One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table. And a woman in the city, who was a sinner, having learned that he was eating in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment. She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair. Then she continued kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him—that she is a sinner.” Jesus spoke up and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” “Teacher,” he replied, “Speak.” “A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and one owed fifty. When they could not pay, he canceled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the greater debt.” And Jesus said to him, “You have judged rightly.” Then turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.” Then he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.
The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities; Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others who provided for them out of their resources.
Not only does Luke give an intriguing commentary on the role of women in the early church, Jesus’ teaching here is absent from the other Gospels. I find the account full of wisdom…
First, Jesus shows us that there is some sort of relationship between forgiveness and love. There is something about being forgiven that enables love to thrive. Think about it. How desperately do we need those people in our lives willing to hang out with us, even after they realize what knuckleheads we are? I guess, rather than calling you all knuckleheads, I should really own this one for myself. How desperately I long for relationship with the person who is willing to accept me, even though I am a bad…dancer or whatever (I am tempted here, to go into a list of faults; a personal confession of sins past and present, but I don’t think this is the time). The good news conveyed in the gospel is that God is that person. Revealed in Jesus Christ, the one who knows what we say even when we are speaking only to ourselves, God knows us and loves us and forgives us. What a relief…to be known and loved…and forgiven.
Second, there is commentary in this Gospel on what it means to be a sinner. This is a given. The woman was a sinner. But is the public acknowledgment of her condition a blessing or a curse? I think it is probably both. And for us it is definitely a blessing. This is where Martin Luther helps us out immensely. As a result of our Lutheran heritage, the story becomes easily accessible to us. It’s about a sinner. Oh, that means it is for and about you and me also.
The real question becomes: What does our sin—our propensity to let each other and God down—cause us to do? Do we approach, or do we run away. I can’t get over what it must have taken for this poor woman to own her shame and come, uninvited into the house of a Pharisee. It seems to me that she takes a total risk as she approaches Jesus, for how certain are that the one we hope on will actually forgive us? Asking forgiveness is not easy. How many times have we all retreated from opportunities to repent.
And finally, the point of the whole story is revealed in Jesus final statement, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” The whole story is a commentary on faith. But faith—what is it? It seems to me, in this story, faith is the… something/gumption/trust/hope/belief/determination… that enables (or maybe calls) the woman to approach, even in her shame. And this…something…saves her. The result is a peaceful new start.
I’d like to hear more about what faith is, as implied here by Jesus.
5 comments:
Hello everyone, I posted this entry and obviously didn't have time to figure out how to do everything. You will probably want to get out the ol' Bibles to read this weeks lesson. I have no idea why it looks the way it does. I hope the entry is helpful in some way.
Blessings on your sermonizing.
Josh
Josh, thanks for getting us started. (Hey, you need a Do Less Harm handle, like truckers use. Something like "Havre Had Me" or some such nonsense. Note that Brad doesn't have one.)
I am struck by the great attraction this woman experiences with Jesus, and I wonder why. It doesn't sound like she has encountered him before, that he has declared forgiveness to her before this. But obviously she has heard of Jesus, and perhaps she has heard his words in the Sermon on the Plain-- "Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh." It seems she has heard that the grace Jesus speaks of is for her. As that one guy at Chico said, "News so good it has to be true."
So to get at what the "Magy from the East" wants to talk about: this woman's faith is something that happens when she hears Jesus words and finds that he is talking about her as a beloved child of God. Faith in this situation is a discovery, a new world in which her sin does not define her, rather God's love.
Thanks to the Magy from the East for the post. My thinking about this text, and, in fact, all the texts for this day has veered in the direction of that business that Stanley Hauerwas talks about regarding the Christian life compared to bricklaying. It has to do with how we are initiated into a history, etc. You've probably seen the article. Well anyway, one of the things that he says we learn is "to be a sinner" by which he means that the identity of forgiven sinner does not come naturally, we learn that about ourselves in this tradition. It seems to me that all the texts speak to this in some way. David has this gripping "aha" in which he comes to realize his sin and the hurt it has caused. The woman, on the other hand, seems to be on the other side of this divide. She, knowing the depth of her sin and that she is forgiven, is overcome with gratitude. So there are two sides to the knowledge of sin, that we are sinners, and that we are forgiven. Both are essential to who we are. Simon and his guests don't get it. They are not grateful. Neither do they know themselves as sinners. But knowing this crucial piece about who we are opens for us a world of grace in which to live (not to build back in the law, as Paul argues).
This is pretty short hand, but we're having VBS this week and I've got a funeral on Friday, so..I hope this makes some sense. If not, it wasn't really me. It was that imposter Taking Its Toll who sometimes guest writes for me.
Great stuff. Doesn't sound like Taking Its Toll.
Learning how to live as forgiven sinners-- that new identity. How can we preach that in language that's not legal? Language that does not impose another "Do this" or "Don't do that." I was listening to Dr. Phil the other day (the rich one) as he was counseling some poor lady with anorexia. His language was filled with "You need to do this. You gotta stop doing that."
I like what you're saying, but right now the only way I'd preach it would be to sound like Dr. Phil. Any suggestions about how we can creatively open people up to this grace world of sinning/believing boldly?
I wonder. Perhaps we just tell people they are sinners like David and they are forgiven like the woman and in so many ways explain that this is who we are. This is who we are! When we forget it we are like the Pharisees who have no grace for anybody. When we remember it, we appreciate the grace God has for us and we do not resent the grace God has for others. (Here come the kids in for closing music. Got to pay the toll this time.)
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