Our text
puts us at the table with Jesus. Jesus is the guest of a man named Simon, a
religious person, a Pharisee who spends much of his day studying God's word and
attempting to put his religion into practice in everyday life. The man invited
Jesus to a banquet, and Jesus accepted the invitation. The man has invited
others. We can justly surmise that he has said something that impresses
everyone present. Simon wonders if he might be a true prophet. Jesus takes his
place, as the guest of honor, around the table. In accepting the invitation, we
see that Jesus truly embraced all persons. Someone has said the blessing, so
people have acknowledged the presence of God.
Then the conversation begins. They seem to be discussing religion and
Simon is very religious.
We learn quickly that Jesus has impressed someone
else, a "woman of the city." Her peers do not consider the woman in a
favorable light. She is a "sinner," a veiled reference to sexual
immorality. She is a disruptive, uninvited
party-crasher. Her bold and emotional behavior is offensive to those who had
gathered for dinner. The woman knows they are all staring at her, and she knows
what they are thinking. It does not bother her. She has hardened herself to
their contempt, and she learned long ago to fling their insults right back at
them. Jesus has gotten to her. His is the only look that is neither leering nor
contemptuous. No one could call her a name that she has not already called
herself a hundred times. Jesus does not call her anything, except a child of
God. She comes in and falls upon Jesus, letting down her hair kissing Jesus'
feet, anointing his tired feet with oil and hair. The woman seems overcome with
emotion. From what we later, what overwhelms her is the goodness of God in
forgiving her. In fact, the emotion of the moment so overwhelms her that she
forgets the social shame of that time, uncovers her head in the presence of the
men around the table, and wets the feet of Jesus with her tears.
This is more than Simon can take. The
problem is religious, and of course, Simon is a religious man. "If this
man were a real prophet," Simon says to himself, "he would be able to
see what sort of woman she is; a sinner." What are prophets for if not to
be able to recognize real sin when it occurs, to point to the boundaries
between the holy and the unholy, the righteous and the unrighteous?
What is the difference between
Simon and the woman? The woman has what
Simon lacks: forgiveness and love. Who would you rather be: righteous,
unforgiving and loveless or, a sinner, forgiven and full of much love? Yet,
Simon is the one who has it all put together and figured out, and the woman is
the one who is confused and uncertain. Simon is the man who was so sure he had
done all the right things, said all the right prayers and followed all the
rules.
The story of
this wild woman gives us an insight into the way Jesus viewed the world. How
shocking it is to hear that Jesus forgives prostitutes as quickly or (gasp!)
perhaps more quickly than the Simons of the world do.
John Dominic
Crossan has contended that Jesus practiced open invitation to the table. Jesus
invited all to the table. This, according to Crossan, is a major reason why
Jesus ran into trouble with the authorities. Breaking down traditional
barriers, he invited all of Israel's "lost sheep" to come back into
the fold, to join him at the table in the enactment of the promised banquet of
the Lord that signaled the beginning of the Messianic Age.
We are
seeing that dynamic displayed in this passage, and we are witnessing the gap
between two types of people who sit at table with Jesus. One, Simon the
Pharisee, is an "insider," a deeply devout, scrupulous religious
person. The woman of the city is a penitent, grateful, and gracious forgiven
sinner. Surely, Luke intends that we take our places in this drama, to examine
ourselves in the light of Jesus' extravagant forgiveness.
Jesus looks at the woman, but he speaks to the
Pharisee. He knows what Simon is
thinking. He speaks indirectly. 'Simon, I have something to say to you. A
creditor had two debtors. One owed him 50 days' wages, the other owed him 500
days' wages. The creditor was a generous man, and when he found out that the
debtors could not repay him, he forgave both their debts. Which of the debtors
will love him more?' "'Well, I suppose the one for whom he canceled the
greater debt,' Simon says, wondering what the point is. "'You're right,'
says Jesus. Then he looks at the woman. Of course, everyone has been looking at
her all along. The women in the room are giving her that contemptuous 'we know
what you are' look. The most righteous of the men are indignant over not only
what she is, but that she should appear so shamelessly in the company of
God-fearing people.
Did I mention that Simon was a religious man?
Then Jesus
turns to Simon at the table and says, “Simon, look at this woman. You showed me
no hospitality. Look how she welcomes me. I came to your house weary from the
road, and you gave me no water for my feet; she washed my feet with her tears.
You gave no kiss of greeting; she kissed my feet. You gave me no anointing, as
hosts should do in honor of their guests; she anointed me with oil.”
Jeremias[1]
says that the parable of the two debtors in 7:41-43 suggests that the sinner
manifests greater gratitude than the critical Pharisee does. The contrast is between the great debt and
the small, the deep gratitude and the slight. Only the poor can fathom the full
meaning of the goodness of God. “Do you not understand, Simon, that in spite of
her sin-burdened life this woman is nearer to God than you are? Do you not
recognize that what she has, you lack, a deep gratitude? The gratitude that she
has shown to me she actually directs to God. Jesus speaks of the incomparable
goodness of God. Do you not understand, Simon? This woman’s love, which you
despise, is the expression of her boundless gratitude for the inconceivable
goodness of God. Wronging both her and me, you are missing the best gift of
God.
Perhaps it is a matter of
perception. Simon, look at this woman. What do you see? Do you see a sinner in
need of exclusion? Do you see a sinner in need of forgiveness and
reconciliation? Is she a code breaker whom someone ought to punish for her
violation of the code? Is she a person full of hunger who needs life-giving
nourishment? Jesus says, “Therefore, I tell you, her sins, though they are
many, God has forgiven. But the one to
whom little is forgiven loves little.”
The key to this story is in verse
47. Jesus boldly declares that God forgives her many sins, and therefore, she shows
much love.
Now there is quite a stir around
the table. The fellow next to you leans over and asks, 'Who is this who even
claims to forgive sins?' You came, like everyone else, to check out Jesus, to
see whether he meets your criteria for what a prophet ought to be. Now all of a
sudden he is the judge. He speaks as if he can see right through everyone. He
is pronouncing a benediction upon this sinner: 'Your faith has saved you; go in
peace.'
It all depends
on how we look at it. Notice the difference in the way Simon sees the woman and
the way Jesus sees her.
Then you look
at Jesus again and think about what he said. It dawns on you that here are two
debtors. One is a flaming sinner with a colossal debt. The other debtor owes
just a little. He has none of the woman's gratitude because he does not think
there has been much to forgive. Because he lacks gratitude, he lacks love.
Now you look
around at all the people in that room. You look again at Jesus. You wonder to
yourself, what kind of debtor am I?[2]
You realize
that the love of God includes sinners in the saved community. You realize that
as Jesus forgave this woman, he expects you, if you are a follower, to forgive
as well.
When we
gather to celebrate the Lord's Supper, what does this meal mean? Whom do you
see gathered at the table? Is this a meal just for the family, those of us
gathered here in the fold? Is this a meal of invitation and inclusion that
Christ wants us to share with the whole world? Is this a meal for the righteous
elect? Alternatively, is this a meal for sinners whom God has already forgiven?
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