fear doesn’t motivate.
How does
Jesus respond to sin and the sinner? In the controversial passage of John
8:1-11, we get a great picture of how Jesus feels about sin.[i] We
could examine a lot of passages about Jesus and sin, but this one dramatically
reflects the heart of Christ toward the sinner. What we learn from this passage
is this: When confronted with the sinner and his sin remember that Jesus
displayed both truth and grace to us.
How we handle Sin and Sinners
“It is a terrible thing for a sinner to fall into the
hands of his fellow sinners” – F.B. Meyer.[ii]
Though
we revile and look down our noses at the scribes and Pharisees in this episode,
we cannot deny that there is a little bit of them in us. Meyer was bang on in
his statement that sinners are hard on sinners. We are hard on sinners because,
perhaps, we are afraid of what we see in them – ourselves.
Jesus
was teaching at the temple during the Feast of Booths. This was likely a
Sabbath day when the scribes and Pharisees approached him with their captive. She
had been caught in adultery.
There
are all kinds of things wrong with this picture. They got the girl, but where’s
the dude? Was she a pawn in their scheme and the guy a patsy, bait for the
girl? Did the schemers follow the couple as they went out for drinks and then
back to his place? If so, they were guilty of voyeurism. Why wasn’t the man
brought to Jesus? Why did they choose a sexual sin over a murderer or a thief?
They clearly wanted to trap Jesus. Why clearly?
The
place where Jesus taught was the temple, and around the temple were Roman
guards keeping the peace. Now the scribes and Pharisees came to Jesus and said,
“Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to
stone such women. So what do you say?” (8:5). If Jesus says let her go, he
is breaking Moses’ law; if Jesus says stone her, the Romans can charge him with
sedition because Jews did not have the power to execute anyone. It’s a trap.
But as
for the scribes and Pharisees, how can this preacher say that they are us? I
think that as Christians we can slip into a pious exterior. For instance, like
the scribes and Pharisees we like to be
offended by sin. Identifying the sins of others can make us feel better about
our own sins. We can say “I’m not as bad as that.” Other people’s gross sins
allow us to feel like we are on a better path. In the same breath, we feel compelled to judge the sinner.
If they choose to live a lifestyle that contradicts our sense of godliness,
they are begging us to condemn them. And deep in our hearts, don’t we want sinners to pay the penalty? Sin
has its consequences and you have to pay the piper. If you abuse your body, you
have to expect that cancer, disease, or an early death will be the bill to pay.
If the child-molester goes to prison and gets beat up daily…well, that’s
justice.
In the
end, what the scribes and Pharisees really desired was to regain their turf.
Jesus had invaded their world and upset their lifestyle with his teaching and
behavior. Compassion, bah! What mattered to this group was the law; the law
matters, people do not. Control was more important than truth or justice, or
people. We don’t want control do we? We want new people to worship with us,
right? If we bring in new people they come with baggage, sin, a different
worldview. Don’t tell me you don’t want them to conform just a little bit. We want to be in control…even here.
How Jesus handles Sin and Sinners
The beauty of this episode is how Jesus navigates the
trap and shows us how to balance hating sin while showing mercy. What does
Jesus teach us about confronting sin and the sinner?
a) Jesus shows
compassion on the sinner – The woman caught in adultery was frightened,
trembling, and poorly covered. Since the men caught her in the act, it is
likely that they dragged her as she was from the bed. She may have been
half-naked. Someone suggested that Jesus wrote on the ground to distract the
crowd from her nakedness. He took the spotlight off of her and put it on
himself. Maybe.
The men
wanted justice. But what is justice? Is it the strict application of the law?
Deuteronomy 22:22 states that she must die for her adultery. Or is justice
found more purely in the Messianic song of Isaiah, “A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will
not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice” (Is. 42:3). Jesus takes
the risk of himself getting hurt to save her. He would not reject her even
though she violated a sexual code. She is a faintly burning wick and Jesus will
not allow her to be snuffed out.
Jesus
loves sinners. You know that right? He was often accused of eating and drinking
with sinners and tax collectors. Why, they asked, why do you do this Jesus? He
replied, “Those who are well have no need
of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but
sinners,” (Mk 2:17). The kicker is that the righteous are sinners too, they
just don’t know it. The sinners know what they are.
b) Jesus upholds
the law – The eighth day of the feast was a Sabbath. You don’t work on the
Sabbath; you don’t even write – writing is work. Writing, they said, was making
some kind of permanent mark on paper. That’s why Jesus writes in the dirt – it
leaves no lasting mark. Jesus isn’t stupid. He knows the law and the laws that
uphold the laws.
Concerning
the law of Moses itself, Jesus was never against the law. He said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish
the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them”
(Mt. 5:17).
So what
did Jesus write on the ground? No one really knows. But one scholar is
convinced he wrote, “death” or “kill her” or “stone her with stones.”[iii]Why?
Because the insinuation of what he says next is that he decreed the death penalty.
Jesus said, in effect, “go ahead.” She broke the law. And the law states that
both the man and the woman be stoned. Jesus did not contradict the law or tell
them they were wrong, as they expected he would.
c) Jesus takes sin
seriously – Let us not become wistful in our impression of Jesus, where we
imagine that his grace and compassion blind him to the seriousness of sin.
Jesus gives the green-light to stone her, but then adds the caveat: “Let him who is without sin among you be the
first to throw a stone at her” (7b). Jesus puts a name and a face on each
person in the crowd. He says, “Okay, ‘fess up.” Never mind your voyeurism, your
seedy perverted stalking of this girl and your conspiratorial minds, if you are
truly without sin – throw! Anyone who steps out and claims to be sinless would
be shamed by the others. You wouldn’t dare.
Jesus
takes sin seriously. Our companion passage (Matt. 5:27-30) shows us just how
seriously. Jesus took sin to a new level of understanding when he said that
looking at a woman with lustful intent is adultery. Not just the act is
condemned, but the attitude as well. We are to cut off in drastic measure the
avenue through which this lust finds root. And it’s not just adultery – all sin
begins in the heart, before it becomes an act. That is why these men knew they
were busted.
One by
one, beginning with the eldest of the men, the crowd disperses. Elders were
more respected for their wisdom in those days. If the older guys walk away,
that says a lot. Jesus goes back to writing so that they can keep their
dignity. He doesn’t look at them. Jesus is pretty cool that way.
With
everyone gone, Jesus asks, “Has no one condemned you?” “No one, Lord.” And then
Jesus says the most profound thing any sinner would love to hear, “Neither do I condemn you.” He could
have. Jesus was the one person in the crowd who was without sin. He could have
stoned her. That’s not his mission.
Jesus
said, “…God did not send his Son into the
world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through
him” (John 3:17).
d) Jesus
Challenges the Sinner and his/her lifestyle – Incredible grace has been
shown to this woman, but there is more needed than just grace. Jesus came to us
full of grace and truth (John 1:17). Love tells the truth. If Jesus truly loves
this woman, he can’t just tell her to go. Jesus wants what is best for her and
so he says, “…from now on sin no more”
(11c). You can’t do this anymore. You can’t live this lifestyle of sin. God
wants more for you.
Jesus
has walked the fine line between trivializing her sin and condemning her. She
is not acquitted, but neither is she judged. Just as the crowd had to reform
their thinking concerning sin, the woman must reform her way of life. She
cannot justify her actions in any way.
Oprah
once aired an episode on her program with women who were having affairs with
married men. When the women were challenged on the morality of their adultery,
one woman said, “Wait a minute. I’m a Christian, but I want everyone to know
that my personal life and my religion don’t interfere with one another. I
believe in a God who wants me to be happy. And if this man makes me happy, then
God approves of the relationship.” In response, I recall a preacher once
saying, “God does not want you to be happy. He wants you to be holy.” And I
challenge you to find a verse that says otherwise.
e) Jesus lives out
the message of the cross – Love is costly. Jesus does not condemn the
woman, but takes the condemnation she deserved on himself and allows his body
to be nailed to the cross.
How did
the woman respond? We have no idea. But can you imagine that she sniffed
contemptuously at this act of grace? You and I, the readers of this narrative,
are obliged to consider how the woman responded, and in the process consider
our own response to the costly love of God offered on the cross.
Can you
deny so costly a love? And if such amazing love has been shown to us, how can
we condemn others who have sinned and are waiting, even longing, for
compassion? Sinners don’t need a rock to the head; sinners need grace and
truth, understanding and forgiveness. They need a gentle hand to help them and
correct them.
Consider one last word picture. I had a math teacher who
carried a yardstick (a meter stick if you have converted) and would use it to get
our attention. If the class was chattering too much or not paying attention to
him, he would slam that yardstick down with the edge on one of the student’s
desks. (I think he had anger issues – but back then we just called them “teachers”).
Do you think that we learned math better because of the stick?
Jesus
did not come with a stick to beat us into conformity to the law. He came with a
gentle hand and loving countenance to draw us into obedience. The motivation
was costly love – the cross; not condemnation.
Aren’t
you glad we are sinners in the hands of Jesus, instead of sinners in the hands
of an angry God? Jesus came as an example of truth and grace. We are challenged
this day to be Jesus to the sinners among us.
AMEN
Prayer:
Father God, we confess that there are times when we have
stood in the midst of the crowd, condemned. And there are times when we have
stood in the crowd, condemning. There are times when my own heart has been
filled with adultery. There are times when my hands have been filled with
stones. Forgive me, forgive us, for hearts that are prone to wander, to forget
the grace that has been shown to us. Forgive us for being too willing to bring
the sins of others before you, and forgetting to bring my own to you. Help me,
help us all, to be like you, Jesus, full of grace and truth, to show compassion
to the sinner, and to say along with you to them “neither do I condemn you.” And
in the strength of those gracious words, we will go forward and sin no more
In
Jesus name we pray, amen.
[i]
John 8:1-11 is controversial because most early Greek manuscripts do not
include it in their copies of John’s Gospel. Some scholars are not even sure it
belongs in John at all since it is the only place in John where scribes are
mentioned together with Pharisees. Early Church Fathers did believe, however,
that though it was not Johannine in character, it did fit the personality of
Christ very well. Kenneth Bailey, among others, suggested that early copyists
were told to leave it out because it appeared to show Jesus being too light on
sin. So it may have an early origin but if copyists were paid to leave it out…
[ii]
F.B. Meyer was a British preacher, a contemporary of D.L. Moody and A.C. Dixon
(1847-1929)
[iii]
Kenneth Bailey, Jesus Through Middle
Eastern Eyes, 235.
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