Handiwork of the Devil

~~~ Deuteronomy 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 ~~~ 

~~~ Psalm 23 ~~~ John 8:1-11 ~~~

Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; 

for you are at my side.

The two stories from these readings

 so beautifully complement one another.

The first reading features Susanna, 

who was wrongfully accused of adultery.

Her accusers were ready to pick up their stones 

and pummel her to death with them.

She was definitely plunged into the dark valley.

Two men came forward claiming they had seen 

her in the garden with another man. 

Ultimately they were proven to be lying

when questioned by Daniel

 by their own conflicting information.

If you decide to lie you risk the power of truth.

If you lie you eventually erode more

 and more good from your heart. 

These two accusers lost touch with how their lies 

would impact their own lives.

God came to the side of Susanna;

she was found innocent.

Deception is always the handiwork of the devil.
Deception by design masks truth and beauty.

Deception is like taking a black marker and scribbling
 on something that would otherwise be clear.

The gospel brings us the woman caught in adultery.
She is thrown down into the dirt right at the feet of Jesus.
These accusers claim to have caught her in the act.

While we know their goal was to trick Jesus
we do not know if they were hiding half of the truth.

What if they set up this woman?
Could they have paid a man to seduce her
for the prime purpose of catching her in the 'act'? 

Unlike Susanna this nameless woman
was brought directly to Jesus.
He was to be her judge.
He was the one who would pass the
judgement for her to be stoned.

Her accusers were not expecting Jesus
 to turn the tables on them.

Instead giving the green light for this poor woman
 to be stoned to death he writes in the sand.

Whatever Jesus wrote in the sand that day resulted
in the elders quickly and quietly turning away.

Suddenly they no longer wanted
to stick around for the customary stoning.

Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; 

for you are at my side.

This woman too was walking in the dark valley.
She too feared for her life as she knelt in the dirt.
She trembled with anticipation of the
first stone to pelt her bare skin.

Instead she heard the voice of Jesus...
"Let the one among you who is without sin 
be the first to throw a stone at her."

Who among you is without sin?

As we approach Holy Week I invite you to take
one last examination of conscience.

Maybe you can hold a stone and meditate
on the words of Jesus from this Gospel.

Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more."

From now on do not sin any more...
it is never too late to begin again.
Jesus offers words of mercy and encouragement.

Jesus walks in the dark valley with you.
He is slow to anger abundant in grace.
You are never alone.

~~~Peace~~~

Let Go...Move Forward

~~~ Fifth Sunday of Lent ~~~

~~~ Isaiah 43:16-21 ~~~ Psalm 126 ~~~ 

~~~ Philippians 3:8-14 ~~~ John 8:1-11 ~~~

Remember not the events of the past,

the things of long ago consider not;

see, I am doing something new!

God is all about creating something from nothing.

He can look beyond events from our past 

because he wants us to consider the newness he offers.

He makes all things good.

He does not want us to live in the past.

He wants us to live with hope in our hearts.

If we are chained to the past

 we are in effect giving up on 

having a better future.

...forgetting what lies behind 

but straining forward to what lies ahead...

Paul says...okay so you have not been 

the best person all of the time.

But now it is time to let go and move forward.

We must keep our eye on the goal which lies ahead.

We do not find Jesus by going backwards

 into the darkness of our sins.

We find Jesus by looking forward 

toward the light of new dawn.

“Let the one among you who is without sin 

be the first to throw a stone at her.”

When the woman caught in adultery 

was thrown at the feet of Jesus, 

humiliated before the crowd,

he already knew the sins of the accusers.

We do not know what he writes in the sand, 

but it was enough to turn away the crowd beginning 

with the elders, the accusers.

God knows the real you within; 

the one behind the face you present to others.

Jesus never denies that this woman was a sinner, 

he just quietly revealed that she was not

 the only sinner present.

The accusers wanted to keep this woman

 in her past sinfulness.

Jesus invited this woman to move forward 

closer to her own salvation.

Where do you want to be...stuck in the past...

or straining with Paul for what lies ahead?

Let's move forward together.

He will give us the grace.

He will bless us with each step closer.

~~~Peace~~~

Accused...Convicted...Saved

~~~ Daniel 13:41c-62 or 13:1-19, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 ~~~

~~~ Psalm 23 ~~ John 8:1-11 ~~~

Crime and Punishment...

The prophet Daniel takes up the defense of Susanna

 and saves her from wrongful death. 

Two evil elders bring false allegations against Susanna

because she refuses to enter into sin with them.

They were overcome with the thoughts of lust, adultery 

and finally lies and murder.

Daniel has the wisdom to trap them in their own lies.

 After getting two different answers to the same question

he is able to determine they were lying.

Susanna chose death rather then participating in their sin.

She prayed that God would intervene, which he did.

The Lord heard her prayer.
As she was being led to execution

Even though Susanna was walking in the dark valley

she did not fear. She was confident that God was by her side.

She is an example of the conviction of trusting in God's care.

In the gospel we also see a woman accused by the elders.

In this case the woman is probably guilty, although 

we do not know the circumstances.

Both stories involve alleged crimes of lust and passion.

The woman caught in adultery was brought before Jesus.

The elders were more interested in how Jesus would handle

 this woman than whether or not she was guilty.

The sentence, if convicted, for adultery was stoning.

Jesus brilliantly turned the tables on the accusers.

The woman was thrown to the ground at the feet of Jesus.

The crowd gathered round to witness her judgment 

and subsequent stoning.

But Jesus quietly bends down and begins to draw/write in the dirt.

This is the only time we see him writing.

We do not know what he wrote or why he took this action.

Whatever the elders saw on the ground 

it was sufficient to make them 

turn away one by one beginning with the elders.

Did he write their sins?

Did he write their names?

Whatever he revealed must have been hidden in their hearts.

No one remained.

Not one person was left to cast the stones.

Jesus gave them the opportunity to cast the stones,

but for whatever reason they walked away.

Jesus had this uncanny ability to see deep into the hearts of others.

Remember the Samaritan woman at the well,

he told her all of her past sins.

Jesus knows what we try to hide within our hearts,

but he does not condemn us with this knowledge.

Instead he forgives us and wants us to come closer to him.

God may be judge and jury,

but he is also mercy and love.

His love for us supersedes the punishment

 we just might deserve.

Does this mean that we can do whatever we want?

No. Perfect justice lies with the Lord.

Susanna was innocent and God intervened.

The adulterous woman was probably guilty and God intervened.

When will we believe that God really is on our side?

He has shown that the prestige of old age is not the deciding factor.

The elders in both passages were less than exemplary people

in today's Scriptures.

If we turn to God he can make all things work out for good.

He will make all things right.

We must trust in his love and mercy for us.

God does not want to condemn us.

Sometimes he allows us to condemn ourselves,

but even then we have the choice to return to him.

He will never turn his back on us.

He will never walk away.

We are blessed to have a God who comes to our defense.

A God who sees into the depths of our heart

and still loves us.

Peace.

Who Has Possession of You

~~~Fifth Sunday of Lent~~~

~~~Isaiah 43:16-21 ~~Psalm 126~~ Philippians 3:8-14~~John 8:1-11~~~

The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.

'...I am doing something new!'

'...I continue my pursuit in hope...

...I have indeed been taken possession of by Christ Jesus.' 

Isaiah, Paul, and the psalmist are each expressing the feelings and sentiment 

of the woman in today's Gospel story.

The woman caught in adultery was violently dragged 

and thrown at the feet of Jesus.

Jesus could have joined in and condemned her along with the others;

after all if she was guilty she was a sinner.

But instead Jesus uses this opportunity to teach us 

about his capacity to forgive.

He shows us his unconditional love for this woman 

by inviting us to look at ourselves.

“Let the one among you who is without sin
be the first to throw a stone at her.”

He gives her accusers permission to punish this woman; 

but then he does something very curious,

he looks down and begins writing in the sand.

What he wrote in the sand that day was never recorded for us to know.

Imagine the fear racing throughout this poor woman's body 

as she awaits her condemnation.

But instead not one man picks up a stone,

rather they sheepishly turn and walk away in silence.

...Has no one condemned you?”
She replied, “No one, sir.”
Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you.
Go, and from now on do not sin any more.” 

This woman could sing with the psalmist...

the Lord has down great things for me...

I am filled with joy.

He did something new for her...

he forgave her instead of condemning her.

He gave her a reason to have hope once again.

Perhaps she had been hopeless by her lifestyle for many years.

Jesus did indeed take possession of her heart, mind, 

body, and soul through his loving compassion.

Jesus saved her from a painful humiliating experience.

His simple words and actions diffused the entire situation.

The woman caught in adultery was the beneficiary of God's love.

The Lord has indeed done great things for each of us.

Remember them and be filled with joy.

Go, sin no more...

continue to live in hope.

Let Christ Jesus take possession of your

 mind, body, and soul.

The Lord is kind and merciful

 and we should be also.