“I’m thoroughly convinced that one of the keys to a successful Christian life is to remember that God’s heart is one of mercy and forgiveness, not judgment. Maybe you remember in the Bible when the religious leaders brought this woman caught in the act of adultery before Jesus. They said, ‘look, she broke the law, and the law says she has to be put to death. What do you say about it?’ Well, that was a trap to try to catch Jesus in His words, but He replied to them (paraphrased) ‘whoever among you guys has never done anything wrong before, you throw the first stone at her.’ Of course with that, they all slinked away. Jesus said to the woman, ‘look, I don’t condemn you, go and sin no more.’ You see, the religious leaders would if they could, but they could not. And Jesus could if we would, but He would not. All because He’s the embodiment of God’s heart- a heart of mercy and forgiveness, not judgment.” ~CJ McKay

Remember God’s Heart

In case you’re not familiar with the Scripture CJ is referring to, here’s the full text from John 8: “At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?’ They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, ‘Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.’ Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ ‘No one, sir,’ she said. ‘Then neither do I condemn you,’ Jesus declared. ‘Go now and leave your life of sin.’ “

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Jesus, Friend of Sinners

In a commentary from Enduring Word, I found this beautiful and encouraging explanation of this story. Referring to when Jesus bent down to write on the ground: “a low posture, identifying with the humiliation of the woman. Jesus did what He could to identify with, care for, and ease the embarrassment of this woman. One may say this story illustrates the great problem: how can God show love and grace to the sinner without being unjust, without breaking His own law? He does it by first identifying with the sinner in their low condition.”

What If We Must Confront Sin? 

In this interaction between Jesus and the religious leaders, we see “Jesus exposed a common sin: a desire to punish the sins of others, while ignoring our own sin. If we must look at the sins of others, we must be aware that we have also sinned. There is still a place for exposing and rebuking and directly dealing with the sins of others in God’s family, but it must always be done with a heart that recognizes itself as a forgiven sinner. When done right, confronting sin is done more often with tears and a broken heart than with anger and condemnation.” (Enduring Word Commentary)

When you’re struggling and being hard on yourself, or dealing with someone else being harsh with you, I hope you’ll remember God’s heart of mercy towards you. Turn toward Jesus and allow Him to help you repent and go forward in the knowledge of your identity as His child. 

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God bless you. Stay hopeful! ❤️