Day 12 - Luke 7:36-8:3

I barely made yesterday's post before midnight. We won't have that issue today:) Let's jump right on in!

Read Luke 7:36-8:3 (find it here)

Even with Jesus calling out the Pharisees during the last post, one Pharisee invites Jesus over to dinner.  (If I were Jesus, I would immediately be skeptical about why I was invited.) Jesus comes in, sits down and, seemingly out of nowhere, an "immoral woman" (most likely meant she was a prostitute) invites herself in, kneels at Jesus' feet and uses her hair to wipe the flowing tears that she drips on his feet.  She kisses and repeatedly puts "expensive perfume" on his feet.

How expensive?

Most scholars agree that the alabaster jar of perfume was worth more than a year's worth of earnings. In today's terms, that would at least be $30,000!  This was, most likely, a family heirloom or a gift that was given to her. Instead of selling it and buying her way out of her lifestyle, she uses it to show her adoration of Jesus.

When we read this story again in John, you'll see that someone else actually speaks up in protest of the use of this perfume. But here, in Luke 7, the Pharisee said to himself, (paraphrasing) "Does he not know who this woman is?"

Jesus responds to the Pharisee's thought with an analogy and a summary question to test his common sense. Simon, the Pharisee (not Jesus' disciple), correctly answers Jesus' question. I can see him rolling his eyes as he knows that Jesus got him to answer the way he wanted.

Now that's not the attention-getter for Simon. It was when Jesus points out how this woman has been much, much more hospitable than he has been. It was customary for guests to wash their feet upon entering any home that wasn't their own.  It was done in appreciation of their travel from their home to the guest's home. Simon ignores Jesus' customary needs, but this woman takes care of that.

Jesus even says that he wasn't greeted upon entering the house. How awkward is that?! Only the "sinful woman" has shown him attention.

Even though the Pharisee was a trained religious leader who despised such a sinner, Jesus proved that God's love is not limited, even to a person who has many sins. Just like before, the Pharisees (there are said to be many Pharisees present now) question his ability to forgive sins but Jesus ignores them (just as he was earlier), focuses on the woman and says that she is saved! She has come, paid a fortune, cried her eyes out and left a new woman, completely forgiven.

Its not a surprise that right after this many woman start to follow Jesus. Stories spread fast. Just a few of those women are listed by name in Luke 8:2-3. These women, like the one who just used a $30,000 jar of perfume, were supporting Jesus and his disciples with their money and resources, as well.  If these women were outcasts or widows, Jesus was definitely the male figure that could give them a good standing in their society.  (Remember, women don't work to support themselves in this culture.) Even though women were never educated or considered as followers of rabbis, that didn't stop Jesus from including them! It was like a huge traveling family.

Its amazing how much influence you can possibly gain by just showing mercy to people, isn't it?


Questions

1.) If you were the sinful woman, what would you have done with the $30,000 worth of perfume? Do you think she made the right decision?

2.) The Pharisees ignore Jesus while the woman shows him a lot of attention. How would you react if Jesus were to come to your house for dinner? What would you do and say?

3.) Jesus ignores the Pharisees, forgives the woman and immediately has a group of women who not only start to follow him but also to care for his and his disciples' needs. Knowing what you know about Jesus and if you were there, would you leave your family to follow him, too?  Why or why not?