Jesus At A Pharisee's House

Jesus At A Pharisee’s House

Introduction:

I love to read the stories of the people Jesus came across. In those stories we get a glimpse into the mind of God and see what really matters. We learn how we should treat others and we learn what is most important. I am convinced that one of the reasons that Jesus was put to death was because he didn’t treat people like others treated people. He didn’t spend his time sucking up to the religious elites of his day, but actually paid attention to the sinners and those cast off by society as worthless. I believe we still have a lot to learn for how to treat others and Jesus is our perfect example in that matter.

We can rest assured that no one has ever impacted a society like Jesus did. No one has impacted the world more than Jesus did. He came into the world, he did not write anything that we know of, he was not wealthy at all, he did not travel far from his home that we know of and he turned the world upside down. He did it all by the way he interacted with others. It is this Jesus who has created a buzz in first century Palestine that can still be felt today. To this date millions upon millions of people have been impacted by the life of Jesus. John tells us that if everything that Jesus did was written down that not all the books in the entire world could contain what took place. All he did was love people in a way that was never shown before and that caused people to hate him intensely. Today, people continue to do good and show love in the name of Christ and many people in the world would rather that good not be done, many would silence the message of Jesus even today.

Just think about how Jesus treated people. He interacted with a Samaritan woman and offered her a glimmer of hope despite her trail of broken relationships. While the religious people of his day caught a woman in the act of adultery they were ready to stone her to death, but Jesus intervened and offered a glimmer of hope to a woman marked by sinful behavior. As society cast off its sick and diseased and treated them as second rate people, Jesus came to them and offered them a glimmer of hope. To the man born blind, to the man dying of the dreaded disease leprosy, to the paralytic Jesus offered a glimmer of hope. To the outcast, downtrodden, diseased, and even the demon possessed Jesus came to and loved them like crazy. Jesus’ way was quite a contrast from his contemporaries. Today that same glimmer of hope is given to each and every person alive. It is offered to the sinner who we have brushed off as hopeless, it is offered to the sick, the heartbroken, the old and the young. It is offered to those with pasts full of mistakes and it is offered to those of every tongue and tribe and nation. It is offered to Jew and Gentile, black and white, to every person on the face of the earth there is a glimmer of hope offered through Jesus.

One of my favorite stories in the gospel is the story of Jesus at the home of Simon the Pharisee. This story depicts three main characters: Jesus, Simon the Pharisee and a sinful woman who enters the scene and falls at the feet of Jesus. This story is well known, it shows us a vintage picture of our Lord, it teaches us many vital lessons, and offers us a glimmer of hope. Jesus’ encounter here seems more like a story to be wept over than commented upon. It is in the story perhaps as much as any other I can see myself. Perhaps there is a part of me I see as Simon the Pharisee. The text reveals a little of his thought process and I wonder if Jason Cole, the redeemed child of God would not have similar thoughts to the events unfolding as Simon did. However, in a much greater sense I see myself as this woman, marred by her past, a sinful person that I see in her a bit of myself. Only if we could have the love and devotion towards Jesus that she exhibited.

Text: Luke 7:36-50

I. This Woman Had Some Baggage

You can’t make a trip anywhere without baggage. It would be great if you could go to the airport and travel without baggage because checking your baggage is a pain. I have learned that the easiest way to travel is to stuff everything you have in your carryon luggage. That has several benefits. First, if you have ever traveled anywhere you know that airlines are not the best at keeping up with your luggage. I don’t know why, but sometimes they will fly your luggage on another flight than the one you are on. That creates a problem because sometimes you can arrive to your destination before your luggage arrives. I have done quite a bit of traveling and two times my luggage has been lost. One time I was on a trip to Europe. I checked my baggage in at the airport and flew out. When I arrived I stood at baggage claim waiting for my suitcase to come down the conveyer belt. After about an hour of waiting I got the hint. Finally, two days later my baggage arrived. For two days, I wore the same smelly clothes and had not brushed my teeth because everything was in my luggage. The second time my baggage got lost was on my way home from Italy. Rather than sending my baggage to my final destination of Roanoke, VA, USA. The airline sent my baggage to Rhodes, Greece. Another reason why I would love to have all my things in a carryon bag rather than in luggage you check in is because of the chaos of checking it in. Apparently the airline has developed a system of random baggage searches. I am sure they search anyone who looks suspicious. For some reason I guess I look suspicious. I have been through the rigorous process of being questioned and having your baggage searched through. If you carry a carry on rather than a check in bag the airline sees it as though you have no baggage. That may work with the airline, but it doesn’t work in real life. Ignoring my baggage doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.