Who are you? Part 2

Luke 7:36-50

36 One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat 37 When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. 38 Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them.

39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!”

40 Then Jesus answered his thoughts. “Simon,” he said to the Pharisee, “I have something to say to you.”

“Go ahead, Teacher,” Simon replied.

41 Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. 42 But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?”

43 Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.”

“That’s right,” Jesus said. 44 Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.

47 “I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” 48 Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”

49 The men at the table said among themselves, “Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?”

50 And Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

The story of Simon and woman is likely familiar. You’ve had Sunday school lessons, or sermons, or perhaps read it in your own devotional time. It is a story that comes with some modern scholarship controversy. The story is similar to ones found in Matthew and Mark, with a man known as Simon the Leper. The Gospel of John, Chapter 12 has an account as well, but in that story, we know the woman is Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus. There are the same core elements of a dinner party, a host named Simon, a woman with costly alabaster perfume (potentially more than a years wages), and those watching became indignant at both the behaviour and expense. However, there are some notable differences. Here are a few of the important differences. It is hard to reconcile the titles of ‘Pharisee’ and ‘Leper’. It’s not impossible but Luke makes no mention of this important fact, and as a Physician this would have been of particular interest for him. Additionally, had the Pharisee been a leper and was healed by Jesus, Simon the Pharisee’s response would have been much different. Secondly, the women are different – Mary in John’s account, is from respected and notable family – and would not be identified as a ‘Sinner or Immoral’ – and this is an important element here in Luke’s account. The dinner audiences are different. Luke makes no mention that the disciples are in attendance; neither the main participants, nor that Judas makes an issue of the money as in the other versions. In Matthew and Mark account, Simon the Leper has invited Jesus and the disciples as well in ‘Jesus’ honour’, which is quite different than Luke’s account where Jesus is not honoured. Lastly, there is the motivation of the anointing itself. For Matthew and Mark, the focus of the anointing is on his upcoming death. In our Lukean dinner, the anointing is on His feet is not in the preparation of Jesus for death, but in the complete brokenness and awareness of the woman’s sinfulness. It is an act of total surrender, faith trust and hope in the person of Christ. Obviously, looking back more than 2,000 years it’s difficult for us to with absolute certainty these are indeed separate events, but the internal evidence would strongly indicate that are different. In modern scholarship there is this tendency to group similar activities and believe they are the one and the same with different authors’ variations of the same event to communicate their purpose. There is no reason why there could not have been three or more events of Jesus being anointed by different women. This was not an unknown practice of respect and honour. And yes, that does occur, however, the reality is that Jesus did and said far more than the gospels contain. There are many healings – similar healings, parables, variations of repeated parables, miracles, teachings, encounters with people – sinners and religious leaders alike – all equally astonishing and provocative.

John 21:25 “Jesus also did many other things. If they were all written down, I suppose the whole world could not contain the books that would be written” I love the implications of this verse.

2000 years ago, there are no movies or T.V. for entertainment. People did not isolate themselves in their homes, but mingled in community. So one of the major sources of ‘entertainment’ to was to gate crash a hosted dinner party. News would travel fast that “so and so” of importance was hosting ‘what’s his name’ for dinner – and it was expected – in fact desired, that you’d have a crowd standing around you while you and your guests reclined in your inner court yard eating a very public dinner. The buzz through the crowd would have been “who’s there, who isn’t, what are they eating, who’s sitting beside who – What did they say? What was the question? Who answered??? All this was a set up to communicate wealth, brilliance, power and dominance. From there every detail would travel out about the ‘celebrity gossip’. It would be talked about all over the town. This sets up an amazing encounter that leads us to the very questions, “Who am I?” and “Who care?”

Neil