“But when they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up, and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they began to go out one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the center of the court.”
John 8:7-9 NAS
Let me ask you a question. If you were to look at your fellowship through the eyes of a visitor, what would you see? Would you see stiff and mechanical people, going through the familiar but phony motions of hand shaking and smiles? Would you see the barely masked smirks and the thinly veiled sneers of people who want to be accepted but fear letting their guard down even for a moment?
The obvious point in the event described in John 8 was that the accusers were themselves as sinful as or worse than the accused. It is quite possible that Jesus pointed that out by the things He wrote in the dirt. Jesus was about forgiving the hurting and pointing out the sin of the prideful.
It is no coincidence that in John 8 Jesus offered forgiveness in the temple. Our fellowships must be places of healing. Jesus offered healing wherever He found the hurting. Shall we do anything less?
Are we a hospital or a country club? I prefer to believe that we are a hospital. Send us the hurting and wounded, Lord.
Hey Pastor Mike! I got a WordPress account a few weeks ago and started following your blog!
One of the things I love about our fellowship is that it is so genuine, and it is a place where healing can take place. I remember having that impression the very first time me and my family visited. I hope we never lose that and that we never feel as though we have to put on our “everything’s fine” face when what we really need is healing or encouragement.
Bless you and continue the good work!
Hey bro! Good to hear from you and thanks for the testimony 🙂 How are things going?
No problem! Sorry my reply is late ><
Things have been going great and I can tell that God has led me to a position where I can have a tremendous influence on a lot of children who have never heard about Christ. Though my contract specifically forbids the propagation of "religious" information in the classroom, my job description entails a promotion of multiculturalism and I am expected to teach students about my culture. So so far, I've been talking about our church and my relationship with Christ as just one aspect of my individual culture!
I'm still looking for a church, however…there isn't much within the immediate vicinity, but I might be able to find something within an hour's distance.
God bless and stay strong in the faith!