Isaiah 43:16-21; Philippians 3:8-14; John 8:1-11
“Go, Neither do I condemn you”: Your and My Acquittal!
This morning, I was sitting on a bench next to a homeless man, I asked him how he ended up this way.
He said: “Up until this last week, I still had it all!!! A cook cooked my meals, my room was cleaned, my clothes were washed, pressed, I had a roof over my head, I had TV, Internet, I went to the gym, the pool, the library, I could still go to school.”
I asked him, “What happened? Drugs? Alcohol,? Divorce?”
“Oh No, nothing like that he said. No, no … I got out of prison!”
Unlike this man, for whom the consequences of sin were palatable and the life of freedom inconveniencing, who dwells in the past and lacks the courage to move on in life, the Christian God is capable of a complete forgetfulness of the past, and ever ready to offer second chances to his sinful and recalcitrant children. The invitation to forget the past and concentrate on the present and the possibilities the future offer, in our first reading from Isaiah, is the Christian call to conversion, not just for convicted criminals, but also for potential admirers of sinners and sin.
If it is true that God’s commandments go beyond “thou shall not commit adultery/fornication,” then there are grounds even for the condemnation of virgins, priests, pastors, religious and politicians; yet, God does not delight in doing so. Yes, even holier-than-thou Pharisees came up against their own game – let the one without sin among you be the first to through stone at her, says Jesus, in today’s gospel. Maybe pope Francis’ lining up and actually going for sacramental confession this week invites us to ask, “who can be saved”?
For those who still examine their consciences, and those who still have the sense of right and wrong, the fact that human beings are no angels is familiar to them, because the weight of sin looms over every head. If God were looking for motifs for human condemnation, he has more than enough reasons to condemn us all, because we are not perfect, nobody is!
Our first reading shows a God who abandons other sources of water, rivers, seas, creeks, etc., and, of all places, he goes to the desert to create a new source of water; what is his reason, my people will pass along that road, he says! The roads already created by God, with water sources lined up, were abandoned by God’s people, and God goes after them in the wilderness of sin to create a new source and fountain of water! But then, will they see and cherish this new opportunity lying ahead of them, will they make a new start or remain stuck in the past?
The search-light of a Christian, through the darkness of sin and unbelief, is faith. Faith in a God who turns desert into a river is faith which proves that with God everything is possible; it is a faith that says that a Christian never gives up hope because of the problems of life, rather faith makes possible a way out of every problem. A better way of seeing life, from the perspective of faith, is the conviction that God wills the sustenance of all his creatures; hence, even sin itself will be defeated by the power of God’s love. To prove this, our second reading assures us of God’s free gift of salvation – water in the desert.
St. Paul, in our second reading, calls this fountain of water in the desert “Justification by Faith.” Coming face to face with our sinfulness, we can appreciate Paul’s statement:”not having any righteousness of my own based on the law but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God” (Phil 3:9). In other words, our focus should be on God’s standards rather than humans’. God’s standard is simple – show your faith!
The question of “Justification by Faith” puts to rest the possibility of human condemnation and preoccupation with pleasing human beings; it places sentencing and acquittal squarely in God’s court. Today’s gospel is an example: a woman already sent to the gallows by other human beings, for committing adultery, gets a free lawyer, a free advocate – God himself, in Jesus Christ. You know what, she was acquitted, despite her sin! Last Sunday, it was a prodigal son, who had his father whom he defrauded defending him; today, the lawmaker, God himself, becomes a lawyer to save the life of a sinner on the verge of extermination.
What stands between us, sinners, and the enjoyment of God’s mercy and forgiveness, here and now, and eternal bliss in the life to come, is despair of forgiveness and unconsciousness of God’s daily forgiveness of our sins. Despair fights against human trust in God’s forgiveness and forgiving power; it is the strongest weapon the devil uses to conquer Christians.
Breaking away from and heading off sin, in order to chart a new path in life, is only possible when one considers the cost to Christ for our liberation. We can make a new start in life, when our gaze is fixed on the cross of Christ, and the love that suspends him on the cross. When fear gives way to love, because we worship a God who delights in forgiveness, and has no predilection in condemning sinners.
Perhaps, the consciousness that we are all sinners, in need of God’s mercy, reminds us to refrain from condemning others. Possibly, forgiveness has to be appreciated for it to be a power leading toward conversion. Maybe, sin remains attractive to me because I have closed myself in on myself that I’m unable to look beyond myself to see God in others around me. Indeed, I can only show my conversion through love; not an imaginary love or just feelings, but real concrete love: the very deeds that show that I love; when I visit the sick, provide for the hungry, visit prisoners; yes, when I use my freedom from sin as opportunity to walk over to lend a helping hand and make the other wear a smile; when I can share in the sufferings of the other, and work to better their lot in life; then, forgiveness will be meaningful to me, because I have experienced it and I now share it with others.
Assignment for the Week
Write down or share with someone the story of your conversion or how you overcame a major faith obstacle in your life.