All Grace vs. All Law
The Bulletin, 1/27/25
Jesus' interaction with the adulterous woman in John 8 is a great litmus test to tell us which theological ditch each of us is pulled towards.
Jesus shows both grace toward sin and intolerance of it in the passage. We can't properly understand what He did there without a good grasp of both.
And yet, in our human weakness, we all tend to err toward one side or the other. Christianity in general contains a wide spectrum of those who feel the Christ-like thing to do is to give grace even to a fault, all the way to those who feel it is pleasing to God to legalistically prosecute every misstep.
However, neither the scribes and the Pharisees nor the adulterous woman were in the right in this passage, and so we must be careful not to cast Jesus as a representative for one side or the other.
If “Neither do I condemn you” is the part one tends to emphasize most, they may need to focus on the fact that this was not a blanket excusal of the woman’s behavior. Too many times Christians are willing to give a pass to the sins of the world because Jesus didn’t condemn the adulterous woman to death by stoning… but He still told her to sin no more.
On the other hand, if “Go and sin no more” is one’s heaviest emphasis, they may need to focus more on the grace Jesus showed. We can hold a firm line on sin while still having a soft heart toward those who are caught up in it.
Which are you more naturally inclined toward? Look inward and figure it out, then strive to emulate the balance the Savior showed. Those who pride themselves on precision often need to be cautious to allow for grace, and those who pride themselves on being gracious often need to be cautious of not downplaying obedience.
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