He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first

And everyone went to his own house. But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?" This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more."

- John 7:53-8:11

Because it is the Advent season, the lectionary deviates in this period from the consistent movement we have had through the Gospel of Luke. Today's reading is from John's Gospel, and tomorrow we return again to Luke. We recall that in yesterday's reading in Luke, Jesus has just finished a discourse on the end times, His return, and the times to come for the Church. He has preached endurance, prayer and watchfulness. In today's reading, we are given a story from the Book of John.

My study bible has a note which applies to the whole of today's reading: "This passage, the story of the adulterous woman, forcefully demonstrates the grace and power of Christ to redeem and reclaim all sinners, in contrast to the judgmental attitude of the scribes and Pharisees. Interestingly, this passage is read on one of the two days on which St. Mary of Egypt, a reformed prostitute, is commemorated."

And everyone went to his own house. But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?" A note from my study bible reads, "The passage in the law is: "The man who commits adultery with another man's wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress, shall surely be put to death" (Lev. 20:10). This law was not observed to the letter in the days of Jesus; they are forcing application to test Him." In John's Gospel, Jesus goes to the temple for religious festivals several times throughout three years of ministry. At this time, John's Gospel teaches us that He is there for the autumn feast of Tabernacles (Succoth in Hebrew). The temple authorities are already trying to trap Him so that He may be arrested, and several important events in Jesus' life, as reported by John, happen at this festival. Festival tradition is also associated with Jesus' preaching there in these passages in this section of John. However, it's interesting to note that scholarship tells us that today's passage is actually an insertion, not belonging to original manuscripts of John's Gospel. Therefore, just as the lectionary has inserted it here in the midst of readings from Luke, it is possible that this event takes place in the final week of Jesus' life, at the Passover Festival.

This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. A note reads, "Testing Him: If Jesus refuses to condemn the woman, He will be accused as a lawbreaker; if He approves her condemnation, He will be inconsistent in His mercy to sinners. This (and v. 8) is the only New Testament reference that Christ wrote anything. Speculation abounds as to what He wrote, one theory being that He wrote the names of those accusers who were themselves guilty of adultery." How fascinating that this is the only instance of Jesus writing something in the Gospels. He left us no writing of His own, and this instance, with a finger on the ground, is something that will leave no fragments. But as we read yesterday from Luke's Gospel, His words will by no means pass away.

So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, Lord." And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." My study bible says, "Go and sin no more: God forgives and does not condemn the repentant sinner. But true repentance includes striving to sin no more." There are several things to look at in this story. First of all, we note that the law teaches that both the male and female adulterers are to be put to death. Jesus' would-be accusers tell Him they had "caught her in the act" of adultery. So where is her partner? Why do they not present him also? For those whose zeal is for the law, there seems to be something amiss, and they are not following the letter of the law. Clearly the real goal here is to trap Jesus. But Jesus' question to the accusers of the woman goes even further: who is pure enough to condemn, without themselves being condemned by the law? Who has never sinned? With that question, it is those who demand Jesus' answer who are instead put on the spot, put into an impossible dilemma.

If all we have with which to judge is our own moral values or laws, where are we? Who is perfect? Who is without sin at all? I see this story as a great awakening into a spiritual reality: where we stand is where we stand in grace, before Christ. It is a great argument for a God-centered life, based upon the love of God and the relationship to God. Not only do we learn love and mercy from the reality (and Persons) of God, but we also learn what it is to be right-related. As we reviewed in a reading and commentary a few days ago ("The LORD said to my Lord" & the poor widow), God does not call us to perfection, but rather to holiness and sanctification. That is, we set our lives and all that is in it apart for relation to and love of God. Jesus teaches us over and over again that it is those who experience God's mercy who are most likely to return that love and belonging back to Creator. So we have here a kind of awakening out of one system - which has been very important and essential for the spiritual history of the people of God - into a broader, deeper and more encompassing understanding of our relationship to God. We must take into account our need for God's love and mercy, and for the practice ourselves of love and mercy. This is the real currency of faith, in which each of us belongs to a Creator of love, and we live in community based on this understanding. Who does not need mercy? Who does not need love? Any set of rules - no matter how wonderful, even the Law itself - cannot stand without the greater understanding of the God of love who is behind it. And this is how the law, in this case, is being applied -- without the love and mercy of its Creator. Let us remember that we await the light of Advent, and this is the light of love and mercy and redemption. God calls us into the light of that relationship, to put all of ourselves into it, without leaving any of who we are behind. Can you step into that life, with all of yourself? Holiness or sanctification, it seems to me, is a lifelong process of stepping more and more into that light, with every little internal corner hidden from ourselves gradually illumined for health and the restoring of ourselves to God. Let that light shine within you - that's the lesson we receive for today.