Mistakes happen, I guess!
I remember one particular mistake I made as vividly as if it were yesterday. I was changing out machinery with one of our tractors, and I had come to the point of hooking onto our rake. I put the pin in the hitch, coupled the hydraulic lines in the right places, and then forgot one critical step- to raise up the jack that the rake was sitting on. I hopped on the tractor, drove a short distance, when I noticed a funny sound. Turning around I had dug a fairly lengthy ditch with the extended jack. Instantly, my mind was racing! Can I hide it? Can I maybe make it to where dad won’t notice? Perhaps he’ll let me go off with a warning this time. It was a mistake- and I didn’t quite know how to undo it! Should I play dumb? Should I lie about it and say someone else did it? Or should I actually own up to it? Lot’s of choices- especially in view of my grandpa and my dad- but which choice was right?
When it comes to sin- there is nothing more terrifying to the devout Christian than to wonder- “what is God going to do when He sees the mistake I’ve made?” Certainly, that question can evoke some level of fear, but maybe it is possible to not only face the question but to answer it well enough that we actually appreciate our Lord’s approach, especially when we hear what He does in the Gospel this weekend.
The first reading is taken from the book of the prophet Isaiah. Now, recall Isaiah is very much one who busies himself with preaching about the coming Messiah, and it is no different here, even if we are outside of Advent. Isaiah speaks the words of the Lord when He reminds them of what the Lord has done- he is the one who has opened the Red Sea, and who has made a path through the mighty waters, who has lead out chariots and horsemen, and a powerful army, until he completely obliterated all of them. The Lord is reminding them of past events, so that they know He is in the background working! He continues on: “Remember not the events of the past, the things of long ago consider not; see, I am doing something new!” What is this something new? Well, taken in the context of salvation history, He is speaking most directly about the way that He is preparing to send His Son. He continues on- Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? There is a way in the desert, in the wasteland, Wild beasts honor me, jackals and ostriches. I put water in the desert, rivers in the wasteland, and for my chosen people to drink. This is for the people whom I formed for myself, that they might announce my praise. So, all of this imagery seems to lend itself to just being literally interpreted- but there is something deeper than this. The Lord is making the water in the desert, and river in the wasteland, which is to say He is sending His Son to quench thirst. The Lord has done great things for us- He has filled generations with Himself, and has cared for their needs, and He is still doing so today.
The second reading is lifted from St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians, and he is in a passage where he is trying to explain how important it is to live in Christ. So he starts off gently: I consider everything as a loss, because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. So, this is simple! Nothing else in his life is as good as knowing Christ. We can likely agree to that if we kind of give it a perfunctory glance. But Paul doesn’t stop there. He continues on- because this isn’t vivid enough. “For his sake I have accepted the loss of all things, and I consider them so much rubbish, that I may gain Christ, and be found in him, not having righteousness of my own based on the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ. I want to stop here to highlight something- we are seeing a word that seems like something of snobby English- rubbish. This word is not strong enough. Commentators trace this back to the Greek, and he isn’t just saying rubbish. He isn’t just saying filth. He is saying something I will not be saying in English, but you can imagine a four letter word that is equivalent to dung. Now think- Paul has been educated and trained under the best teachers in Rome- and enjoys the privilege and the class of being Roman. Here he is caught saying two shocking things- first that he would use that kind of unprofessional language, but second, that he says all of those privileges he has enjoyed? They are all… filth… compared to life and faith in Christ. That isn’t just Paul saying believe in the Gospel. That is Paul pointing back and saying- all that which I left behind? It’s worthless garbage! I’d rather have faith in Christ! But not just an empty or superficial, surface-level faith, as if that will win us anything. But it is something that he tells us he has not taken perfect hold of- and he is working on day after day! He hopes that he may one day possess it- because what is this faith? Life- eternal life! Forget what lies behind and look to what lies ahead. Pursue the goal, and the prize of God’s calling which is relationship with Jesus Christ!
Finally, we arrive at the Gospel, and we find Jesus being thrust into the midst of a dilemma. The scribes and the pharisees have become weary with Him, and so they wish to put Him in the middle of a two prong bull, so to speak. There is a woman caught in the act of adultery. Now, are they to stone her, as Moses’s law commands, or not? That is the question. Now, Jesus knows very well the consequences of answering one way or another. If He says “Yes, stone her” that would be going against Roman law which would not allow it, and it would also undermine the mercy that He has preached. If He answers “no” then He undermines the Mosaic law and discredits Himself. So what is the right answer? They pressure Him to answer, but notice, he is just writing in the dust, as if He is aloof to the entire matter. They press again- and what is His reply? He does get up to face them, but then something profound occurs.
Jesus proves yet again His wisdom- truly not being just of human nature but also divine- He gives them a statement: “Let the one who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her!” Then He stoops back down. They all walk away, beginning with the elders, because reality sinks in- not one of them is without sin. Then it is just Jesus and the woman- Jesus addresses her: where are they? Has no one condemned you?” In other words: was anyone sinless enough to throw stones at you? She answers honestly, “No.” So, Jesus is the only one who has the power to condemn: “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.” What a powerful, powerful encounter she has with our God.
The thing is, however, note that this isn’t just included as history, but it is included for us. But, why?
The Gospel is giving us a way to understand our mistakes and our sins. We see clearly how God deals with sin- our mistakes- but how are we going to handle it? We have three options: as a fool, as a liar, or as a disciple.
First, the fool. The fool is the one who says they do not sin, and they believe they don’t. This is the person who has ultimately either an underdeveloped conscience, or one they’ve grown professional at ignoring. So, this person is still culpable for their sins, but they are unfortunately foolish and unable to deal with them effectively. Does sin still exist in this person’s reality? Well of course it still does! It just hasn’t surfaced yet, and if that ignorance is deliberate- God help them to see it before it is too late.
The second way is the liar. Now this is the person who develops excuses for their sins- even the serious ones. The pharisees and the scribes all struggle with this. They fundamentally are trying to act as if their sin doesn’t exist in the Lord’s mind, and yet, the reality is they just haven’t been “caught” yet, but their day is coming! Jesus calls them out very strongly! Let the one who is without sin throw a stone. They have to admit they have been lying to themselves and distracting themselves from their sin- so Jesus pierces through the mask and the charade- let’s see who is actually living perfection! Really? No one actually is, outside of Him and His mother.
Then there is the final way to deal with sin, and that is the way of the disciple: and that is the way of the woman caught in adultery. What happens to her in the midst of her sin. Is she ignorant to it? Obviously not, and if she had been the crowd would have reminded her. Was she a liar who said she hadn’t done anything serious, or made excuses for her behavior? No, she didn’t do that. Rather, she simply was there before Jesus. The crowd didn’t- and couldn’t- stone the woman. Jesus tells her- I won’t either. So this is the moment of apology- she is sorry to be seen by the Lord this way. But she doesn’t stay in the grief, or hold onto it. She doesn’t let it weigh her down. But Jesus tells her to “go- do not sin anymore.” So, what really happened? That woman was set free! This is what the warning reminds us- to not sin anymore. You are free- now don’t fall into sin- or slavery- again. The disciple is the only one who is free at the end of the day!
Our Lord is indeed kind and forgiving my brothers and sisters, but we have a choice to make when we approach our sin. Are we going to play a fool, be a liar, or are we actually going to fess up, so that the Lord can set us free, and give us a better way of life to live?
I chose to tell about the jack- I didn’t want the burden of any of the other choices. Brothers and sisters, so many of us are weighed down by sin. Maybe if we actually encounter our Lord as a disciple we can stop carrying these crushing burdens around. Go to the Lord- He already knows and there is no fooling Him or excusing yourself. Go to Him and hear those beautiful words of freedom: “Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”
