Grace and Law

The story of the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11) never ceases to grab my attention. And even though we cannot be sure it was in the original manuscript, it most definitely gives us an indication of the character of Jesus.

And taking a closer look can uncover some interesting insights:

The scribes brought only the woman to see Jesus, when the Mosiac law they are referring too ( Deuteronomy 22.22) applies to both the perpetrators. So with the absence of the man, there are two things one could say about their intentions. Firstly, they had little to no regard for the humanity of the woman, and they were simply using her to set a trap for Jesus. He stood on the precipise of either negating the Law of Moses, or the Roman Law, in the mind of the scribes.

As with the story, faced with such an explosive situation, Jesus bent down to write in the sand, which incidentally was very common for teachers of that time. And while there is much conjecture about what he wrote, I would like to think that Jesus was also indignant towards the treatment of the woman, and the lack value for her very existence and being. And when he arose, he was to say the most levelling statement one could ever think of; 'Let he who is without sin cast the first stone'.

Gradually, those who had stood in Judgement of the woman, and sought to trap Jesus began to disperse, with their own sense of righteousness in tatters. And it's then that Jesus addresses the woman, and sends her away to 'leave her life of sin'.

Firstly, let me say what this story is not communicating, which is promoting a sense of moral autonomy. But neither is it advocating strict adherence to the law (or in the scribes case,the Torah) . Both of these extremes are missing the point. Jesus gave the woman an opportunity to 'live a different way' when he said sin no more. He offered an approach to life which was no longer inward looking (which I think is the definition of sin), but instead revolved around the kingdom, where Jesus was soon to die as an atoning death.

For me, this describes the mind blowing notion of forgiveness because of Grace, and it's what truly keeps me being a Christian.

Looking for something more

There are a number of things which come to mind at the beginning of this new year, and I have discussed them in other parts of this blog. However, if I'm honest I hope that this year is better than the last, and things won't be so hard. But perhaps to think like this is to miss the point, and to forget that there is something more to the Christian life, apart from our own circumstances.
Maybe this year is an opportunity to find faith, hope and love which transcends my own situation. And this may not change how difficult life is, but can give me a new perspective on it.
Faith gives me the opportunity navigate my way through the most uncertain of circumstances , with a confidence in God's purposes for me. Hope comes from the Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour, both in the 'here and now' and the future (See NT Wright- Surprised by Hope). And finally Love, which comes from God, and drives out all fear (1 John 4:18).

Stuff

What do hardships tell us about life and our ourselves? One simple response to the first question is that 'life is hard'; Scott Peck began his book with this very line. In short, life is a series of beginnings and endings, and the jubilation of the mountain top experiences and the despair of walking in the valley. And no matter how hard we try, none of us are perfect, so this infallibility is always the cause hurt and pain.Moving onto to the second question, what do hardships
tell us about ourselves? To me, it highlights the desire we all have. That is to feel good all the time, and for all our relationships to be healthy.
But in light in what I've previously said about life, one would have to ask how realistic this is? Would it be more practical to think that trials and tribulations, and the mountain top moments are the essence of existing. And when one feels depressed, like I have at times this year, we are just merely existing.
However, as a Christian I feel I need to take this sentiment a little further. Perhaps to exist is to be more in the image of God (Gen 1:27) as time goes by. Perhaps there is an art to suffering like Rob Bell tells us, and it involves us changing.

An understanding.

It is only when we experience the extremes of something that we really understand what it is. Take the way we feel as an example, one can only really know what it is to be happy and content when they have been in the depths of sadness and loss. The truth is, times of deep sadness ultimately brings meaning to periods of happiness and contentment for the simple reason that they are such opposite states. And it's for this reason why there is more to these times that meets the eye, seasons of sadness are not only a periods of time to be endured, but they are just as formative as the happy times.

I find myself in one these unhappy seasons at the moment, and it's been a while. There are moments when what I have written doesn't seem all that tangible at all, but I hope it's becoming more of a reality in my life.

Happy New Year!

I always find that at the beginning of a New Year all my long term hopes are so very apparent, I realise all the more that I still haven't found that special person. However, that's Ok, I really don't want that to define me, or my own existence. But there is always that temptation to minimise hope, maybe telling yourself that your better of on your own, or that your time will come. While there may be an element of truth in these, they are not a part of hope, they are just diversions. The thing is, hope is there to be embraced in all its fullness despite all the uncertainties of life. So I hope, this year, that I meet the woman that fits me. Who will stand and work through all the difficulties relationships inevitably bring, and will be honoured by me.
That is my hope for this year, come what may.

Walking in the valley.

There are only a few situations in life where one has an experience that is truly transformative, the circumstances of these experiences vary from person to person but the results stay the same, which are profound. In the last 3-4 years I’ve had what one would call a trans formative experience. It has come through two rather distinct ways, the first being that I have immersed myself in communal living despite great reservations (I’m probably the most introverted person you will ever meet). The second is that I have committed myself to an academic process that has taken all I can give in terms of effort and knowledge, but has totally expanded the way I think about things. Also, it has given me a hunger to learn more and work towards some kind of response to life’s bigger questions. However, as well as these, there were also times of great sorrow, mainly because of the decisions I made, but they were still hard times all the same. But still, these tough times are still as transformative and the good one's because it is in the places that we don't want to go where the meaningful long term changes are made. However, transformative seasons in our lives are only ever temporary, and when I re-visit the place of my most recent one I know that this particular chapter in my life is over, and I’m only left with an abundance of memories which are triggered by the most innocuous of things. But they are all such meaningful memories, that tend to grab me straight away. I can only put this down to the process of coming down from the mountain top experience.

So what happens now it is all over? Well, to avoid living in the past one has to get used to walking in the valley again. For most people the valley consists of daily routine, and issues that come up time and time again. But the valley cannot be a negative thing, it's where all of us spend the majority of our lives, and it still provides opportunities, namely to put what we have learned from the mountain top experiences into action. The valley will also provide suprises along the way, as long as one is open to the work of God in their lives.

It becomes so easy to get involved with what the world has to offer, the latest sports story grabs our attention, the current financial crisis brings concern for the future and strained relationships with people we thought we knew drain us of energy. Then, all of a sudden, something happens that rocks our world. Maybe it's the death of somebody we new, or the onset of serious illness. All of a sudden the pack of cards that was your life comes tumbling down, your perspective changes, and you come to realise that life is 'fragile'. The realisation of this becomes unsettling because we all want security, and without really knowing we have thought that nasty things happen to other people, not us. But now it's unavoidable, tragedy has visited our doorstep and there is no getting away from it. Therefore,it becomes time to live differently, to think about and understand what is really important and focus on these things. Something we should be doing all the time if we were not so complacent, and we didn't take the gift of life so likely. However, if we are fortunate to come out from the other side of this there are things we need to learn, and some home truths that we need to hold onto. This doesn't mean becoming fatalistic, but to live life in a grateful way, knowing that we may not have everything we want (wife, family, own place etc) but we still have something that others do not (health and well being). Moreover, as a Christian I can write this with a hope of things to come, a belief that this fallen world is not the end but the beginning of something new, something so amazing it becomes impossible to imagine. The fact is that I believe in a loving God that can redeem even the most tragic of circumstances, and because of this I can walk in light of the fact that life is fragile (that will never change) but have hope that isn't just wishful thinking.