(Lesson actually begins with reading
Dana Parson’s column of January 22, 1997, from the Los Angeles Times). This
column tells the story of a middle aged woman whose “stable relationship” (10
years) was destroyed by her boyfriend’s visit to, and ultimate affair with, a
stripper. The intent is to paint a more accurate picture of the prostitute
than is painted in the “Suzy Wong” mode of Hollywood today.
Follow with discussion on our
reaction to the stripper. (Ignore the “woman got what she deserved for not
being married.”) And then meet her Biblical counterpart.
(Luke 7:36-50 NIV) Now one
of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the
Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. {37} When 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, {38} and 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. {39} When 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." {40} Jesus 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. {42} Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled
the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?" {43} Simon
replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled."
"You have judged correctly," Jesus said. {44} Then 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. {45} You did not give me a kiss, but this
woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. {46} You did not
put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. {47} Therefore, I
tell you, her many sins have been forgiven--for she loved much. But he who has
been forgiven little loves little." {48} Then Jesus said to her,
"Your sins are forgiven." {49} The other guests began to say among
themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?" {50} Jesus said to
the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
The Woman
The classic interpretation of this
passage is based upon a misunderstanding. We need to understand that a
prostitute in this time was often a widow, and that this was a means of
surviving. Because of the misidentification of this woman with Mary Magdalene,
sometimes also identified as Mary the sister of Lazarus, a sympathetic portrait
of this woman is often given. This is more common today, for we are taught to
approve of prostitution in a backhanded way. Cries of outrage are made that
prostitutes are arrested more often than their customers. (Amazingly enough,
no such outcry is given for drug pushers versus addicts). The reality of the
situation is simple enough. This woman is not a woman forced into a life as
society’s outcast -- she is a sinner by choice (like the rest of us). Her
society rightly condemns her for what she is -- a woman who fractures homes by
plying her “profession.”
And yet, we can see the
reason for which she is esteemed today. There are two key characteristics to
this woman which deserve mention:
·
Her faith. Christ tells her it has saved her, but we can see it
easily in her actions. She believes that he can and will forgive her.
Thus, she will go to any length to achieve this.
·
More than that is the repentance in humility. Every gesture this
woman makes is one of humility, as understood in her culture. It is not too
much to suspect that pride played its part in turning her to prostitution;
now, it is gone.
Indeed, the actions are those of
total humility. Washing the feet was always the task of the lowest servant
A woman kept her hair up in public; to lower it was shameful in public. To
use it to wash a man’s feet was unthinkable. Tears are the sign of
repentance. And finally, there is that perfume -- which we know from history
to be extremely expensive (from the jar). It is said by some that the jar might
represent a year’s wages for the average laborer -- which says a lot about the
wages of prostitution, and the sincerity of her repentance.
Simon
Simon, on the other hand, suffers
from a bad rap. He is not, in my view, the terrible hypocrite portrayed in so
many accounts. Consider this:
·
Simon is obviously a rich man (the party is being held at his
house). He is a Pharisee. If he was so self righteous, why wouldn’t he just
ignore this man?
·
Note the phrase, “If he was a prophet...” Simon is wrong, of
course, but it shows what he had been thinking. This man Jesus must be a
prophet; to receive a prophet in your home is a good thing, a source of
blessing.
In my opinion Simon is suffering
from a common enough malady of the time: “class clash.” Think of it in our
terms: suppose someone asked you to entertain (say, as an overnight guest)
someone from Africa (we have such a woman in our class, of course). At the
appointed hour someone shows up in tribal garb, spear in hand. Do you hand
them a teacup and saucer, or not?
Think then what Simon must have had
on his hand. The visiting rabbi, tefillim about his wrists and
forehead, tassels on his robe, would have been a familiar guest. What is he to
make of this rough carpenter with his country, Galilean accent?
The failing, however, is the result
of leading the “balanced life” so coveted today. The incident shows his
weaknesses:
·
First, he condemns sin -- but also the sinner. He knows right
from wrong, but buckets people that way.
·
He does not recognize the worth of repentance. Repentance is
nothing; “decency” (he would have used the word “righteousness”) is
everything.
The question, then, comes to this:
why?
Jesus
It is an interesting question. If
God appeared to you tonight and announced that Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ,
the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, proposed to visit you in the flesh -- for
dinner, tomorrow night -- what would you do? What kind of welcome would you
give him?
I suggest that the welcome would
vary just as Christ has indicated here. His welcome would vary by
forgiveness. But note Christ’s point:
·
forgiveness does not vary by how much you have sinned, but
·
by how much you have been forgiven.
And here we see the reason for the
lukewarm Simon and the fervent woman. Simon sees himself as basically
righteous. For such minor sins as he might have committed, he knows the
appropriate Temple sacrifices. His sense of obligation for forgiveness, his
relief at no longer being the guilty, is rather small. There are only three
strategies for dealing with guilt:
·
the first is to deny its existence. I didn’t do it; my culture
made it inevitable; it’s in my genes; right and wrong are all cultural (read:
irrelevant) anyway.
·
the second is to deny that I have it: after all, I go to church,
I tithe, etc. I’m righteous; it’s the rest of you that are guilty.
·
the right method? The prostitute has shown us that.
Note that this “right method” is
based on two key characteristics of Jesus:
·
He has the authority to forgive us (as only God has).
·
He has the willingness to forgive us (as the Cross showed).
The Allegory and Interpretation
Most Christians today balk at the
idea of the existence of allegory in the Bible. This comes from the argument
with evolution, in which many liberal Christians said (of the record of Adam
and Eve), “It’s just an allegory.” From this, many conservative Christians
concluded that “allegory” was just a code word for “myth.” To them this was a
rejection of the inspiration of the Scriptures.
There is, however, allegory in the Scripture. Adam and Eve’s account is
allegory if nothing else; Hosea certainly is; Paul clearly uses this method
to interpret the Old Testament in Galatians 4:21-31. Until the twentieth
century, a passage of Scripture was not considered fully understood until the
allegorical interpretation was made. You didn’t know the full story until you
understood the creative artist’s (allegorical) view.
The allegory here is in three parts:
Washing- washing is always
symbolic of cleansing and purifying. Men naturally desire to see God, and to
see him is to see Him in purity. As Abraham washed the Lord’s feet
so the disciple must serve the Lord in pure heart.
Anointing- this is symbolic
of honor being given. Prophets, priests and kings were anointed in the Old
Testament; Jesus is all three. We must honor Christ in our lives, for he is
prophet (holding the future), priest (going between us and God the Father) and
king (and coming again!)
Breaking- the alabaster jar,
cut out of a single stalactite, symbolizes the human heart. Until it is broken
at the feet of Jesus, repentance is not real and forgiveness is not come.
Questions
·
How is it that Simon never attracted repentance, but Jesus did?
·
How can we, the church, the body of Christ, attract such
repentance?
·
How can we, as Christians, show such repentance?
·
Are those last two questions really different?
Thomas à Kempis put it this way:
To You, O Lord, humble sorrow for sins is an
acceptable sacrifice, a sacrifice far sweeter than the perfume of incense. This
is also the pleasing ointment which You would have poured upon Your sacred
feet, for a contrite and humble heart You have never despised. Here is a place
of refuge from the force of the enemy’s anger. Here is amended and washed away
whatever defilement has been contracted elsewhere.