By Jeff Cranston

If we’re honest, we can be pretty tough on people when they do things that bother us. Instead of offering grace, we often want to call for God’s justice on people in these situations. Yet, if the shoe were on the other foot, we would want grace for what we have done. In other words, “You deserve justice; I deserve grace.”

In John 8:2-11, we encounter someone who was in desperate need of grace. A group of legalistic Pharisees dragged a woman they caught in adultery to the feet of Jesus, expecting Him to condemn her as they had. The apostle John tells us in verse six that this was all a set-up. Leviticus 20:10 states that both the man and woman adulterers were supposed to be stoned to death. So, where’s the man? He was likely involved in the trap somehow. How else would these “morality police” have known just when to barge in and catch the woman?

It was a clever trap. The Law of Moses specified death by stoning for adultery, yet Roman law forbade the Jews from carrying out executions. If Jesus doesn’t condemn the woman, He breaks the Jewish law. If He does condemn her, He breaks the Roman law.

But Jesus offers grace instead of condemnation. He saw this woman differently than the Pharisees did. He said to the Pharisees, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” Now, like the woman, the leaders have been caught in the act. Verse nine says that they began to go away one at a time, the older ones first. Then, “Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?’ She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘I do not condemn you either. Go. From now on sin no more.’”

Have you heard voices of condemnation in your life? 

“You aren’t good enough.”

“You’ll never improve.”

“You failed—again.”

Who is this morality patrolman who issues a citation at every stumble? Who reminds us of every mistake? Does he ever shut up?

No. Satan never shuts up. The apostle John called him the Accuser. Day after day, hour after hour, he is relentless, tireless. He aims to steal your peace, to kill your dreams, to destroy your future. He enlists people to peddle his poison. Friends dredge up your past. Preachers proclaim all guilt and no grace. And parents! Some parents own a travel agency that specializes in guilt trips. They distribute it 24 hours a day. Long into adulthood, you still hear their voices: “When will you ever grow up?” “When are you going to make me proud?” “Why can’t you be like her/him?”

Condemnation is the preferred commodity of Satan. But, he will not have the last word. Jesus has acted on your behalf! He stooped low enough to sleep in a manger, work in a carpentry shop, and nap in a fishing boat. He stooped low enough to rub shoulders with crooks and lepers, and He stooped low enough to be spat upon, slapped, nailed, speared and buried.

And then Jesus stood up from the slab of death, upright in Joseph’s tomb and right in Satan’s face. Tall. High. He stood up for the woman and silenced her accusers, and he does the same for you. He “is in the presence of God at this very moment sticking up for us” (Romans 8:34, MSG). 

He knows your sins and offers you grace instead of condemnation. Your sin is remedied when you allow God’s kindness to lead you to repentance. Grace and kindness demand a fresh start. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done. You can start over. From this day on, you can lead a life of purity. If you’ve made some mistakes, don’t let them dictate your future. Commit right now to start over. With Jesus’ help, you can. It’s never too late.

Have you ever wondered why Jesus let the woman go? Jesus didn’t condemn her because He had come to be condemned for her. He wasn’t sweeping her sins under the carpet, just anticipating shedding His blood for them on the cross.

That’s God’s solution for sin—not ignoring or minimizing it, but taking it upon Himself. He came for the riff-raff, for women like her, for men like them, for people like us. It cost Him everything, and that high cost was paid for you and me. 

Jeff Cranston is the lead pastor of LowCountry Community Church in Bluffton, South Carolina.

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