Rev Gav

Decision

Luke 7:43-50

Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.”

“That’s right,” Jesus said. Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.

“I tell you, her sins — and they are many — have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”

The men at the table said among themselves, “Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?”

And Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Reflect

Jesus was dining with Simon the Pharisee (a religious law expert) when a woman came in off the street and anointed his feet with perfume. Simon was not impressed! Jesus told Simon a story about two people whose debts were cancelled and asked Simon which person would love the money lender the most. Simon guessed correctly that it would be the one with the bigger debt cancelled.

Through challenging Simon about his own behaviour, Jesus implied that that the woman on her knees was loving him more than Simon, for Simon did not give Jesus water to wash his feet or show that Jesus was special by anointing his head with oil, yet the woman had washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and anointed them with expensive perfume, however it is what Jesus said next that really blew Simon’s mind.

The question had been hanging in the air as to whether Jesus was or was not a prophet sent from God and Simon had also been wondering about this, and through forgiving the woman’s sins, Jesus addressed the question head on. Why was this a problem? It was a problem because prophets did not forgive people their sins — only God did! Jesus offered forgiveness to the woman, the woman responded in faith, and she was reconciled to God — all in the presence of Simon and the gathered guests.

Jesus, by forgiving the woman, had shut down the possibility of him being only a prophet, and the crowd and pharisees now had to make a decision. Either Jesus was a liar, deluded, or sinister — or he was something way bigger, more important, and more special than anyone could possibly imagine.

We are confronted with the same Jesus today, and as each person in this story responded to him in a different way, we also have a choice to make. Who do we think Jesus is? Like the woman in this story, some people choose quickly, others need time to think, and some never come to a conclusion.

Today, decide who Jesus is to you. Accept that Jesus is a good teacher and a prophet sent from God, but also choose to believe that he is God.

What difference does it make to your life to believe that Jesus is more than a good teacher or a prophet sent by God?

Pray

Holy God
My heart and mind are open to you
and my life is in your hands.
Help me grasp who you really are,
that I might receive your forgiveness
and be transformed by your love.
This day and for ever.
Amen.