Finding Forgiveness: Part I

So where to start with this forgiveness thing. Well, besides the parable I cited in the previous post, maybe the story of the adulterous woman in John 8 is as good as any.

"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"

"No one, sir," she said.
"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin."

We tend to look at this story as a cautionary tale against judgment. But if that is all we were to learn, then once the others had all left, Jesus could have bashed this woman upside the head with a rock. For unlike those who walked away, Jesus was perfect and without sin.

But he extended her forgiveness ... the same forgiveness he extends to each one of us. For although we deserve death, he offers life.

We in turn -- created in his image and re-created in Christ -- should mirror that offer ourselves, offering forgiveness even when unwarranted.

Want an example? Stay tuned ...