Every day of Lent, Bishop Edward Malesic writes a Scripture reflection for the faithful. Follow the bishop on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Click HERE for the readings.
The accusers brought the woman caught in the act of adultery to Jesus. They were so smug in their condemnation of her. They were using her to test Jesus and cause him to trip. Would Jesus uphold the law and hand down the required sentence of death? If not, they could find a way to charge Jesus with being too lenient by not strictly upholding the moral code of the sacred scriptures, as they felt that they were doing. (Of course, they were not causing the same ruckus for the man who was her accomplice!)
It is then that Jesus began writing in the sand with his finger. Most commentators will say that Jesus was writing the sins of the accusers for all to see, exposing them just as they had exposed the woman. And with the words, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her,” these accusers (now accused by Jesus themselves) began to walk away, one by one. The only truly sinless man, Jesus, is left standing before this woman. He offers her his mercy.
When we are tempted to see ourselves as morally superior to others and throw a stone or two their way, we need to take a moment to remember that we are not as clean as we would sometimes hope other people perceive us. We have sins, too – sins that Jesus sees in us -- and we should be careful not to judge others too harshly, lest we be judged harshly ourselves.
Jesus can write our sins in the sand, too and remind us not to be so quick at condemning others. But he is also the one who stands by us, in his perfect mercy, to offer us his forgiveness. And we pray to our heavenly Father, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”