Half messages leave lives broken …

Pointing people to half an answer won’t lead them to a whole life.

Such is the situation we see all too often in the church.

For all the loud talk about being bold, being a leader, blazing a trail for Christ, and achieving great things, many church leaders don’t have the courage to say the “s” word when sharing biblical truth: sin.

The focus, often overly so, remains on grace alone. Without question, that’s a vital topic to understand. But there’s a reason for grace: sin.

In running from the issue of addressing sin, some leaders immediately throw out the example of how Jesus treated the woman who had been caught in the act of adultery, as told in John 8. Some teachers of religious law and Pharisees challenged Jesus:

“‘Teacher,’ they said to Jesus, ‘this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?’ They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him …” John 8:4-6a.

We like to focus on just one part of Jesus’ response, that famous statement from Jesus found in verse 7:

“They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, ‘All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!'”

Many leaders tend to stop right there, as if that is the entirety of Jesus’ example for us. But it’s not. It continues in verses 10 and 11:

“Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, ‘Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?’ ‘No, Lord,’ she said. And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I. Go and sin no more.’”

While no one has ever displayed grace and lovingkindness as greatly as Jesus Christ himself, we need to note that He also addressed the issue of sin: “Go and sin no more.”

It was a gracious thing for Jesus to not condemn this woman to death for the sin she was actually caught committing. There was no question of her guilt. But if Christ would have simply let her off the hook and walked away, this woman would not have had direction to wholeness. It was vital she receive the instruction she needed to be able to live a life that would keep her from such brokenness, and Jesus gave her that message: “Go and sin no more.”

People today need to hear the same message. Coupled with a gracious response, we must address the issue of sin with the same direction Jesus provided in order to point them to wholeness: “Go and sin no more.”

Do you provide people with a whole answer, directing them away from sin to a gracious Savior? Or do you lack the courage to speak the truth in love?

Scotty