Poems That Reveal……..
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This is an excerpt from a book I am currently reading called Messy Faith by A.J.Gregory. I have some appreciation for her perspective.
It is in reference to a passage from the book of John that goes as follows: Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman ‘Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?‘ ’No Lord’, she said. And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I, Go and sin no more.‘ (John 8:11 NLT)
A.J says:
I think that what a part of “I forgive you, now go an sin no more” really means is confronting the behaviors or feelings that may have contributed to the acting out of sin. I hear Jesus saying something like this to us: “You are forgiven. My love for you is the same. We’re cool. Now, why did you do what you did? What’s really going on in your messy, troubled, anxiety-ridden heart that we need to talk about? What kind of internal work do you have to do to stop living the kind of life that is ultimately bringing you ruin, destruction, and general unhealth?”
| Posted in No Poetry, Just Thoughts
Hi,
For me there is more here than that. Something so profound and liberating. It is abundantly clear to me that this woman made deep eye contact with Jesus. Something happened. That there was an internal shift in her thinking and in the focus point of her heart. She saw him. He saw her. The simple fact that there now was NO confrontation of her behavior. NO condemnation. None. Zero.
Only a love so deep resulting in a freedom to stop focusing on her “behavior” and on what other’s think of the behavior. (Leading to comparisons and the inherent need for condemnation in that paradigm…)
HE said it, “Go and sin no more.” (Must be possible then….) ” I know all about you. What I love is you. ” His whole point was to remove her shame and replace it with his righteousness. His life. Having her eyes fixed on Him. I don’t see the words, I forgive you in this scripture. His focus was on her heart, to bring her life. So that she no longer had to live in a state of condemnation and death which are direct results of a focus on our “rotten” behavior and what the white washed town people think of us.
Would you venture to add, that He meant to include the woman herself in the group of those who would not condemn her in his asking the question?
For me, the “GO!” means let it go. Sometimes there is a fear of letting go of the past. For example, a woman who had an abortion years ago cannot forgive herself because somehow it wouldn’t be honoring the depth of her transgression. How can she allow herself to be happy when she ended a life? The reluctance to let go of the past can also mask a fear of getting on with life and facing the future. The Go! is the moving from fear and obsessive rumination to the peace.
For me, the “Sin no more”– is “Try to bring about some positive change in your personality,” like a previous sharer (AJ) also posted above. e.g. “He who has been stealing must steal no longer but must work, do something useful with his hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. “Eph 4:28
As the aforementioned verse shows, “Go and Sin no more” is not possible in a vacuum; it means that one must work, do something useful and seek to make amends for their sins already forgiven and take noticeable steps to show change. But,the “go”
means that one builds a new life with gratitude