How A Coldplay Concert Revealed The Gospel We Forgot
A recent Coldplay concert gave the world more than a light show. Mid-song, mid-sway, the jumbotron landed on two people who immediately froze—because they weren’t just coworkers. They were in the middle of an affair.
Turns out, the guy was a tech CEO. The woman? The HR exec. And they were at Gillette Stadium, where people literally get paid to play games for a living.
The irony? That night, the real game was happening off the field—on social media. The game of public shame. Of moral outrage. Of keeping score with other people’s failures.
And we were all watching. Again.
Two Options. Both Bad.
Here’s what hit me:
We still don’t know what to do with grace.
Because as a culture—and even more so as “Christians”—we’ve only been handed two ways to respond to moral failure:
Condemn it – “Disgusting. Fire him. Divorce him. Excommunicate.”
Condone it – “Who are we to judge? Maybe it’s complicated.”
Those are the options.
Stone him or shrug it off.
We either weaponize the Law or pretend it doesn’t matter.
But grace doesn’t do either.
That’s the scandal of it.
Grace Refuses to Play
Real grace doesn’t excuse what happened.
And it doesn’t accuse you into exile.
It just says something no one else will:
“Even at your worst, you’re still mine. And I’m not going anywhere.”
That’s not weak. It’s otherworldly.
And formalized churches? They don’t know how to handle that.
Because grace like that can’t be managed.
It can’t be monetized.
And if it can’t be controlled, it can’t be allowed.
We Still Want the Law
That’s why most of the church still plays the same game as the crowd.
We just do it with nicer language.
But Jesus didn’t.
In Matthew 5, speaking to a group that prided itself on sexual purity, He says:
“You’ve heard it said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you—if you’ve even looked with lust, you’ve already done it in your heart.”
— Matthew 5:27–28
And just to shut down the moral scoreboard altogether, a few verses later:
“Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
— Matthew 5:48
Not “make progress.”
Not “do your best.”
Be. Perfect.
One Man Tried. And Failed.
Remember the rich young ruler in Matthew 19?
He came to Jesus and said, “What good thing must I do to inherit eternal life?”
He thought he was close. Moral. Devout. Winning.
Jesus replied, “Keep the commandments.”
“Done,” the guy said.
Then Jesus added, “Okay—go sell everything you own, give it to the poor, and follow me.”
And the man walked away… sad.
Because that’s what the Law does when you think it’s the point.
It doesn’t boost your confidence.
It undoes your delusion.
What Happens When You Believe the Law Game
This isn’t just theology for me. It’s personal.
Years ago, I planted a church on the south-side of Asheville, NC.
One of my closest friends—an elder—started spiraling.
I confronted him. He walked away.
Eventually, it came out: he was having an affair.
He confessed.
And the church he was now part of? Just like the one I led?
It had no place for real grace.
Just a restoration plan.
A performance checklist.
A timeline to win back approval.
He tried.
He left his wife.
He tried to fix what he broke.
Tried to earn his way back.
And when he couldn’t?
He ended his life with a revolver.
Because when grace is treated as a starting point instead of the whole point, the Law game always kills.
What Jesus Actually Does
So what does Jesus do with people caught in sin?
Let’s go to John 8.
A woman is caught in adultery—literally in the act.
The Law says she should be stoned.
The crowd drags her to Jesus.
“Teacher, what should we do with her?”
He kneels in the dirt.
Writes something no one can read.
Then looks up and says:
“Let the one without sin cast the first stone.”
One by one, the rocks hit the ground.
Then He turns to her and says:
“Neither do I condemn you. Go, and sin no more.”
Let’s be clear on the Greek here:
“Go” (poreuou) is just a simple word for leave. He’s not giving a moral command.
“Sin no more” (hamartane mēketi) literally means, “Don’t keep walking that same path.”
He’s not threatening her.
He’s freeing her.
“You don’t have to live like this anymore. There’s a better path for you.”
That’s not softening Jesus’ words.
That’s refusing to turn His words—His mercy—into a moral contract.
What Grace Really Is
This is where we see grace for what it is.
Not soft on sin. Just stronger than sin.
Not permissive. Not punishing.
Just… present.
Grace doesn’t excuse.
It doesn’t accuse.
It embraces.
And when you let it?
You stop hiding.
You stop striving.
You stop performing.
You start resting in the fact that you are the “righteousness of God” because Jesus has already made His home in you. (1 Cor 30; 2 For 5:21; Gal 2:20).
This Is Why I Walked Away
Seeing all this is why I walked away from leading what’s been labeled “church.”
Because grace like that?
It can’t be branded. Or measured. Or controlled.
And if it can’t be controlled, it won’t survive in the system.
To fund the machine, you need outrage or applause.
You need the crowd that condemns…
or the one that shrugs.
But grace doesn’t play to either.
It exposes both.
Which is why most people can’t handle it.
And why most churches don’t practice it.
But that doesn’t mean it isn’t real.
Or that it isn’t waiting for you.
If You’re Tired…
If you’re tired of the Law game—
tired of hiding, striving, failing, pretending—
hear this:
Jesus doesn’t play the Law game.
He plays the resurrection game.And in that game, there are no winners and losers.
Just dead people raised to new life.
If you want to see what that kind of grace looks like in real life,
grab our free guide here: Faith Beyond the Formal Church.
Or shoot me a message at russ@larksite.com.
I’ll hop on a call.
Or show up at your table.
Because grace doesn’t need a pulpit.
It just needs a person.
And a place to breathe.