A Stone’s Throw
By Grant Phillips
I would like to use another song I wrote, this one three years ago, called, “A Stone’s Throw”. The words are as follows:
At the feet of Jesus lay the woman in red
Her accusers condemned her and wanted her dead
They caught her in sin said put her to death
Throw stones at her till she breathes her last breath
Some people are vile and wretched within
Just failures and losers all lost in their sin
Oh show them no mercy for breaking God’s Law
Just a hard throw with a stone to the jaw
If Jesus forgave as we forgive others
We’d not be in His family as sisters and brothers
Instead there would be stones coming our way
A hard reckoning when we go astray
CHORUS:
We all live in glass houses and should never throw stones
But some of us look down from our thrones
Only Jesus can judge then grace steps in
For those who seek forgiveness from sin
I believe the Lord laid this song on my heart in thinking about those who are so quick to condemn others, but also to remind us that while people may not forgive, Jesus is always willing to do so. The heart of the song is taken from John 8:1-11. I’m going to include the full passage below, since some may not be in a position to look it up while reading this article:
“Jesus went unto the mount of Olives. And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery; and when they had set her in the midst, They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou? This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man condemned thee? She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” (John 8:1-11)
Do you need forgiveness? I certainly do … daily.
We now live in a society where pretty much anything goes. But even in this vile world we live in today, there are some actions that are still unforgivable by some we know. Sin is not pretty, any way you look at it. All sin is an abomination against a Holy God, and we have all come short of His glory.
Many of us have learned to come to our Lord for forgiveness when we trespass against Him, partly because it is miserable being out of fellowship with our Heavenly Father, and fantastic to have that load of guilt removed. As Christians, we do not want to sin against God. We struggle not to, but being in the flesh, we will. It is so refreshing to know that He forgives an earnest, sincere and broken heart.
However, I believe there are many among us who do not feel “worthy” to be forgiven. Listen closely; none of us are worthy to be forgiven. If we were, we would not need forgiveness. We would be God.
Sometimes Christians may not be at peace within themselves, simply because there is sin in their life, and they need to seek forgiveness. Their fellowship (not salvation) needs to be restored. What does this mean? As an example, if you are “on the outs” with your parents due to an argument, you are out of fellowship. They will always be your parents and you will always be their child, but your fellowship is broken. That fellowship needs to be restored.
What is sin? Who better to ask than God Himself? He informs us quite eloquently in Exodus 20:3-17. We call this passage The Ten Commandments. Sin is actually anything that is contrary to the will of God. I am convinced that many people do not know what sin is, basically because of the acceptance of society’s influence in our lives. “Everybody’s doing it, so it must be okay”.
I wonder how many people, who do not know Jesus as their Savior but would like to, feel they cannot be forgiven. Have you ever heard someone say something like, “God could never forgive me”? Often He will not, for one reason. They do not ask. In the latter part of James 4:2, the Lord says through James, “…You have not because you ask not”. This can be applied to the Christian or non-Christian. If you are without Christ, but want to be saved by Him and forgiven, it won’t happen until you ask.
Notice also what Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery in the beginning passage. “ … And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.” When He forgives us, He expects us to run in the opposite direction of the sin in our life. If you have no intention of forsaking your sin, then you are not being honest in your request to Him, and forgiveness will not be forthcoming. If you have truly placed your trust in Him, and are now His child, will you sin again? I repeat, you will not want to, you will struggle not to, but you will because you still live in the flesh. As His child, when you do sin (notice I did not say “if”) call out for forgiveness and forsake it. Keep doing that and keep trusting Him. We are told in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.”
Remember this. You have never committed a sin that God cannot forgive. Oh, you may think you’re the lowest form of humanity on the face of the earth because of what you have said, thought or done in your life. But He died for you. He will forgive you and live in you, if you let Him, but you must ask.
Grant Phillips