Readings of the Day:
Sermon:
Picture yourself, for a moment, as the woman, a sinner as we’re told, in the Gospel
reading today. The Pharisee who is hosting Jesus finds her so repulsive of a sinner that
he’s not even sure why Jesus would even let her touch Him.
What kind of woman would this be? Well, as you imagine yourself in her place, think of some of the worst things you can imagine someone doing. Or, if that doesn’t work, think of the person who annoys you, who bothers you the most. What sort of things does this person do that you find irksome. Annoying. Disgusting.
And if you’re still having trouble with visualizing yourself in this woman’s place, in the shoes of this sinner, then think about the worst thing you’ve done. The thing you wise you could take back. The thing, that if you let it, would keep you up at night.
And if you are really able to connect with this woman now, you probably feel the guilt. The pain. The weight of sin. And you want to do anything you can to move beyond the past. Move beyond what your life has been thus far.
And then you hear a great prophet has come. Someone who, as we’ve heard these past few weeks, has healed the sick and even raised the dead. A great man. One who God is truly present with.
And in that moment, it doesn’t matter who you are. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done. You may be a terrible sinner, but this is someone who deserves your honor and respect. And you need to do whatever you can to show Him the respect and praise He deserves.
Jesus could turn you away at this point. As the Pharisee, Simon, thinks, this is the sort of person who wouldn’t normally associate with Jesus. Someone beneath Him. A terrible sinner.
And Jesus does something remarkable. He doesn’t turn you away. Neither does He claim that what you did wasn’t all that bad. Instead, He lifts that burden that has been overcoming you. He looks at you and says “Your sins are forgiven.” He gives you exactly what you need.
I hope as you have tried to picture yourself in this woman’s place that you take away just this one thing: God’s forgiveness through His Son, Jesus Christ. Because that is really what it’s all about. It is why we are here. It is the Good News we are called to share to the world.
Because there are no illusions today about the human condition in our readings today. We see even kings, the greatest of Israel in fact, fall prey to sin as they follow their own ways instead of God’s.
What kind of woman would this be? Well, as you imagine yourself in her place, think of some of the worst things you can imagine someone doing. Or, if that doesn’t work, think of the person who annoys you, who bothers you the most. What sort of things does this person do that you find irksome. Annoying. Disgusting.
And if you’re still having trouble with visualizing yourself in this woman’s place, in the shoes of this sinner, then think about the worst thing you’ve done. The thing you wise you could take back. The thing, that if you let it, would keep you up at night.
And if you are really able to connect with this woman now, you probably feel the guilt. The pain. The weight of sin. And you want to do anything you can to move beyond the past. Move beyond what your life has been thus far.
And then you hear a great prophet has come. Someone who, as we’ve heard these past few weeks, has healed the sick and even raised the dead. A great man. One who God is truly present with.
And in that moment, it doesn’t matter who you are. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done. You may be a terrible sinner, but this is someone who deserves your honor and respect. And you need to do whatever you can to show Him the respect and praise He deserves.
Jesus could turn you away at this point. As the Pharisee, Simon, thinks, this is the sort of person who wouldn’t normally associate with Jesus. Someone beneath Him. A terrible sinner.
And Jesus does something remarkable. He doesn’t turn you away. Neither does He claim that what you did wasn’t all that bad. Instead, He lifts that burden that has been overcoming you. He looks at you and says “Your sins are forgiven.” He gives you exactly what you need.
I hope as you have tried to picture yourself in this woman’s place that you take away just this one thing: God’s forgiveness through His Son, Jesus Christ. Because that is really what it’s all about. It is why we are here. It is the Good News we are called to share to the world.
Because there are no illusions today about the human condition in our readings today. We see even kings, the greatest of Israel in fact, fall prey to sin as they follow their own ways instead of God’s.
And God doesn’t overlook sin. He doesn’t make it okay. There are still consequences for sin, as we see with David.
But He does forgive. He does look at these sinners, David and the woman who anointed Jesus’ feet, and sees that they know the truth. That they have been condemned by their actions. That they need a savior who can redeem them.
That’s why Jesus says “your faith has saved you.” To us and to the woman. Because it is not something we have done that redeems us. It is not something we did that makes us whole. It is absolute trust in Jesus that leads to our forgiveness. It is trusting in Jesus that saves us. That makes us whole.
Which is exactly what Galatians says to us today. Because only Jesus can restore us to new life in Him. It is only through His death on the cross that we are redeemed. It is only though Him that we can be free of the burden of our sins.
The simple truth is that none of us can claim to be wholly good. We’ve all done things that we know are wrong. We’ve all done things we wish we could take back. But no matter how terrible we think we are. No matter what the Simons, the Pharisees, in our lives may say about us. No matter what we did. In turning in trust and faith to Jesus, we find that no matter what, He forgives us. And makes us whole again.
And the next step is sometimes hardest. We are called to once again put ourselves in the shoes of the woman who honored Jesus. We are called to not wallow in our sins any longer. We are called to move beyond the guilt of our past. And we are called to be like this woman. To rejoice. To give thanks. To be, as the psalm tells us, “Happy” because our transgressions have been forgiven.
Our next step is to be thankful and gracious. And to help bring others to Christ too. Even those who annoy us. Even those who we may hate. Because we have all been in the anointing woman’s shoes. We have all be sinners at one time or another. And we are called to help bring all others to the gift we have received. The gift of freedom from burden. The gift of release. The gift of forgiveness.
As we leave today, we are called to share the joy that we have in what we have received in the gift of grace. We are called to have the same love and compassion that Jesus had for us. The compassion that gives the forgiveness we so desperately need. Just as we have received the forgiveness of sins that comes from Christ Jesus alone, we are called to make that gift of forgiveness known to all who needs it.