Woman, You Are Seen
“…Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7 (NIV)
There is an artist known as Vanessa Horabuena who created a painting based on one of my favorite stories in the Bible. It has to do with the woman who committed adultery in the book of John and she titled the painting, “Woman, Where are Your Accusers?” Although this woman is not named in the Bible, God uses her story of redemption to send us a message that is loud and clear.
I can relate to this woman to some degree because I grew up around adultery and surrounded by people in adulterous relationships. My dad, who passed away a few years ago, lived in adultery, but later on in his life, was able to share his own story of redemption with others.
Living around adultery is very different from living in it. Like anything in this life, you don’t see the effects of people’s actions until you realize how much others have been affected by those actions. I remember when the truth finally came out about my dad and this life he was living, he lost a lot of people who he considered his friends. It is ironic because many of these people were around him while he was living this lifestyle but then became his accusers after the truth came to light.
There is nothing like when a truth comes to light, especially when you feel like you have been living through this darkness all your life. This reminds me of John 8:17 which says, “for there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open.” I can honestly say that although I am glad this truth had been revealed, I do feel the effects from it now more than I ever did growing up. I have mental health struggles because I never handled the situation my parents were going through that well. Although my dad’s actions may have resulted in a different life for me now, it did not define who I am today and his choices did not become my choices.
When I think about this woman who had committed adultery in the Bible, she may have lived in so many different situations that made her believe she was destined for a specific life because of the way she was living but her lifestyle did not define who she became in Christ.
This woman had lived being condemned by so many people to the point where they were trying to stone her to death and they made every effort to do that. They brought her before Jesus, assuming he would condemn her also, but instead, he bent down and started writing something on the ground with his finger (John 8:6). People are not really sure what Jesus was writing but scholars and researchers assume he either wrote down the sins of those who were trying to condemn her or he was writing their names down.
As the scribes and Pharisees tried testing Jesus in his response to whether this woman should be stoned or not, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” (John 8:7) As they walked away knowing they could not condemn this woman for sinning when they, themselves, were also sinners, it is amazing to see how God, with just one statement, turns all of it back on them. He demonstrates that even when others judge and condemn us, he is there to advocate for and defend us.
My dad was never condemned the way this woman was but he always mentioned how difficult it was for him to live with the consequences of his actions. In his older age, it haunted him so much he would cry frequently at the thought of what this lifestyle did to him and our family. Sadly, he never really understood that God had forgiven him in such a way that he did not have to live with this burden the way he did. My dad was not able to enjoy his last days in peace knowing that God had already advocated for him on the cross.
I am sure that even if we don’t read about it in the Bible, this woman also lived with the consequences of her actions, but she may have also lived in peace knowing that God himself, not only forgave her but also saved her, in every sense of the word. He gave her the physical life the scribes and Pharisees were trying to take away from her, He gave her eternal life through His forgiveness and He gave her a new life through grace and death on the cross that allowed her to live the rest of her days in redemption from sin, the way Ephesians 1:7 states, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” Amen.
With Faith and Love🧡,
Mariuxi