First Presbyterian Church Encounters with Jesus: At Dinner Luke 7:36-50, by Pastor Matt Johnson, 2/1/2015 Just to get acknowledgment of the Super Bowl out of the way, the Seahawk s menacing safety Kam Chancellor injured his knee at the end of practice on Friday, and was listed as a limited participant. I had a fairly major internal freak out when I saw that. We need Kam to lay wood in this game, folks. He set the tone against Denver last year, and he needs to show Rob Gronkowski who s field this is. So Kam down with a knee I was beside myself. Well, it turns out that the injury wasn t a major one, just a bruise to his knee, and he should be fine for this afternoon s game. Needless to say, I was quite relieved to hear that. But between me and Kam Chancellor himself, which of us, do you think, was more relieved that he wasn t seriously injured that day? Which of us, do you think, was more relieved? Luke tells us a story like this, but unlike my scenario, both of the people involved in the comparison are in the room at the same time. This...can make things awkward. In Luke s story at the end of Chapter 7, what happens is that a Pharisee invites Jesus to dinner. Many of Jesus interactions take place around the dinner table, which tells me a couple of things: 1) We shouldn t neglect the idea of having a meal as a significant space for ministry and teaching. 2) Nor should we be so naive as to think everyone who invites us out for a meal has our best interests at heart. While reclining at the table, this woman -- known to be a woman who had lived a sinful life hears that Jesus is there, and joins them at the table. 1
She comes with a jar of perfume, and stands behind him at his feet weeping. We have to consider the cultural setting here. This wasn t people pulled up to a big table sitting in chairs. They were reclining at the table in a formal banquet, which means they were half way lying down, with their feet off to the right. The table would be U shaped, giving this woman ready access to Jesus feet. What she was doing there uninvited is unclear. But what is clear is that in taking down her hair and caressing Jesus feet, she was engaging in scandalous, inappropriate activity. The text says she wets Jesus feet with her tears, wipes them with her hair, kisses them, and pours perfume on them. Before going any further, OTHER STORIES: Matthew, Mark, and John all include a similar story to this one just before Jesus is arrested and crucified. In that story, Jesus sits with his disciples and a woman breaks a jar of perfume and anoints Jesus head. Luke does not have an account of that story, but does provide this one. The differences are significant enough to suggest that this is truly a distinct event, since Jesus is meeting with a Pharisee (not his disciples), the woman washes Jesus feet (not anointing his head), and the timing is early in Jesus ministry (not near his arrest). Remember, the woman has wet Jesus feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, kissed them, and pours perfume on them. If anyone feels uncomfortable thinking about this happening, just think about how this Pharisee feels! I mean, I make no claims to be Jesus, and you all know for sure that I m no Messiah, but imagine your response if I were having dinner with you and someone came up and started weeping and washing my feet with their tears it would be odd, right? The Pharisee in this scene is completely in the dark with regard to Jesus identity as Luke laid it out in the first four chapters. 2
How do you think the Pharisee felt? Well, we know how he feels, because Luke tells us. In v. 39, he says 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. And then, for the first time in Luke s telling of this story, we find out the name of this Pharisee who has invited Jesus to dinner. And it s implied at this point that Jesus is either deeply intuitive, or has actually been clued into the Pharisee s thoughts by the Holy Spirit. In v. 40, Jesus says, Simon, I have something to tell you. Simon says, Shoot. Jesus replies with something like this: Two people owed money to a mortgage broker. One owed 18 months rent, and the other 1.5 months rent. 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. At this point, the trap has been set, the prey has clumsily stepped into the middle of the trap, and Jesus wastes no time capitalizing on the situation. He immediately brings the illustration to bear on the woman who is openly worshipping Jesus in a vulnerable and disconcerting way. Verse 44 says, Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon. Got that? Looking at this intruder, he describes to householder the way that since he has arrived, she has washed his feet, she has kissed his feet, and she has poured oil on his head. But we read too quickly if we miss the other half of what Jesus says. Along with these things, Jesus points out that upon arriving at Simon s house, Simon gave him no water for his feet, he did not kiss him, and he gave Jesus no oil for his head. 3
For us, these would be strange and extravagant gestures. But in the 1st century Roman world, these were common acts of hospitality and care that would be shown regularly to visitors in a person s home. Far from being grateful for Jesus presence at his table, Simon had disrespected Jesus in equal measure to the lavish or even scandalous attention that had been shown to him by this woman. Jesus closes his address to Simon with these words: Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little. WHO HAD THE GREATER DEBT? This is tricky. It seems as though Jesus is throwing this Pharisee a bone, and granting him a greater level of holiness than this woman. As though he had little to be forgiven for, and she had much. Perhaps in terms of the law as understood by Simon, this was the case. I have no doubt that Simon was a conscientious observer of the Law, and that this was the basis of his distain for the woman s actions. But was that actually the case? Jesus, in his teaching, filled-out the law to an insane extent -- he drew the lines full circle to the point where anger and murder were part of the same sinful posture, where looking lustfully and committing adultery were indistinguishable. In light of Simon s lack of hospitality to Jesus, don t we have a window into the soul of a hard and uncaring man who has much to be forgiven? To lack hospitality is one of the most shameful things that could be said about a person in the ancient world. Jesus may address this concern when he says the woman was forgiven much, so she has shown much love perhaps the implication is not the amount of the debt owed by Simon, but the amount of forgiveness that had been received by Simon. 4
Who had the greater debt, between the woman and the Pharisee? Fortunately, that s not our judgment to make. What is clear from Luke s narrative is who had shown appropriate gratitude and love for her savior. ILL: I grew up loving the Choose Your Own Adventure books. The idea that I could put myself into a story, and dictate how it comes out Make the right choices, you save the day and solve the mystery. Make the wrong choices, and you end up impaled on a spear, or stranded on an island with no resources. Depending on the approach you take, these stories take entirely different forms. Reading the Bible can be like that -- sometimes even when we don t know it. As we read these stories, it s inevitable that our personal interests and the questions that we are asking, the current situations we re in dictate the emphasis that we pick up on in one story or another. This is why after reading a story dozens of times, something new will suddenly pop out at us. Sometimes this kind of reading-in of our own situation can lead us off the path and into trouble -- but we also have to recognize that it is inevitable. There is no neutral or objective stance for us to take when reading any text. When we come to this story at the end of Luke 7, we have one of these choices before us: Do we see the story as more about the woman who washes Jesus feet, or more about the man who speaks with Jesus, or more about Jesus himself? And along with this, we might ask, Which of these characters do I most identify with? WHO IS THE STORY ABOUT? Is it about the Pharisee? It s in his house, but he isn t named until half way through. Is it about the woman? She has the most dramatic action, but she says nothing, and is unnamed entirely. These first two options don t lead you to a happy ending. It s about Jesus. The story is about Jesus. 5
In further support of this, the verses that appear immediately before our passage concern Jesus teaching about how the Son of Man will be received. He says, 33 For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, He has a demon. 34 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. As we might say it, you re damned if you do and you re damned if you don t. But, Jesus says in v. 35, wisdom is proved right by all her children. I love this poetic line. Wisdom is proved right by all her children. Which is to say, however he lives, whoever he associates himself with, the wisdom of Jesus life will be demonstrated in the outcomes that follow it. And with that as the framing thought, Luke offers up this story of Jesus having dinner at a Pharisee s house. The story is about the wisdom of Jesus playing out in real life. It s not mainly about the Pharisee or the woman who visits them. But that doesn t answer the second question, Who do you identify with: The Pharisee or the Woman? PHARISEE? Are you someone who primarily sees yourself as the one in the right? The one with the answers? The one who has it together? (Or at least tries to make it look like you have it together?) If so perhaps you should try reading through this story with yourself in the seat of Simon the Pharisee. What is the act of gratitude toward Jesus that you have withheld? What are you hiding from? Do you realize that your debt -- though you think it is small -- may actually be larger than the people who look like they are utterly lost when it comes to life with God? 6
WOMAN? Do you see yourself as a mess? As someone who has never gotten their life on the right track? Are you constantly wrestling with consequences from actions that stem from a previous life? Do you feel like people form an opinion of you simply based on appearance or reputation? If so try reading through this story with yourself in the position of the woman. Have you recognized that yes, Jesus has really, truly forgiven you? Do you long for the opportunity to worship your savior with wild abandon, creating awkward scenes with your display of love? Do you know that Jesus looks at you and sees you as worthwhile? Do you know that Jesus sees your response of worship as that of a hospitable home owner who welcomes a guest appropriately? Then Jesus said to her, Your sins are forgiven. 49 The other guests began to say among themselves, Who is this who even forgives sins? 50 Jesus said to the woman, Your faith has saved you; go in peace. The guests are amazed at Jesus words. Who can forgive sins? They probably say this with disdain, because it s clearly a presumptuous thing to do. But for Jesus, it s real. Wisdom has been vindicated by all its children, and this woman has been counted as a child of God. This is good news for all of you who identify with the woman. The good news for all of you who (like me) identify more with Simon, is that Jesus words of forgiveness would have been readily extended to him and his friends had they only been open to seeing themselves with humility and been willing to respond vulnerably to Jesus offer of relationship. Rather than asking God clever questions, perhaps we just need to embarrass ourselves, lie down on the floor and kiss his feet. The Simons of the world have a great debt perhaps the larger debt of the two, who knows. But we are also invited to experience great forgiveness, if we will humble ourselves before Jesus. 7