Do You See the Woman

Scripture Introduction:

We will continue through the gospel of Luke this morning. I don’t think this is particularly focused on dad’s or men. In fact if anything it highlights women more than many passages in Scripture. Really, it’s Luke’s continuing theme of the people who you don’t expect to “get it” are the very ones who do. And the ones who you are thinking are certainly going to be the heroes of the story—they are the ones most blind to Jesus.

We’ve seen things like this a few times and I want to tie these together here this morning. We’ve talked about being a plank-eye…you know the guy who has a big log sticking out of his eye and is worried about the speck in his brother’s eye. What causes someone to get to that spot?

Or last week we saw Jesus addressing those who weren’t satisfied with John the Baptist—he was too broody, too negative, too gloomy—that was their verdict of his ministry. But then came Jesus—he was reckoned to be a partier—a glutton and a drunkard they said. He was around tax collectors and sinners. He wasn’t doing what they thought he should be doing—he was redeeming the wrong kinds of people. How do you get to that spot? How do you get to the place where you see Jesus, you see people getting redeemed, and your response is to say, “I don’t like the way he is doing this”? How do you get there?

How do we get to a place where our worship of Jesus is no longer vibrant? How do we get cold? Could someone ever be in such a spot where they are in the very presence of Jesus and their posture is one of arms crossed, looking at something for him to do wrong, angry, calloused?

Are you here this morning and wondering why your worship of Jesus isn’t as vibrant as it once was? Or maybe it’s not there at all? Maybe you’ve just been going through the motions? Or you’re discouraged thinking—man, I just don’t love people as I ought to love people. I think this text will give us a bit of an autopsy. We’re going to see two different characters and two different responses to Jesus. Listen in:

READ TEXT

Sermon Introduction:

I love preaching this passage. It’s incredibly convicting but also deeply encouraging. I’ll tell you up front here what I believe is going on here and what we need to get from this. First, I believe we are to see both Simon and the sinful woman. And we’re to ask ourselves—which one of these am I? Which response to Jesus do I have? And this is where we engage this text by doing a bit of an autopsy on our hearts. (maybe autopsy isn’t the right word, debriefing maybe) How’d they get so cold? Or how did it get so vibrant?

Secondly, I really think there is a powerful point being made in here about seeing the woman in the story. I think there is a rebuke to the way in which Simon and other Pharisees viewed the world and thus how they viewed the mission of God. In some way it’s about how we are using the resources that God has given us—and how that is determined by our embrace of and awe of the good news of Jesus. That’s what you see with the woman with the alabaster jar and also what you see with that list of women in 8:1-3.

Really this is about the gospel. It’s about what the good news of Jesus does in the heart of someone. And so this is an invitation for us to drink deeply from the gospel. The best way I know how to do this is to just tell the story as we see it and then try to make a few application points.

So let’s get to work.

A Pharisee requested Jesus to dine with him…he asked Jesus to eat with him. We don’t know why. Was it a trap? Was he genuinely curious? We don’t really know but we do know that Jesus went and “reclined at table”. He goes into the Pharisees house as a guest. But as we’ll see the story unfold he isn’t really treated as a guest.

And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner...

Obviously not mentioning her name. A woman who is of such ill-repute her name doesn’t really matter all the much. She is more defined by what she does than who she is. Simon has a name, this “sinner” isn’t mentioned by name. She is just known as the woman from the city who was a sinner. She was defined by her sin. You know what this is like don’t you? Maybe that’s been you? Or maybe you’ve said that about someone else?

She learned that this Jesus was going to be eating at the Pharisees house

Had it gotten out? Had it been advertised? Had she met him before or just heard about him? We don’t really know for sure. Some would have her having a previous encounter with Jesus where she expressed faith in him—and I think we go there because it makes it far more comfortable for us theologically. We like to think that she had already been saved and so now this is her just worshipping him. But I don’t think the text necessarily tells us that. We’d be better just letting it speak—and all it really tells us is that she heard about Jesus and she came with who she was and with what she had.

She brought an alabaster vial of perfume

Was this the most expensive thing she had? Why perfume? What was she thinking? Why did she have a need to do this?

She came for one, what guts it took to come, and she also brought some alabaster perfume. I wonder what she had used this alabaster perfume for previously. Had she used it to lure men? Did she use it in her sin? And now does she have the gall to actually bring this to Jesus?

And standing behind him at his feet?

Why at his feet? Is this a sign of her humility? She can’t look upon his face, she can only be at the lowliest part of his body? She is washing his feet, with her tears. And keep in mind that they “reclined at table” So don’t picture here our types of tables with legs and she (nor Jesus) is a contortionist standing behind him at his feet.

But she is in this place of humility. And she’s weeping. Is it tears of joy or sadness? We don’t really know. But to Jesus it’s worshipful. She is authentic. She is bringing him everything that she has. Her own self. No hiding. No pretending. No games. No pretense.

This would have brought tons of attention on her. Which is shocking given her reputation. You could see her perhaps just sticking to the back…perhaps like the woman we will hear from in a later story who thinks that maybe if she just touches the hem of his garment…no need for show…no need to make a scene…just stick to the background, be a wallflower, don’t draw attention to yourself…wait for a quiet moment. But she is weeping and now...

And kept wiping his feet with the hair of her head

She was actually cleaning Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiping them off with her hair. This was scandalous. That a woman of ill-repute would be not only touching Jesus but that she “let down her hair” for him. It’s possible to make too much of that. It’s not absolutely necessary that this is what she is doing. But no matter how far she is crossing the line of decency she is crossing it.

And kissing his feet and anointing them with perfume.

Wow, certainly she has crossed the line. Actually kissing his feet. What would Jesus’ response be. Imagine this. What would Jesus do? In some regards it may even appear to the people attending this party that this woman is throwing herself on Jesus. What is he going to do? Is he going to rebuke her? Is he going to tell her to stop crying? Worse yet is he going to reject her and say stop touching me? What is he going to do?

Imagine with me for a moment that you have your deepest darkest most shameful thing—something you’ve done—something done to you. And you lay it at the feet of Jesus as this woman is in this moment. Here I am, no pretense, no trying to clean it up, no trying to make things sound better than they are…just who I am. What I’ve done. What’s been done to me. All of it. Vulnerable. Bare. Holding nothing back. What’s he going to do? How will he respond?

You’ll see in just a minute…but first we have to deal with Simon. He’s teaching Simon and likely us religious folk a lesson.

Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself....

Put yourself there. You’ve been watching this. What do you get out of it? Do you rebuke her? Do you tell her to calm down a little? Are you upset that she is ruining your dinner party? Is she distracting from what you were hoping to discuss that night?

I hear things like this quite a bit. We just had the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting. And we had to deal with some important things—issues of racial reconciliation, sexual abuse, important stuff. And I’ll tell you at times I think some can say, “we really need to stop talking about these distractions and get back to the gospel.” But these things are very much part of what Jesus is redeeming. This sinful woman was a “distraction” to Simon the Pharisee.

It’s so easy to have Jesus moving right in front of your face and thinking, “oh, man, I really wish that we could move on from this thing so we could be about the business of worshipping Jesus—get to the really good stuff---get to the interesting stuff.”

Oh, Simon’s response. “That’s what you got out of this, Simon.” Simon misses it. And many times we do too. He sees what this woman is doing, he knows who she is, and he sees Jesus response. This Pharisee is appalled that Jesus doesn’t tell her to stop, he lets this woman do all of these things like touch his feet with her tears, worse yet her hair, and put her perfume on him. You know what she uses the perfume for, and you know how she got the money for the perfume. Certainly Jesus has no idea who this woman is Simon thought. Certainly he’s not a prophet. Either he’s just dumb and not a prophet or he knows exactly who this woman is and he’s not avoiding her. We are supposed to run away from these people of ill-repute.

The Pharisees showed nothing but contempt for sinners. This woman was touching Jesus, and even defiling him. Sinners don’t touch the holy, this would have made Jesus ceremonially unclean. If this woman had been treating Simon this way then he would have certainly cast her away. Because somewhere the Pharisees had gotten the idea that the more holy you are the less approachable you should be. You should have kind of an air about you that says, do not come any closer you are not worthy to breathe my holy air.

Jesus answered him...

Jesus doesn’t just answer our audible words. He’s answering Simon’s thoughts.

Simon let me tell you something. Say it Teacher. I wonder what Simon was thinking. Ah, finally Jesus has had enough. Maybe he’s going to tell me to cast this sinner out. Certainly he will say something about her.

Then Jesus starts to tell a parable. Okay if someone was lent 500 days wages and another person was lent 50, one a huge amount the other someone large. If someone owed the bank for a 500,000 dollar house and someone owed the bank for a 1,500 car. A beat-up grocery-getter. Neither could repay it, so the bank just said okay I’ll forgive you both. Which of these is going to love the bank more? The one who has the 500,000 dollar house or the 1,500 car?

That is the point Jesus is making here.

I wonder why Simon said, I suppose the one whom he forgave more. He doesn’t sound so sure of himself does he? Does he know that Jesus is getting ready to make a point? Is he feeling convicted, or is he angered?

Jesus turns to him and says you have judged correctly. Good job, Now Jesus turns toward the woman. I wonder what Simon was thinking. Did it hit home? Did he see what Jesus was getting at with his parable? And then Jesus says something that everyone in the room would have probably thought well of course Captain Obvious. Jesus actually says, “Do you see this woman”. Of course they saw this woman. She had been making a scene most of the night. She’s the reason for this conversation. Of course I see that woman, and she disgust me. But keeping looking at her.

No, no, Simon. I know you see the woman. But do you see the woman. Do you see the image of God in her? Do you see that she is one of my precious lambs? Do you see the woman, Simon or do you see the sinner?

But let me tell you what I see in you, Simon. I entered your house Simon. I was a guest in your house Simon. You invited me and I came. But Simon you gave me no water for my feet. (not special treatment) Every good host would give water for a person’s feet, especially a respected teacher who had came over to your house. And Jesus isn’t even asking for his feet washed, he just wants a little water. You gave me no water.

Look at her Simon. Look at her! She has wet my feet with her own tears. You provide no water, and she provides water for my feet with her tears. You give no towel, she soaks up my dirty, dusty, feet with her hair. Her hair Simon.

You gave me no kiss. Now today it’s not customary to greet people with kisses. But back then it was. It was insulting to not greet them. So this teacher came in and the host didn’t even welcome him. Simon you didn’t even bother greeting me. This would be like not even shaking someone’s hand, or offering to take their coat, this is just coldly rejecting someone you invited over. Simon you didn’t even greet me properly. But look at her Simon. Look at her. She hasn’t stopped kissing my feet Simon. My feet. And remember they aren’t the cleanest things in the world because somebody didn’t give me water to clean them. But she tried cleaning them with her tears and hair, and she has been kissing my feet this whole time.

You did not anoint my head with oil. The head tended to get a little hot and kind of nasty from the Palestinian sun. Oil was given to refresh and invigorate the body. But Simon didn’t even offer it to Jesus.

But look at her Simon. She anointed my feet. With perfume. With her expensive perfume. I wonder at this point what Simon’s thought was. Was he still a little smug? Had he gotten the point?

For this reason I say to you Simon, her sins, which are many have been forgiven. Why were her sins forgiven? The text says, “for she loved much.” For some reason some take issue with this—and remember where I said some think that they had to have had a previous encounter. Because we are saved by grace alone through FAITH alone…not “love” alone. But man, that’s what faith is. It’s treasuring. It’s loving Jesus. Those things are synonymous. Faith isn’t just, “I believe this guy named Jesus lived and died and rose again…I give mental assent to these historical facts.” No, it’s not that....that’s not faith—why, all the devils in hell have such a faith. No, it’s this type of love. That’s what faith looks like. That’s what it means. It’s coming to Jesus with who you are—no pretense, no pretending…and just laying yourself bare before him. What are you going to do with me Jesus.

We asked that earlier. Do you know what Jesus will do with you? Love you. Forgive you. Cleanse you. Heal you. Celebrate you. Tell about you and your story is here for generations upon generations.

“Your sins are forgiven.” As far as the east is from the west. New identity. Cleansing. Shame-taken away. Sin-bearing. Adopted. Justified. All of this. Your sins are forgiven.

Now how do you respond to this. A sinner comes into the family of God. Angels rejoice over this. What does Simon and his buddies do.

“Who is this, who even forgives sins?”

That’s what you got out of this? More theological questions. Now again this could be a, “who is this...” kind of setting us up is this perhaps the Messiah. But at this point—how dense are you? You shouldn’t still be asking this question, Simon. You shouldn’t be on the fence. You should be celebrating this. Who is this?

“Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Peace. Shalom. All is right. All is being healed. That’s what Jesus does. See—she’s not a distraction from the gospel of Jesus—she is the benefactor of the gospel of Jesus!

How do we apply this?

First, we ask that debriefing question. Who am I in this story? Maybe a little of both. But here is the principle of this passage:

He who is forgiven much, loves much. He who is forgiven little, loves little.

If my love is cold then what does that mean? It means that I’m “forgiven little”. If my sin is small then my Savior is small. And you know what if we aren’t going to be real and honest and vulnerable and bold enough to dig in—then we’re going to think for sure that we are just forgiven a little.

That was Simon’s problem. He didn’t realize that this woman was the only sinner in the house that day. Simon was just as much a sinner. He couldn’t repay his debt. That’s the problem we get in so often is that we think we can repay our debt. Or that Jesus helps us just a little a long the way…he gives us an assist to get our life right. A little help from our friend.

No the moral of this story here is that you CANNOT repay the debt. This sinful woman understood that…but she saw the graciousness of Jesus. There was something different about Him and it caused her to explode with love.

Her passionate worship—and our passionate worship—is directly proportionate to how much we think we’ve been forgiven.

Whether you have been raised in church all of your life and you only owe the 50 denarii, or if you have lived like sin all your life and owe the 500 denarii. You can’t repay it. There is no way, once you have sinned that’s it. You can’t repay it.

If you are drowning in 50 feet of water or 500 feet of water it doesn’t matter. Your still going to die unless somebody saves you. How ignorant for the 50 feet of water guy to think he’s better off than the 500 feet of water guy? Or how ignorant for the guy in the 500 feet to think, gee if I could just get to that 50 feet of water. If your drowning your drowning. If you are a sinner and in debt to God, your in debt to God. If you can’t pay your debt then you can’t pay your debt. We all need to see our utter depravity and inability.

2) Do you see the woman?

Do we see people who are trapped in sin with compassion and love, or do we see them with contempt?

Look at what happens with this woman and her alabaster flask of ointment. She spends it on Jesus. Look at what happens in 8:1-3. Jesus is bringing the good news—he’s with the twelve—but Luke mentions ladies. Mary, Joanna, Susanna, now listen to this, “many others, who provide for them out of their means.”

That’s what happens when Jesus gets ahold of us.

3) Psalm 103