4. Sunday after Pentecost, 06/16/2013

Sermon on Luke 7:36-8:3, by Amy C. Schifrin

Brothers and sister, Grace to you and peace from the One who brings healing, life, and salvation, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Come with me now for a trip into a Pharisee's house. We are in a city in first century Galilee. Jesus was one of a number of men who was a guest at a dinner party. The men were reclining, lounging as they were being waited on. Common custom would have been for them to have been warmly greeted upon entering. It might have been a long walk to get there and at most they had sandals on their feet. If you come in with them, you'd be covered with the dust and sweat of the day, and more than likely you'd also be tired. As a guest you would be looking forward to the customary hospitality: a good meal, an engaging conversation, a little entertainment, and a sense of belonging.

Simon, the Pharisee, was the host at this table and you were thankful to have gotten his invitation, but sometime during the evening when he wasn't looking an uninvited guest slipped in. A woman who was recognizable as a woman "of the city," materializes right before his eyes. A visible sinner is now in the house, and her presence is disturbing to Simon, the host. Since she was so easily identified, how do you think she was dressed? Do you think that any of the men at the table knew her from previous transactions that they might have wanted to have kept hidden? Simon seems to have no questions about what sort of things she was doing to support herself. And clearly, she didn't belong here. Just look at what she is doing now: weeping at Jesus' feet, sobbing uncontrollably-unable to stop herself, her tears cleansing the dirt from the One who had walked miles among the poor, bringing healing and life to those hadn't a table at which to recline.

Her tears are falling freely now, and then she takes her long, thick, beautiful hair in her hands and dries his feet with it. Overcome with joy in his presence she begins to kiss her Lord's feet, an intimate act, a loving act. And then she opens the jar of perfume which she would normally have used on herself. She takes his rough feet in her hands and caresses them and soothes them. She ministers to Jesus, using her body now in an act of devotion, rather than as a commodity on the market. She, whose body was used daily by other men, is now giving more than the physical dimension of herself to the One in whose image she was made, discovering the beauty of holiness in the presence of him in whose gracious life she was intended to live.

Simon is disgusted with the whole scene and mumbles to himself about this rabbi whom he now wishes he hadn't invited to his dinner. He wants to get away from this woman now, too, for her act of devotion has not only unmasked his lack of it, but the box in which he had defined what is right and what is wrong cannot withstand such an expression of love. The Rabbi Jesus, however, the One who is truly righteous has no need to run from this woman. There is nothing he needs to hide. So in his righteousness, he moves closer in order to speak an eternal word of mercy. And he does for her what only God can do-he forgives her, her sin.

Two religious leaders, Simon-a Pharisee, and Jesus-a Rabbi, are now in the presence of this woman of the city, this sinful woman. But what Simon doesn't realize is that two sinners are in the presence of the living God. The woman's love mirrors her Lord's. It is extravagant; it is majestic; it is gorgeous; and when we see it, we know there is nothing better than this in the whole world. The woman's actions at our Lord's feet show what is in her heart (beneath the exterior that the world sees and judges). So now Simon's inaction, his lack of hospitality, his grumbling, his disgust, reveal what is in his. Jesus takes this moment, not to condemn but to love, and he does so by telling Simon and his companions a story of two debtors, a story in which we all can find ourselves.

One owed a whole day's wages and the other only owed a few pennies. Neither could pay, and the creditor canceled both debts. And whom do you think would love their benefactor more? Even the Pharisee knows that it might be the one who received the most. The response to mercy is love, and the response to forgiveness is pure joy. Whether one is a woman of the city or a man who holds power in the religious establishment is of no consequence when it comes to the LORD who knows all, who made all, who sees all. Whether you are a prostitute or a Pharisee, a loan officer or a migrant worker is of no consequence when it comes to love, for love is bigger than all the ways we use to push our neighbors out of the house. For this love, this stunning and generous love that God has poured into our hearts teaches us to hold nothing back, to hold nothing back from the LORD our God and to those whom he loves.

For every sinner who comes to his table seeking forgiveness will find it granted. Every sinner will be given a place of honor. There is nothing in our repertoire of sins that will stop him from loving us...and there is no sin that should stop us from loving one another. For if God were to embrace only those who were pious, only those who say they have not sinned, if God were to welcome only those who do everything in their power to protect themselves from "known" sinners, well then, this table would be empty. In no way does he tell us to continue our sinful behaviors nor does he take our sin lightly. He just knows that our sins will only come to an end in him, in his holy love, in his eternal forgiveness, in his most beautiful mercy.

He tells Simon to look at this woman, and to finally see her. Surely Simon had been unable to take his eyes off of her, but he was so blinded by his own sins that he missed seeing her faith. "Her sins, which are many, are forgiven," he tells them all. "Her sins, which are many, are forgiven-for she loved much." May the presence of our Lord at this table bring you to such love, so that you, too, will know his forgiveness and live in his peace. Amen

The Rev. Dr. Amy C. Schifrin
Strawberry Point and Monona, IA
E-Mail: amyschifrin@yahoo.com

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