01/06/2022
The brilliance of the sun, cascading down and around us all with its fullness, was incapable of unseating the chill of the early morning. My body shivered uncontrollably as they, the scribes and the Pharisees, held me tightly, oblivious to the strength of their equally cold and calloused hands. My dress, actually my undergarment, offered little to deter not only the cold but also the eyes of those that we encountered as we walked through the city and towards the temple. Many began to shout, “stone her” and I contemplated my decisions, not good ones, and the consequences that awaited me as we came nearer still to the temple; a crowd now followed us and I began to feel small pebbles bounce off of my body periodically as my captors seemed oblivious to the onslaught that increased. Now within the gate, in the distance I could see a mass of people within the temple gathered and listening to a singular man sitting amongst their numbers.
The anger of those dragging me, now at a faster pace and with a much stronger hold, seemingly rose to a crescendo as they neared the lone man whom they had become fixated upon. They began to shout, softly at first, then with greater authority, “make way” and a clear path opened towards the man. I tried desperately to pull back my disheveled hair from my eyes in hopes that I might see who this man was but the ferocity of their hold deterred my attempts. My tears, now overwhelming me, restricted my eyesight even further.
Before I knew it, we stood motionless, and an eerie hush fell upon the situation. I stood, humiliated, embarrassed and full of shame, looking down and at my feet now bleeding profusely from the journey; the crimson red stained the immediate area of my undesired stage of forthcoming judgment. They thrust me forward with a final angry push and I found myself standing directly in front of the man that remained seated. Now, with hands free, I slowly wiped my tears and pulled my hair back and away from my eyes; a state of utter disgrace washed over my entire body as I literally felt the eyes of each person present piercing my very soul. The quiet was deafening!
I, however, desired to see the man that held my fate in his hands and finally garnered enough courage to lift my head gradually, and looked upon him with curiosity; I was surprised to see that he too looked poor, lacking the expected apparel of hierarchy or privilege. Our eyes met for the first time and though anger, hatred and judgment surrounded us on all sides, his eyes manifested something much different; immediately, a calm and peace overcame me. My thoughts turned inward; should I plead for my life or accept the stoning that awaited my sinful act? I was powerless to speak.
The silence was broken when one of the men clad in his fancied priestly clothing, in an annoyed, irritated and maddened proclamation, shouted, “this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?”
I awaited his response, knowing full well the punishment and began to yield inwardly to the judgment and its finality. Again, a quiet fell. Rather than standing to speak, he, to everyone’s bewilderment, “stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.” His calm, his demeanor of peace simply never wavered.
My accusers once again, now in unison and not simply the one, began to lay out the charges against me, giving in greater revelation, the details of my sin; recounting meticulously for all to hear with clarity as if somehow, he had not fully understood their charge. They repeated my sin again and finally he stood.
He now took stood in front of me. He reached down and grabbed my hands and clasped them lightly; the touch of his hands left me feeling weak and almost incapable of standing. Looking deeply in to my eyes, as if speaking only to me, but certainly to the masses and to those that stood as my accusers and said, “he that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” He said nothing more. Once again quiet fell with intensity.
I felt the release of his hands and again he slowly stooped down, his eyes fixed simply on the ground and he began to write once more. For how long the silence loomed I cannot tell, and it was only interrupted when to my surprise, one of my accusers, an older man, looked down and walked away; one after another each one would follow suit and soon I found myself standing alone before him.
He stood and once again grasped my hands with a gentle caress not of this world. “Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee?”
I felt compelled to answer, crying softly in disbelief, and simply said, “no man, Lord.”
He said, “neither do I condemn thee, go and sin no more.” At once, an older woman approached me and gently covered my “nakedness” from any further humiliation and she held me tight as we walked out of the temple. Walking slowly, my feet so tender with each step, towards my village, I asked her the name of the poor man that offered forgiveness, that held no judgment, that had much compassion and was the giver of love unconditional. She spoke softly and said, “Jesus.”
Father, we wonder, what must it have been like to experience your son in the flesh? My spirit responds with a resounding…we have. There has been someone in our lives that embodied the very spirit of Jesus. They were present during our darkest times, during unsuspected trials and tribulations giving nothing less than what your Son would have given. They give of their time, they give of their energies, they give simply because there was/is a love within them that is not of themselves and it is so wondrous that they simply cannot contain it all for self; it is an overflowing waiting to be released to a world that longs for such.
If we were to just step back, for a moment, and remember when we too stood before thee, sinners and deserving of judgment, I wonder what our daily reactions would be as we come across those that are hurting as well, lost in their shame, held in guilt, in need of forgiveness and a simple loving encounter. A chance meeting that would hold no condemnation, but rather hold compassion, one that would hold mercy, grace, and of a certainty hold a love not of our flesh and only of Him. Oh Father, that we would be privileged to be that one, to stand in your stead, that allows them to experience Jesus today. May we speak of your plan of redemption, the sacrifice of your Son on the cross of crucifixion, the ransom fully paid, the chasm of separation bridged, and the loving intimate relationship that you so long for with your children.
Father your word notes, “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:For I was hungry, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”
Lord it is all too wonderful for our comprehension and I am once again…undone!
Daniel