Justice
Should we let people go who are caught in the act of a crime?
Then each of them went home, while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, they said to him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, sir." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again." - John 7:53-8:11
How do we follow Jesus?
We learn from these lessons and try to implement them in our daily lives, but the best way to do that is unclear.
Jesus says that the one who has not sinned should cast the first stone, and we may interpret that to mean none of us should judge another. While that may be correct, how we implement that concept is challenging.
Should all people who commit crimes go free?
I hope not. And I don't think that is what happened here. The woman caught in the act of adultery was told by Jesus not to sin again.
She was given a second chance.
We don't know what happened next. Did she decide she would never commit adultery again or that she would make sure she never got caught?
While we do not see it here, repentance may be the deciding factor in how or even if punishment is dispensed.
If I made a mistake and am truly sorry, those hurt could be able to forgive me, setting me free, but if I do it again?
That's a different story, right?
That means I was not truly repentant. I lied.
In that case, I should expect the book to be thrown at me.
How is t hat for justice?
More to come...