Scandalous Grace

  • David Fairchild
  • Oct 12, 2008
  • Series: Encountering Jesus

TEXT

 

Luke 7:36-50: "One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and took his place at the table.  37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment,  38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.  39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.'  40 And Jesus answering said to him, ‘Simon, I have something to say to you.' And he answered, ‘Say it, Teacher.'  41 ‘A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?'  43 Simon answered, ‘The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.' And he said to him, ‘You have judged rightly.'  44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, ‘Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.  45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.  46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.  47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven--for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.'  48  And he said to her, ‘Your sins are forgiven.'  49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, ‘Who is this, who even forgives sins?'  50 And he said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'"

 

INTRODUCTION

 

I want you to imagine that you're eating an incredible meal at a dinner party.  You've been invited by an elder of your church and the host is a prominent pastor in San Diego.  He lives in La Jolla and is admired and respected by the conservatives of the city for his work in closing down strip clubs.  His latest moral campaign is a noble effort to get churches to work together to crackdown on prostitution by increasing the penalties for both the clients and the workers.  The home is beautiful and the food and wine may be the best you've ever tasted.  The room is full of energy and is getting louder each minute as more people come in to join the party.

 

You've come tonight to support this initiative and to listen to a visiting preacher who's in town for only a few days.  Your friends have been talking about this man and there is a lot of curiosity about his radical views and how he would deal with this problem.  His popularity is soaring but some of friends your want nothing to do with him.  Others say that he is the most fascinating teacher they've ever met.  You consider yourself open minded and want to give the benefit of the doubt.  And so does the host of the party.  This is a good chance to hear what he has to say and decide what kind of man he is.

 

The host asks him a question about his views when the doorbell rings and another guest, a woman, pushes her way through the front door, into the room.  Every woman in the room, especially the host's wife, is shocked by the woman's attire.  She's dressed in mini skirt that is too tight and too short, she has a low cut midriff shirt on that shows entirely too much cleavage, and she's wearing high heels.  Her makeup is heavy and she stumbles a bit as she walks, as if she's been drinking.  The ladies of the room can't believe their eyes as one woman whispers to the other, "she looks like she belongs out on Miramar Road in front of a strip club on payday!"  As the other whispers back "maybe she works in one of them!" 

 

She walks straight up to the guest speaker and fully embraces him.  The room is silent as she whispers to him, "I'm yours and will always be faithful to you."  She then rubs his hair and begins kissing his forehead.  You notice that she's crying and her make up is streaked with her tears.  No one says a word, there is only shocked silence.

 

What an embarrassing and shameful thing for such a well respected teacher to endure.  You feel disgusted at this woman and ashamed for him. 

 

Just as the host and two of his friends stand to escort her out, this man does something unthinkable.  Instead of pushing her off of him, he embraces her and says gently to her "and I'm yours, and I will never leave you nor be unfaithful."  Wait a minute!  He didn't just say what you think he said, could he?  Surely he has to know what kind of woman she is.  Surely he can see by her clothes and can tell by her actions that she's a tramp or worse yet, a hooker.  What's he thinking?  If he's such a great Bible teacher, he would have better discernment.  What lack of wisdom!  What is everyone going to think?  She might assume he's wiling to respond to her invitation.  Maybe he knows her.  Maybe he's a client.  It's pretty clear that this guest of honor doesn't deserve to be a guest, and he certainly doesn't deserve any honor. 

 

STUDY

 

A story very similar to this is given to us in the Gospel of Luke chapter 7 starting at verse 36.  Let's read.

 

I.  JESUS WELCOMES SINNERS

 

Verses 36-38: "One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and took his place at the table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment."

 

Jesus is problematic.  What is so frustrating about Jesus is His willingness to abandon any hope for a good reputation by eating with and enjoying the company of people of the worst moral character.  He seems to be purposely pursuing relationships with the most immoral characters.  Tax collectors and sinners want to be around Him and He seemingly wants to be around them. 

 

Just a few verses prior to this story, we're given a glimpse of how the Pharisees viewed Him as they accuse Jesus of being "a friend of sinners."  They rejected John the Baptist because he abstained from eating and drinking like others, and now they reject Jesus because he is a "glutton and a drunkard."  Luke 7:33-34: "For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.'  34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'"

 

So here is a party with dignified people, the moral and religious examples of society.  The host, Simon, was a Pharisee, a well respected religious leader who was committed to the purity of the Jews and the preservation of God's law and words.  It was not uncommon for homes at this time to have open courtyards that were often used by the public.  There were often no doors or locks, but rather openings into the home with fabric drawn back until late at night.  You could easily see in and if the party was large enough, some of Simon's guests would have spilled out into the courtyard.  Everyone is watching this curious figure named Jesus. 

 

As we've been looking at the Pharisees, we remember that they were very much into purity.  They not only wanted to keep themselves undefiled ritually by cleaning their hands and watching what they came in contact with, they also wanted to remain undefiled by keeping away from sinful people they considered impure-like this sinful woman of the city. 

 

The term "a woman of the city, who was a sinner..." was essentially called a sinful woman of the city.  This term usually indicated she was well known for her sin and therefore identified by it, like a prostitute.  To the clean, good and moral people, this woman was diseased with sin and infectious if you got too close.  How different is Jesus' response to her?  He welcomes her.  He accepts her.  He shows us the welcoming grace of God by His actions.

 

We love movies like Pretty Woman.  We like stories of redemption.  But the stories we enjoy are typically before-and-after stories.  As long as the person is different now, we can accept what they did in the past.  We frown on anyone who hasn't been fixed yet and typically keep our distance until they have.  Most of time when we share Jesus with others, it comes in the form of "look, I was as screwed up as you, but look at me know, I'm fixed and clean.  Don't you want to be like me?"

 

Yet Jesus welcomes this woman and allows a shocking display of intimacy.  This kind of affection is completely inappropriate!  The first thing this woman does that is shameful is to let her hair down.  The rabbis had concluded that if a woman let her hair down in public, it was grounds for divorce.  Letting your hair down was considered intimate and was reserved only for the eyes of your husband.  It was bedroom behavior.  In public you were required to keep your hair up.  Then she begins to kiss his feet.  She is crying so profusely that her tears wet them as she wipes His feet with her hair and then pours perfume on them from her flask. 

 

Jesus doesn't stop her.  To keep His reputation He should have stopped her.  She's too comfortable, too intimate, almost treating him like a client.  This may be the only way she knew how to relate to men.  He could have said, "I know you want to show your affection for me, but this isn't appropriate behavior."  How would we respond to such a display of affection?  Of course, we'd stop her.  It would be embarrassing. 

 

Verse 39: "Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.'" 

 

Q-Given the culture and context, what kind of man would not be bothered by a woman undoing her hair in public and wiping her feet with her hair and her perfume?

 

A- Either someone who is a client and a pervert, or someone who has such a huge heart of love and is the most incredibly approachable person ever. 

 

Any hopes of winning approval by the moral majority are shot.  His identity is on the line and His very reputation is at stake.  Reputation was everything.  It was considered far better to have a good reputation than to be rich.  To have a good reputation meant that you had open doors and would be admired and welcomed by anyone who mattered.  Yet Jesus binds His very identity with this woman's. 

 

Do you remember your years in high school?  Do you remember how important it was to have the right friends?  You didn't want to hang out with someone who was weird or considered a "loser" because this made you a loser as well.  Their disdain would infect you.  Jesus takes her disdain upon Himself.  Being compassionate to this woman meant that Jesus was taking the curse that society put on her.  But this is the kind of exchange that always happens when we love someone.  It's the very heart of Jesus' work on the cross.  His acceptance, forgiveness and love are compared to writing a check for a billion dollars and giving it to her.  At the cross, He puts the money into the account to cover the check.  Jesus is showing her that He's willing to cover her losses.  This mini-substitution that we see in this story points us forward to Jesus' true substitution as He gives His life for ours, His reputation for ours, His perfection for our shame. 

 

Jesus comes "eating and drinking" as a way of enacted grace.  He's showing this woman, the Pharisees, all the guests, and each of us what it looks like to be part of God's kingdom.  Our only hope is a king who eats with sinners, a Son of Man that is the most welcoming host. 

 

It's easy to assume that everyone loves to hear stories about God's grace, especially stories like this.  But this kind of grace is almost too shocking, too embarrassing for good people to identify with.  If Jesus is our reputation, and His reputation with good people is completely shot, then to be admired by good people means we need to distance ourselves from this kind of Savior.  His actions are too radical and too scandalous.  And Luke keeps picking stories involving tax collectors, sinners, traitors, and hookers.  It's as if he's purposely trying to push us to the edge to see if we really understand God's grace.  How do our hearts respond when a prostitute kisses the body of Jesus?  Do we celebrate because we can identify with her tears of repentance and joy?  Or do we cringe at the thought of it?  Our response to this kind of scandalous grace means everything. 

 

Q- What did it cost Jesus to welcome her?

 

A-   It cost Him the approval of the people who mattered most, the good people.

 

Q- Why do you think Jesus was able to care less about His approval with good people?

 

A-    Because He had the approval of the only One that mattered, His Father!

 

Jesus is able to get close because He knows His Father's love for Him is totally secured.  No matter what others think of Him, the Father's love for Him gives Him a sense of true identity that is impenetrable. 

 

If we only tell someone that they need Jesus while we're fixing them, we're basically saying they're a loser and should become like you and me.  But if we eat with them, if we get close to them as friends and open our lives and share with them what a mess we still are in many ways, then we can show them the goodness of God's grace as fellow sinners in need.

 

 

II.  SINNERS WELCOME JESUS

 

Verses 44-50: "Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, ‘Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.  45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.  46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.  47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven--for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.'  48 And he said to her, ‘Your sins are forgiven.'  49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, ‘Who is this, who even forgives sins?'  50 And he said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'"

 

This story is not only about Jesus welcoming sinners, it's also about sinners welcoming Jesus. 

 

Twice in our passage this morning we're told that the home was the home of a Pharisee named Simon.  Luke emphasizes the location of this party so that no one would doubt where it was happening.  Why do you think Luke does this?  It was Simon's house right?  Simon was the host right?  At least he was supposed to be.

 

Simon didn't give Jesus any water for His feet.  He didn't greet Him with a kiss.  He didn't put oil on His head.  These were all ways in which a host would show honor and affection for a guest.  Yet Simon does none of these things.  Simon is the host who doesn't host the Son of God.

 

Instead, the sinful woman who's not even a guest welcomes Jesus as a true host.  Jesus points out the contrast between the two and shows the difference in their hospitality:

 

  • You gave me no water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
  • You gave me no kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered has no stopped kissing my feet.
  • You didn't anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.

 

Who is the true host to Jesus?  It isn't Simon.  Do you realize what Jesus is saying to Simon?  He's essentially saying to him, "Simon, you may have invited me to be your guest because you were curious and because you've heard a great many things about me.  You invited me in out of compulsion, but this woman has welcomed me in out of affection and attraction.  Simon, I don't want to be merely a curious religious figure to you, I want you to love me and to shower me with the same tears, the same kisses, and the same affection as this woman.  Simon, I'm in your house, but she's the only true host."

 

This woman isn't even a guest.  She's a party-crasher, yet she sees something in Him that allows her to care less what others think of her.  It gives her the courage to walk into a room filled with people that despise her and jeer her and yet she breaks into tears and humbles herself before Jesus and pours out everything she has onto Him as an offering.

 

Do you see what she's doing?  At this time, a woman like her would have had very little leverage.  As someone shamed by her city and identified by her sin, she didn't possess any real power.  Unlike Simon who had his good reputation and his purity to look to, this woman couldn't even think of basing her identity on being good.  But this doesn't mean she didn't have a foundation on which to base her life.

 

What this woman had, she guarded and used to her benefit.  She had desirability.  It was the only power she knew.  Being treated like a piece of meat makes you hardened and calloused.  You begin to use the only tools you know.  You base your life on the very thing you despise, your looks and desirability.  This woman didn't just approach Jesus with words; her repentance is seen by her willingness to offer to Jesus her very foundation for her life. 

 

Perhaps this woman spent many hours brushing her hair so that it was beautiful.  Perhaps this woman spent much time trying to make her face attractive.  We know that the flask of expensive perfume would have cost a considerable amount of money.  Yet she streaks her face with her tears.  She takes her beautiful hair and willingly washes Jesus' feet.  She takes the very essence of her desirability, her perfume, and she breaks it to pour out onto his feet (this was the only way to pour it out because the neck of an alabaster jar was too small to pour).  This woman charges for such affection, but now she sees they are worthless and she transfers her trust in them onto Jesus.

 

She probably hasn't shed a tear of joy in many seasons.  She probably hasn't let her hair down for anyone who truly loved her for many years.  She probably hasn't poured out her perfume like this for anyone or anything.  Yet with Jesus she gives all that she has as an offering to Him.  She takes the tools of her trade and gives them up willingly and with tears of joy to the one who welcomed her in.

 

Look at what Jesus does in these verses.  He turns to this woman and says to Simon "Do you see this woman?"  Because Simon is blind to his true state, he's unable to see the woman.  To help Simon see her, as well as see himself, Jesus first turns towards her and speaks to him.  When we do this, where do our eyes go?  They go to the person Jesus is talking to.  Jesus is helping Simon to see her. 

 

Why?  Why does she do this?  Is it that Jesus said something to Simon and she overheard it?  No, she probably went back to get this alabaster jar, which means that she came to the party expecting to encounter Jesus.  Jesus says that her faith has saved her (v. 50).  There is a reason why she trusts Jesus and responds this way.  More than likely, she's already met Him.  Or, perhaps she heard about His message from another prostitute whom He forgave and she ran to meet Him.  Maybe she heard all about this man that is "a friend of sinners" (v. 33-34).  Maybe she heard Him preaching good news to the poor (v. 22-23).  Maybe she heard that He ate with tax-collectors and sinners (5:29-23).  Either way, she knew that this man welcomes sinners and she runs to welcome Him.

 

What's the difference between these two?  Outwardly, one is clean, pure, respectable, and righteous.  The other is dirty, unclean, impure, and a shameful sinner.  Yet Jesus sees things quite differently.  Simon condemns, Jesus defends.

 

III.  SINNERS WELCOME SINNERS

 

Verses 40-43: "And Jesus answering said to him, ‘Simon, I have something to say to you.' And he answered, ‘Say it, Teacher.'  41 ‘A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?'  43 Simon answered, ‘The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.' And he said to him, ‘You have judged rightly.'"

 

Jesus gives Simon a simple parable to figure out.  He is asking Simon about love.  The point is simple.  If someone forgives you, you will love them.  If someone forgives you a lot, you will love them a lot.  Even Simon understood this point.  This woman loves Jesus a lot.  Her courage, her tears, her affection for Jesus make that clear.  Jesus can say to her with confidence that her many, many sins are forgiven. 

 

Do you notice that Jesus does this in front of everyone?  He's not just restoring her inwardly, He's restoring her publicly.  He's daring to claim He has the authority to forgive her sins and he does this so all can hear.  She probably needed that kind of proclamation over her.  She probably wanted to hear it plainly stated by Jesus.  I'll bet those words rang in her ears until the day she died-"Your sins are forgiven.  Your sins are forgiven.  Your sins are forgiven."  I'm sure Jesus' look of compassion as He spoke this truth over her was burned into her memory. 

 

Do you also notice that Jesus is the one who forgives?  Look, when a stranger walks up to you and says "I forgive you," it means nothing.  Why?  Because you don't know this person, nor do you think you need to be forgiven by a stranger.  You can only be forgiven by the one you've hurt or offended.  By Jesus saying that everyone needs to be forgiven by Him, He's saying that our sin, our offense, is not just in abstraction, it's against Him.  And He's willing to offer forgiveness for anyone who comes to grips with that.  He has the authority to forgive because He is the one to whom a debt is owed. 

 

How does Simon respond?  Simon hasn't even shown the most basic hospitality to Jesus and this woman.  He hasn't shown love.  The only reason is because he doesn't see that he needs to be forgiven, or maybe he only thinks he needs to be forgiven a little, which is why he loves so little.

 

This is why it's not only important that you view Jesus correctly, but that you view yourself correctly.  Pride is the enemy of hope and love.  Simon has no sense of need so he has no sense of grace. 

 

Verse 39: "Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.'"

 

Simon doesn't believe Jesus is a prophet because He can't see what kind of woman this is.  Yet Jesus turns everything around by not only showing Simon that He knows this woman's heart, but more importantly, He knows his.  He knows she has many sins (v. 47).  But he also knows what kind of heart Simon has, and what he's thinking. 

 

Jesus doesn't reject or rebuke this woman.  He welcomes her and lets her continue to pour out her affection on Him.  What provokes Jesus to respond is not the woman, but what Simon thinks.  It's the heart of Simon that provokes Jesus to tell this parable.

 

Jesus sees the heart of this woman and the heart of Simon and He's more disgusted by what He sees in Simon's heart than by what He sees in this woman's heart.

 

This woman's heart is filled with love and faith.  Jesus declares to her that she's forgiven.  But Simon's attitude towards her exposes his heart.  When we are around people like this woman, our heart is fully exposed before Jesus.  We may find ourselves identifying with her and with tears and joy praising Jesus for His grace.  Or, we may find pride and self-righteousness and see that we do in fact desperately need a Savior.

 

We may not have Jesus with us physically, but we do have people like her still with us: addicts, prostitutes, strippers, scam artists, the mentally ill, and the homeless.  Anyone who is socially outcast is like this woman.  Simon couldn't love this woman because he had no grace in His heart.  But if we've been forgiven much, we'll love much.  We can share our lives and our table with anyone because the table of grace has been shared with us.  We can love much because we've been loved much.  We can love much because we've been forgiven much.

 

A Birthday Party for a Hooker

 

Listen to this story by Tony Campolo.  He tells of a time when he was in Hawaii speaking at an engagement.  He lived on the east coast so his body clock was off because Hawaii is six hours behind.  It was 3 am but he felt like it was 9 pm.  He couldn't sleep so he got up and headed out to a diner that was open 24 hours a day.  He sat down and eight or nine prostitutes walked in after working.  Their talk was loud and crude, and it was difficult to avoid listening in. He heard one tell the others it was her birthday the following day. "What do want from me? A birthday cake?" was the sarcastic reply. "Why be so mean?" she replied. "I was just telling you. I don't expect anything. I've never had a birthday party. I'm not expecting to have one now." When Campolo heard this he made a decision.

 

When the women left, he went over to the café owner, a guy called Harry. "Do they always come in here?" "Yes," said Harry. "Including the one who sat next to me?" "Yes, that's Agnes. Why do you want to know?" "Because I heard her say it's her birthday tomorrow and I thought we might throw her a party." Pause. Then a smile grew across Harry's lips. "That'd be a great idea." A moment later his wife was in on the plot.

 

Half past two the next morning. Campolo had brought decorations and Harry had baked a cake. Word had got out and it seemed as if every prostitute in Honolulu was in the café - plus Campolo, a preacher. When Agnes entered with her friends, she was flabbergasted. Her mouth fell open and her knees wobbled. As she sat on a stool, everyone sang happy birthday. "Blow out the candles," people shouted, but in the end Harry had to do it for her. Then he handed her a knife. "Cut the cake, Agnes, so we can all have some." She looked at the cake. Then slowly said, "Is it alright ... would you mind ... if I wait a little longer ... if we didn't eat it straight away?" "Sure. It's okay," said Harry. "Take it home if you want." "Can I?" she said. "Can I take it home now? I'll be back in a few minutes." And with that she left, carrying her precious cake out the café.

 

There was a stunned silence. So Campolo said: "What do you say we pray?" And they did. Campolo lead a group of prostitutes in prayer at 3:30 in the morning. When they were done, Harry said: "Hey! You never told me you were some kind of preacher. What kind of church do you belong to?" Campolo answered: "I belong to a church that throws birthday parties for whores at 3:30 in the morning." Harry waited for a moment. Then he kind of sneered. "No you don't. There's no church like that. If there was, I'd join it. I'd join a church like that." Campolo comments:

 

Wouldn't we all? Wouldn't we all love to join a church that throws birthday parties for whores at 3.30 in the morning? Well, that's the kind of church that Jesus came to create! I don't know where we got the other one that's so prim and proper. But anybody who reads the New Testament will discover a Jesus who loved to party with whores and with all kinds of left-out people. The publicans and ‘sinners' loved him because he partied with them. The lepers of society found in him someone who would eat and drink with them. And while the solemnly pious people could not relate to what he was about, those lonely people who usually didn't get invited to parties took to him with excitement.

 

This story ends with a pronouncement that "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."  This woman doesn't speak the entire story.  Yet Jesus sees the evidence of her saving faith and calls her to shalom. 

 

This message was helped greatly by Tim Chester's series entitled Welcome to the Party as well as his posts on Eating Together as Enacted Grace .  Also, Eating Your Way Through Luke's Gospel by Robert Karris and Contagious Holiness by Craig Blomberg were helpful in putting this series together.  

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