Neither do I condemn you

As mentioned yesterday - this week's 'Ponderings' will all be based on the Gospel reading for Communion that day. Today, it's:

John 8.1-11

While Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, they said to him, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?’ They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, ‘Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.’ And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus straightened up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, sir.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.’

'Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone...neither do I condemn you.' This passage is a great reminder that whatever wrongs we have done in our lives, we have the assurance that God will forgive us.

However, we also need to consider Jesus' final words to the woman here, 'Go on your way, and from now on do not sin again'. Knowing that God will forgive does not give us carte blanche to do whatever we like, without regard for others.

Considering others leads us to the knowledge that forgiveness comes in three parts - we can trust that God will forgive us, but we have no control over whether those we have hurt will forgive us. And we also have to come to terms with our actions ourselves; we need to forgive ourselves too.

Forgiving ourselves can be so hard to do. If we manage it, however, we can then let that forgiveness to give us the healing, freedom and energy to continually strive for the unattainable goal to 'sin no more' - without beating ourselves up when we inevitably fall short of that goal.

As a different way of praying, perhaps try one of these 'flower prayers' today.
If you draw and cut out a flower, like this one (any number of petals is fine)...

..you can write your prayer in the middle, then gently fold each petal into the centre, one on top of another.
Carefully float the whole thing on water, then sit with the prayer as slowly the petals unfold, until the flower is flat again.
(Tip: If you use water-soluble ink, the words/drawings of the prayer will end up dissolving into the water; use pencil if you'd like them to stay)

♫ And a hymn that fits these themes too: There's a Wideness in God's Mercy


[Image shows a simple image of a flower with five rounded petals]