Cast Away Stones

A time to cast away stones..(Eccl. 3:5a)

 ⁴ “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵ The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?” ⁶ They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. 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!”   John 8:4-7
 
Today let's talk about when is it good to cast away stones.   In this world overwhelmed by sin, when you think about it, we have cause to pick up stones to throw at a multitude of things that are not of God.   Just two days ago a misguided student supposedly contacted the WBC to come & protest at their high school (FZE) against the formation of a gay rights support group, etc.  Upon hearing about this my heart grieved and ached because I knew in my spirit that on that day, NOT ONE SOUL would be saved.  That every atheist or person that has been hurt by the church would have further reasoning to steer clear of the type of (or total lack of) love that this church demonstrated.  

But while this happened today, it happened in a different form thousands of years ago, where a woman had been caught in an adulterous encounter and the "religious" wanted to stone her.  Christ intercepted this moment and quickly analyze the errors in this case against her, albeit she was guilty....he demonstrated grace, mercy and love.  Simply put.....the children & adults who appeared as FZE on early Monday morning acted as Christ would've to meet the religious rage filled poor excuse of a church, with love. See at the end of the day this all goes back to Loving God, and Loving People. The sooner we stop casting stones at people, and loving them....God will be glorified.    In 1John 4:18  it reads There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 

So instead of fearing let's start loving.   Whatever that fear is (racism, ageism, prejudices, political) God will mete out judgement in it's time, but we won't win ONE soul operating in fear of who or what they are, or claim to be.  Our goal in life should be solely to LOVE GOD, and LOVE people....not figure out how to change people that think or live differently than us.    Just think if mission work was all about going to Americanize the countries we went to?  Mission work is about spreading the Gospel.   We go....to spread the love of CHRIST in deed first, and in word second.   I challenge you to try to understand who it is that is opposed to your beliefs, or lives contrary to the will of God, and I promise you it will be time well invested in a life that needs to encounter the person of Christ in you!  That is, if He's really in you.  I don't recall Christ hurling one stone, but He did get the religious to drop theirs.  LGLP