Hate the Sin, Love the Sinner

Jesus was once offered a chance to take a stand on an issue of sexual immorality.

It was a rather cut and dry one too: adultery Since the beginning of the Jewish faith, the sinful nature of adultery had never been ambiguous. You don't do it, and when you do, there are clear punishments. And they had caught this women in the act. No gray areas there. Never did the Pharisees pitch the ball so clearly up the middle as they did here. All Jesus had to do was swing.

But He did something shocking. At first, He said nothing.

...which, frankly, could not have irritated the Pharisees more. It only seemed to confirm to them that he was simply a rabble-rouser. That He would do anything to undermine their authority with the people.

So they pressed again. Mind you, the woman is standing right there. And the punishment at this time, if you haven't read the story, is death by stoning. There are better ways to go.

Annoyingly, Jesus' silence continued. Instead, He was doing something in the dirt with his finger. I would give good money to know what it was He was drawing or writing. Many have theorized. But apparently the gospel writer didn't think it important. Or maybe he couldn't see what it was either.

In any case, Jesus finally pauses. All of the Pharisees heft their rocks, ready to stone either Him or the women pending His answer. But He hits them in the gut instead...

“If any of you hasn't sinned, go ahead and throw your rock.”

...and He goes back to His sand.

Amazingly, one by one, starting with the oldest (who apparently had the most regrets) and ending with the youngest (who hadn't accumulated as much sin...yet...), they dropped their rocks and left. Only the woman and Jesus remained.

Jesus, Master of the Rhetorical Question, asks her, “Didn't anybody stick around to condemn you?”

Her response is obvious. His is not. “Then neither do I condemn you. Go home...but leave your sinful lifestyle behind.”

DOH! If the pharisees had just rounded the corner and listened, they would have heard it...He didn't shy away from the issue! He didn't want that life for her. He was just as certain as they were that it was against God's plan for her. But His approach was different than theirs. He first earned her trust. He saved her life. Rescued her from the consequences of her actions. But then, having gained her trust, He showed her the full depth of His love. He pointed her to a better way. He was not ambiguous on the nature of her actions.

Many centuries before, His Father had done the same for Israel. He saved them from Egypt, rescued them from bondage and slavery. And only then, after showing His love to them, did He invite them into covenant relationship, and give them His commandments. Likewise, Christ's love does not leave someone in bondage to sin. But it does rescue them, give them an opportunity to be set free from it, in a loving, grace-filled manner.

Scripture is clear about what God considers sin. Earlier in His ministry, in the right context, Jesus had spoken about adultery. He even challenged people to take it to the next level, weeding unfaithfulness out of their minds and hearts, as well as their actions. But in this passage, Jesus saw a better way to handle things. The conviction that God has laid on my heart, both personally and for this congregation, is to live out the full love of God in all situations. Not omitting our conviction of sin, but seeing God's heart for those who are caught up in sin, and offering His love to them.

When we are willing to love first, God is better able to use us in ministry. Sin of any kind is difficult to overcome. And all of us need someone who can come alongside us to both encourage and challenge us to live a life of holiness. It's easy to say “Hate the sin, love the sinner.” It's another thing to live it out, inviting fellow sinners into loving relationships, and walking with them on the path to righteousness.

Jesus neither came down hard on this woman, nor ignored the presence of sin in her life. His answer to her was more beautiful than music, more profound than art. “Neither do I condemn you,” AND “Leave your life of sin.” I may spend the rest of my life trying to understand how He did that. I have yet to perfect my heart in this matter, and I don't expect you to master it tomorrow either. But I believe the journey into Christ's love will be a worthy pursuit for us both. Will you travel it with me?

Father God, give us your heart for the sinner, for the broken, for the lost. You have rescued us from our failures, and drawn us into a loving community. Help us to do the same for others. Let our zeal for Your holiness always be tempered with Your Grace, and vice versa. For You are both Just and Loving, as you showed us in Your Son Jesus. Mold us in the image of His love. Through His Name we pray, amen.

Living in Divine Tension

I was just listening to the podcast archives of new friend Jay Voorhees, and happened to catch at the end a two-year-old conversation about the homosexuality issue that raised some interesting issues for me.

For those of you who don't know, the United Methodist Church has been debating for over a decade as to whether homosexuality is sin or biology. The sides have become quite polarized, especially as small controversies about ordaining, marrying, and giving membership to "self-avowed, practicing homosexuals" have continued to bring the issue to the forefront.

In Jay's former "Methocast", he would end the show with listener comments and respond to them. On this particular episode, a listener named Dean had commented on this controversy. Conservatives have often asked those who affirm homosexual behavior as an acceptable lifestyle to simply leave the denomination, because the majority were "clearly" against them. Dean made the comment that Jesus was not in the habit of asking folks to leave like this, and that it was hurtful to be asked to leave, seemingly for the comfort of those who disagree with him. He also noted it was the majority who sent Christ to the cross.

Before I go on, let me explain where I come from. I do believe homosexual activity is a sin, according to God's Word. But I know a lot of other things are too, things that you and I both do, and I intend to give just as much grace and love to one sinner as another. That kind of love means confronting sin in people's lives, but also recognizing that it is God that changes the heart, and I can no more do that with one sin than another. There may be some other healing that needs to happen before a person can recognize a particular sin in their lives, and find the means to eliminate it. It is the church's role to give them as much help in this matter as they are willing to accept.

OK, time for the wrestling. Because my heart wants to go two different directions on this one.
(1)One of the things we do well in modern Methodism is diversity. The ability to contain diverse viewpoints within a single movement, and not excommunicate each other because we use differing baptismal rites. Having all sides at the table does allow us to learn from each other, and (hopefully) no one side believe they have it all figured out. By this sensibility, I want to say, "Yes, keep everyone together, let's talk this thing through. If we share community with all view points on this issue, we have a chance to change each other, and let God transform us all."

(2)On the other hand, I just preached this last Sunday on conflict. And as Matthew records it, Jesus does say when someone will not see their sin after multiple confrontations, it may be time to put them out of the community. By this understanding, it would make sense to seek a division in the UMC, breaking fellowship with those of the other viewpoint.

But there's something I didn't catch until today. The model Christ gives is for offenses against each other. Acting on homosexual temptations (unless you are talking about an affair) is a sin against God, and technically against the other "partner" for encouraging their sin, but not against you and me. Does it need addressed, absolutely. Mutual accountability is an important part of the being Church together. And if the person is using their "lifestyle" to divide the church, then that is an offense against others. But honestly, most folks that feel drawn towards the same sex don't have a political agenda to push (despite a very vocal group that does). They're just trying to live life as best as they can, and interpret key Scriptures differently than I do, same as I interpret the role of women in Scripture differently than most Baptists.

In the words of Veggie Tales, "We're going to get letters for this," I know. But let me say this much; I still believe homosexual activity* is a sin. But I know that persons who struggle with this temptation have just as much right and need to be in church as I do. And by staying friends and fellows, we have a chance to influence each other, hopefully for the good. But maybe living in that divine tension, where we don't have it all figured out, and we recognize that we all have our brokenness, will help us to live lives more dependent on God.

*I intentionally use the term "homosexuality" as little as possible. If we classify something as a gender orientation, then we cannot condemn the sin without attacking the identity of the person. But if we talk in terms of actions, then we can approach in a different light.