Aggressive Grace
She
was clearly in the wrong, for they caught her with a man in such comprising
ways. So, they dragged her from his arms
into the synagogue to appear before ‘the master teacher’. They wanted justice and they wanted
entrapment. Justice to condemn her and
entrapment to catch him in a wrong response, a wrong word at the wrong time.
He
was there alright. He was teaching as
they suspected. Nevertheless, they
barged right in, pushed her down to the ground, naked, shamed, hair a mess,
body and soul a bigger mess.
The
accusations began: “Teacher, we have caught this woman in the act of committing
adultery. The law of Moses commands that
she be stoned. What do you say?”
The
hall fell silent. All that could be
heard was heavy breathing of the attackers, and the quiet whimpering’s of the
lady.
The
mob really wanted to trap him into saying something they could use against
him. They didn’t really care about the
lady. She was just an excuse to trap
him, the teacher.
What
he did next astounded the mob. It
astounded the woman. It was unheard
of. He simply stooped down and began
writing in the dust and dirt on the floor.
Nothing fancy. Not even
doodling. Just nonsensical writing.
After
a moment, they persisted. They stated
their accusations again, louder, stronger. They mumbled, and rumbled, they threatened,
they were angry. How dare he ignore
them. They had a complaint. They had a suspect. Was he deaf?
Did he hear them?
He
stood up. He looked the mob in their
faces, looking from one to the other. He
saw their sweat, he heard their heavy breathing, and he saw the rocks they
carried in their hands or in pouches hanging from their waists.
And
he spoke: “Okay. I hear what you say,
but first, let anyone who has never sinned throw the first stone.”
And
he stooped once again and continued to make marks in the dust.
Within
seconds, had we been there, we would have heard a thud, and then another, and
another. It was the sound of rocks being
dropped. They weren’t being thrown at
her. They were being dropped. And then the shuffle of feet can be heard as
the mob disperses. One by one they all
left the scene, leaving only the Teacher and the woman.
He
stands again, and after looking around, he asks her, “Where are those who were
accusing you? Did not even one of them
condemn you?”
“No,
my Lord,” she said.
And
Jesus, The Christ, said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more.”
What
a marvelous demonstration of aggressive grace.
He had a victim. He heard the
accusations of those who were witnesses.
And He showed aggressive grace.
Let’s
break those words down:
Aggressive:
Hostile
Insistent
Assertive
Hard-hitting
Uncompromising
Grace:
Kindliness
Favor
Mercifulness
Clemency
Lenience
Reprieve
I
have been a recipient of this aggressive grace in my life. And I know it is offered to you as well.
May
this aggressive grace of Jesus flood your heart and mind now.
Hope Encouragement Inspiration
