“Go . . . AND SIN NO MORE!” - John 8:10-11

  

 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”  She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”
 - John 8:10-11

    In the social media there has been a recent spate of posts suggesting that Jesus hung around with tax-collectors, drunkards, and prostitutes. “Hung out?” I’d suggest that such a description is hardly scriptural. Jesus didn’t commune with unrepentant sinners; allow me to offer the scriptural evidence.
    No where in the bible do we get a picture of Christ running around with sinners. No where! We see Him in encounters with sinners and when our lord Jesus Christ encounters the sinner in his or her sin He demands they cease and desist their sinful lifestyle; as the example in our title verse clearly depicts. Where the said sinner repents Christ welcomes them into His Holy company. But no where in scripture do we see Christ welcoming and continually communing  with unrepentant sinners. . . no where! Just as Jesus washed the dirt from the feet of His disciples (John 13:3-5) we are washed clean of our sins by His holy blood. What, to return to our worldly filth again? And then what: Christ is to die that agonizing death for us over and over again because we want to remain in our filthy circumstances? Christ even admonished Peter that he must be washed to enjoy the salvation He was to provide for him - “Peter said to Him, ‘You shall never wash my feet!’ Jesus answered him, ‘If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.’” - John 13:8. No! Jesus did not “hang out with sinners!”
    The woman about to be stoned left her sinful life behind as did Levi (Matthew) the tax-collector. They left their sins behind to follow Christ! Consider how she responded to Christ when He asked, “Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one, LORD.” “Lord,” she said. In her moment of tribulation she recognized Christ as the Lord! What fool would dare suggest that this woman left the scene that day and returned to the life she had before Christ’s intervention? And an “intervention” is exactly what it was. Christ intervened in a life  that cried out for forgiveness and that is why He said, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”
    In another instance of Christ’s “questionable associations” we find Him calling upon Zacchaeus , yet another tax-collector and sinner. “And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.”  So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.”- Luke 19:5-7. Zacchaeus made hast, came down, and received Him joyfully. Again, here is a sinner who recognized Christ as the Lord and not merely received Him but received Him joyfully! Verses 8 thru 10 detail the effect of Christ on the man and the salvation that accompanied his faith in Christ: “Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham;  for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.’” Zacchaeus restored what he had taken unjustly; he didn’t remain in his sin.
    Again the scriptures tell us - “And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, ‘How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard it, He said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.’” - Mark 2:16-17. This was the very reason Christ came into the world - to save us!
    If your will is to save someone from a raging inferno you have go to the fire. You can’t save them from afar as you watch the flames consume them. Jesus seeks to save those who need saving, so in effect, He goes to where the fires are burning. “For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.” - Matthew 18:11.
    Christ’s first words in the Gospel of Mark set up the purpose of His entire ministry here on earth: “Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,  and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” - Mark 1:14-15. Jesus never said or suggested that it would be just fine for us to remain in our sins. He never said he would accept us in our sins. He came to save us from our sins. And anyone who preaches another gospel is a liar and a wolf in sheep’s clothing!
    May the Holy Spirit of God grant us discernment enough to know the one true Gospel of Jesus Christ from the post-modern heresy that tells us Jesus accepts us and our sins and does not require repentance from us.