Balancing grace and truth

“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.” (John 8:9-11)
 
Churches can struggle at times to figure out a Christlike balance between truth and grace. Some of you who probably come from churches where everyone was welcome as they were, and yet Biblical concepts like sin, repentance, and Hell were quietly avoided. Others of you may have experienced the opposite end of the church spectrum, where the expectations and rules were very clear, where judgment and condemnation fell swiftly on those who transgressed, but where grace was conspicuously absent.

I find Jesus’ interaction with a woman caught in adultery in John 8 to be a third, and better, way to balance truth and grace. In the story, the religious leaders bring before Jesus a woman caught in adultery. Given that adultery takes two people, and the other person is nowhere to be found, it is likely that the religious leaders have staged this event to try and trap Jesus. They confront Jesus, citing Moses’ law about stoning adulterers, and appear to leave Jesus with two options. Either he will uphold the law, ending this woman’s life and likely causing the many sinful people who are following him to depart, or he will let the woman off the hook, and show himself to be a false teacher that does not adhere to Old Testament law.

But Jesus, in his brilliance, charts a third path. He writes on the ground, straightens up, and says, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” By saying this, he upholds the goodness of the law, but also proclaims that none of the people who have gathered are righteous enough to judge this woman. And after they all leave, Jesus turns to the woman and says, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She replies, “No one, sir.” And Jesus continues: “Then neither do I condemn you… Go now and leave your life of sin” (John 8:1-11).

In this fascinating exchange, Jesus avoids the religious leaders’ trap and extends to the woman the perfect blend of truth and grace. Instead of a total pardon that disregards God’s laws (“I do not condemn you”) or a call to obey the law that leaves no room for grace (“Go and leave your life of sin, and then I will not condemn you”), Jesus first extends her grace (“Neither do I condemn you”) and then calls her to leave her life of sin and turn to God, obeying His law.

What does this mean for us as a church as we try to balance truth and grace? I believe it means that we are not called to simply welcome everyone as they are and pronounce them blessed and accepted by God without allow God’s Word to confront their sin. Nor are we called to communicate to people that unless they change first, they will not be accepted by God. Instead, we are called to follow Jesus’ example:  preach the gospel of grace, that even the worst of sinners can be made right with God through trusting in Jesus’ death on the cross for our sins, and then call the saved to follow Jesus, turning from their life of sin to live a life of obedience to God.

Because of Jesus’ death on the cross, all who trust in Jesus are not condemned (Romans 8:1). Now go, leave your life of sin, and follow Him (Romans 8:12-14).