In the season of Epiphany, we have looked at several stories of Jesus’ early days in ministry. People were curious about Jesus – the word spread quickly about him. He was a miracle worker, a great teacher, and a compelling speaker. This morning, we turn to one of the stories of Jesus and his love.
Please turn with me to Luke chapter 7 verses 36-50:
Scripture Luke 7:36-50
When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.
A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume.
As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”
Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
“Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet.
You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet.
Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Here ends this reading of the word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God. Amen.
Let us pray….
Message Forgiven at Jesus’ Feet
Back in the day, do you remember what it was like to walk through the cosmetics and perfume section of a department store? There were staff people lying in wait, perfume bottles at the ready, prepared to strike at any moment – spraying you with their wares. If you were lucky, you could exit the department only smelling of one type of perfume or cologne – if you were too nice to the staff of the department store, you smelled like a flower shop as you departed the store.
In our reading this morning, we read the story of a woman, a woman who had committed some grievous sin or two, who was so appreciative of Jesus and his love that she poured expensive perfume on his feet and wiped it off with her hair. The smell of the perfume would have permeated the air of the room…..everyone in the house probably smelled it ... . . everyone in the surrounding houses possibly smelled it. She made a big, grand gesture to show her love and appreciation of Jesus…and in return, he told her her faith had saved her and she could depart in peace.
The woman who washed Jesus’ feet with perfume approached him at the house of a Pharisee named Simon. Simon didn’t get it at first – instead of appreciating the generosity and appreciation the woman had for Jesus, Simon recoiled and thought Jesus wasn’t a true prophet…Simon assumed that if Jesus was an all-knowing prophet, he would know the woman was a sinner and therefore shouldn’t be touching his feet. Simon got caught up in judging the woman for her past ... .and in the midst of his judgement, he almost missed an opportunity to listen to Jesus and experience the presence of the Holy Spirit.
We are sometimes guilty of being like Simon – we get caught up in our negative thoughts…in our judgemental thoughts…and fail to appreciate the presence of the Holy Spirit in our midst.
Jesus taught about judgment…In Matthew 7, Jesus is quoted as saying: ““Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.”
Often, we dislike traits that other people have that remind us of traits we either have or fear we have. So, when Simon judged the sinful woman, he may have had a sinful past that he was hiding – or perhaps he had sinful thoughts he was trying to ignore. The woman may have done things that others knew about, and therefore judged her for. But, we must remember that in the 1st century, if people had disabilities, others blamed those disabilities on sins that either the person or their parents had committed. So, the “sinful” woman may have had eczema or a birth defect and her neighbors could have blamed her sins for her disability. We will never know why she was considered sinful.
Judging doesn’t do us any favors. We are all guilty of making mistakes and doing things wrong. We are all sinners in need of a savior. And, Jesus Christ is that savior. Nothing we do is so horrible that it can separate us from the love of God. St. Paul’s words to the Romans still speak to us. He wrote: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Nothing we do is so horrible that it stops God from loving us or forgiving us.
So, let us be cautious about our judgment of others. We are all imperfect people trying to live better and better lives. Let us work to love each other, forgive each other, and remember that God loves us and forgives us all, no matter what mistakes we have made in the past.
Amen.
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