High Ways

Sunday Omori

Over 2,000 years ago, in the old city of Jerusalem, a crowd of Jewish “law enforcement agents” who were known as religious and political leaders, dragged a woman caught in an abominable act to the temple. She broke one of the Mosaic Laws (Deuteronomy 22:22) which states that “If a man be found lying with a woman married to a husband, then they shall both of them die, both the man that lay with the woman, and the woman: so shalt thou put away evil from Israel.” Why the man caught in the same act was not also paraded is another subject of discussion.

At the temple, this crowd carrying “judgement stones” met a gentle, meek and merciful young man who was busy writing on the ground. The accusers of the woman reminded this young man of the Mosaic Law Moses wrote commanding them to condemn any man or woman caught in adultery. The young man stood up and said to the crowd, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” These “law enforcement agents” dropped their stones and quietly left the temple. (John 8:1-11)

The young man, Jesus Christ, proved to the religious and political leaders that He didn’t come to condemn anyone though He respected the Mosaic Law (John 3:17). He turned and told the woman caught in adultery, “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.”

This is a typical illustration of how God’s ways – method, style, or manner of doing things are different from ours. Jesus Christ demonstrated the love and mercy of God and showed that God casts our sins into the sea of forgetfulness (Micah 7:19). When God forgives our sin, He erases it from His mind and from the pages of time. We are sometimes too quick to condemn others when they go astray. Some people also find is difficult to forgive themselves after offending or rebelling against God. God is reminding us that His ways are not our ways and His ways are higher than our ways.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)

Jesus Christ taught us to pray that God should forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us (Matthew 6:12), but it is hard for man to forgive and easily forget. It is only a transformed man that can keep forgiving the same offender over and over again. The Bible declares that God works in (transforms) His children to will and to do what pleases Him (Philippians 2:13). The good news is that we can learn, understand and adopt the ways of God (Matthew 11:29) by allowing the Spirit of Christ to dwell in us. You can achieve this by receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior if you are yet to do so. Say this prayer of salvation: Dear Jesus, come into my heart. I accept You as my personal Lord and Savior. I believe that You came, died for me and rose again to save me. Forgive my sins, unite me by Your Spirit and conform me to Your likeness. I declare that I am born again. Amen!

Just as what Jesus said to the woman in our illustration, go and sin no more because you cannot remain in sin in order that God’s grace (favor and mercy) may multiply and overflow (Romans 6:1). Aside from receiving the Spirit of Christ – the Holy Spirit, into your heart, you need to allow the Word of God to dwell in you richly by constantly reading, studying and meditating on the Bible (Colossians 3:16a) because the Bible is also a compendium of God’s methods and principles. May God help us to learn, understand and apply His ways daily as we relate with Him and the people around us in Jesus’ name. Amen!