Luke 7:36–50

4th Sunday after Pentecost

³⁶Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. ³⁷When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, ³⁸and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them. ³⁹When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is— that she is a sinner." ⁴⁰Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you." "Tell me, teacher," he said. ⁴¹"Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴²Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?" ⁴³Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said. ⁴⁴Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. ⁴⁵You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. ⁴⁶You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. ⁴⁷Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven— for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." ⁴⁸Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." ⁴⁹The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?" ⁵⁰Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

There are three main characters in this text today. Three people who represent all of humanity and all that God has done for us. The intersection of these three lives was providential. It was no accident. It was all part of God’s plan to bring salvation to his people.

Who are these three people? A righteous Pharisee, a sinful woman, and Jesus. On this occasion the Pharisee had invited Jesus to his home to dine with him. It was not a normal, every day dinner, but a festive dinner, perhaps even the Sabbath meal. On such an occasion it is likely that Jesus would have even preached or taught the people before sitting down to dinner. They would have sat at his feet learning from him before sharing table fellowship. Let’s take a look at each of these three people to see what was really taking place that evening.

The first main character was the Pharisee. This Pharisee obviously had taken some interest in Jesus, he had heard his teaching and witnessed his miracles. This was shortly after Jesus had healed the dying slave of a centurion and raised the son of a widow in Nain. Word of Jesus had spread throughout the region and people were flocking to see him and bring the sick to him to be healed.

However, the Pharisees had rejected Jesus and opposed him. This was made evident by the fact that they refused to be baptized by John the Baptist. So it is somewhat remarkable that this Pharisee invited Jesus to dine with him. He obviously had great respect for Jesus, for the Pharisees would not eat a meal with anyone they thought sinful or inferior. Somewhere along the line he became interested in Jesus and even entertained the idea that Jesus might have been a prophet. Our text it says that the Pharisee thought to himself that Jesus must not be a prophet because he let the sinful woman touch him. The fact that he came to that conclusion means that he was thinking about it and was questioning in his mind if it might be so. Perhaps that is why he invited Jesus to his home in order to learn more about him and help settle that doubt he had.

Still, even after deciding that Jesus was no prophet, he addresses him with the honorable title of “teacher.” He respected Jesus as a rabbi, even if he disagreed with him.

The Pharisee embodies all of us here today. The Pharisee was a religious man; a believer in God; a leader in his church and community. He never missed a church service and the whole town knew him as a fine, outstanding citizen and an exceptionally devoted follower of God.

He, like us, was conscious of his status and prided himself in being a devoted believer and even a leader in his church. He, like us, liked his church the way it was and didn’t want to see it changed; especially he didn’t want sinful people of ill repute to mingle in and spoil the fellowship. He, like us, would have been scandalized if a public sinner, such as a prostitute, or drug addict or gang member, or homeless person or just someone of a different race ever showed up at church. Being a fine, respectable person, who had been blessed by God for his faithfulness and devotion, he certainly would not welcome an open sinner into his home or have a meal with such a person. And he, like us, probably looked down on people, even in his own church whom he thought were not as good as he. There were people in his own congregation that he refused to talk to, people he shunned and avoided because he considered them not as good as he. People he despised.

He was a kind and generous person… to his friends, but cold and aloof from those he didn’t like. He was no sinner and so he was especially upset at the next person who came into this story.

It was a woman whose sins were known to the entire town. A public sinner. Everyone in town knew of her scandalous life. We are not told what her sins were, but they were no secret. So only an outsider like Jesus would have been ignorant of her sinful lifestyle.

She had obviously snuck into the house, perhaps mingling in the huge crowd of people who wanted to peer in through the windows and doors to see Jesus inside. It was impossible to control that mob of curious spectators who thronged around Jesus.

She made her way up to Jesus with an alabaster jar full of perfume which she had purchased just for the occasion. She wept and washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. She did not stop kissing his feet and then poured the perfume on them. The Pharisee thought such a gush of love for Jesus was obscene and concluded that Jesus was no prophet or he would not have allowed such a woman to touch him.

In reality, this woman recognized her sin and was repentant. She had come to see Jesus because she wanted his forgiveness and trusted that only he could forgive her and give her peace with God. Her penitence and faith could not be contained but burst forth in an outpouring of love. Her acts of love for Jesus were the outward signs of her inward penitence and faith. True faith cannot remain passive, but must erupt in deeds and actions of love for others. True faith cannot remain silent; for the Spirit of God himself is at work and produces his fruit. The heart of faith must break out in doxology and proclamation of the salving works of God.

She had snuck into the house to see the final person in our story: Jesus. Jesus knew what the Pharisee was thinking about all of this. So he told a parable about two men who owed a certain moneylender. One had a great debt; the other small debt. The moneylender forgave both of them. Who, Jesus asked, loved the charitable moneylender more? The Pharisee judged correctly that the one who had been forgiven the greater debt.

Then Jesus, seeing the love springing forth from the woman’s faith, said to the Pharisee: “You did not wash my feet when I came into your house, you did not give me a kiss, you did not anoint my head with oil, but this woman washed my feet with her tears, she has not stopped kissing my feet, and has anointed me with perfume.”

By her deeds of love he knew her repentant heart and trust in him to forgive her sins, so he turned to her and said: Your sins are forgiven.

But the Pharisee who thought himself good and righteous, and if he even could remember a sin thought it was but a trifle, showed no love. By his lack of love his lack of penitence and faith were observed. Just as we are often proud and self-righteous and justify our actions and words, thinking we are in the right and everyone else is wrong, rather than show love for one another, we are angry, bitter, critical, and judgmental of others. These are but outward signs that we don’t consider ourselves to be very great sinners and are thus not very penitent.

Hearing these words of Jesus, the crowds were amazed and said, “Who is this who even forgives sins?” This was Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, who came into the world to seek and save the lost. This was Jesus, who fulfilled all righteousness on our behalf. Jesus, very God of very God, who suffered the chastisement of our sins, bore the pain or our hatred and rejection, and poured out his precious, innocent blood on an ugly, wooden cross in payment of our sins. On account of his suffering and death, this Jesus has the right for forgive our sins. He purchased forgiveness for us. He redeemed us from sin and he pronounces the absolution on us. He speaks to us today in word and sacrament and says: “Your sins are forgiven. Go in peace.”

On the cross he died for our sins; all our sins. He died for the woman who anointed him. He died for the Pharisee. He died for us. He died for us who are critical and judgmental of others. He died for us who are proud and self righteous. He died for us who have hidden, secret sins. He died for us who have open, public sins. He died for us who do not love him. He died for us who do not love our neighbor.

He forgave all our sin, and, by the example of this woman, he calls us all to repent of our sin and come to him for forgiveness. He pronounces his absolution on all who repent and trust him.

And he gives the authority to forgive and absolve sins to his church. He says to his disciples: “If you bind anyone’s sins on earth they shall be bound in heaven, and if you loose anyone’s sins on earth, they shall be loosed in heaven.” We call this the “power of the keys.” He has given this power to his church because it is through the church that Jesus dispenses forgiveness to people. It is the mission and function of the church to proclaim the word and administer the sacraments for the forgiveness of sins. When the pastor or a brother in Christ pronounces the absolution of your sins, it is Christ speaking, for Jesus said to his disciples: “He who hears you, hears me.” The absolution of sins is Jesus speaking. In the word read and proclaimed, Jesus speaks. In the sacraments, Jesus speaks. And what he says is: Your sins are forgiven; go in peace.

So the sinful woman was forgiven. Jesus pronounced the absolution of her sins. He told her: your faith has saved you. She was not forgiven or saved on account of her acts of love. It wasn’t because she washed Jesus feet with her tears, or kissed them or poured perfume on them that she was saved. Her sins were forgiven by Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection. They were forgiven because Jesus paid the price of her sin. They were forgiven because Jesus loved her and poured out his blood on her behalf. Her love was merely the result of her faith; the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

Just as for us. We are not forgiven because of what we do or for our love for others. We are forgiven because Jesus died for our sins and we are saved by the faith that trusts Jesus. It is that faith which produces the fruit of love in our lives. On account of faith we are like the woman, so filled with love that we cannot stop doing deeds of kindness to our neighbor. We cannot refuse to forgive our neighbor when he sins against us. We cannot stop singing the doxology and proclaiming his salvation to all the world. We cannot stop absolving the sins of the sinner who repents and seeks God’s forgiveness.

Now, therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God. Your faith has saved you; go in peace and proclaim his forgiveness to all the world.

Amen.