Life would be so much easier if things were always black and white!  But it's not.

Kristie is preaching this Sunday on the text about the woman caught in adultery.  The pharisees catch her in the act.  The evidence is clear.  There are multiple witnesses.  There is no doubt.  The law and sanction are equally clear.  Punishment for adultery is death by stoning. 

So the pharisees queue up to stone this woman.  And then Jesus arrives.  He has something to say about grace and mercy vis a vis sin and judgment.  There is something about repentance and redemption that lives in tension with sin and judgment.  

With her, Jesus isn't just about mercy because he does judge her: he tells her to "go and sin no more." 

With her, Jesus isn't just about judgment because he shows mercy to her, writing in the sand on her behalf in such a way that the pharisees stand convicted and drop their stones and  walk away.  

Life is a lot like that, living in the tension between mercy and judgment.  It's not all one or the other.  Like pre-stressed concrete, the reinforced steel bars are put in tension when the  concrete is poured.  That tension is what holds the concrete together.  Reinforced concrete makes for a solid foundation! 

It's good to live with tension between mercy and grace on the one hand and the law and judgment on the other. To live with only judgment is harsh and oppressive, to live with only grace and mercy is illusory and deceptive because there is truth with consequences. 

I know Kristie has a lot to say.  I'll be listening to her tape when I return from the men's retreat.

Until then, Godspeed and enjoy your Life Group.  

Blessings,

Michael