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Luke 7 – The Woman at Jesus’ Feet

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This passage is as follows:

 

After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.  Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him.  When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant.  And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”  And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.  Therefore I did not presume to come to you.  But say the word, and let my servant be healed.  For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”  When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”  And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.

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Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him.  As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her.  And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”  Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still.  And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.”  And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.  Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!”  And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

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The disciples of John reported all these things to him.  And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”  And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’”  In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight.  And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.  And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

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When John's messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  What then did you go out to see?  A man dressed in soft clothing?  Behold, those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings’ courts.  What then did you go out to see?  A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written,

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“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,

    who will prepare your way before you.’

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I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”  (When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John, but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.)

“To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

 

“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;

    we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’

 

For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’  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!’  Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

 

One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and reclined at table.  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, 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.  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.”  And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”  And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.”

 

“A certain moneylender had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?”  Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.”  And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”  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.  You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.  You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.  Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven - for she loved much.  But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”  And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”  Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?”  And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

 

(End of Passage)

 

What was chapter 6 about?

 

Chapter 6 was about the teachings of Jesus.  It has some of the beatitudes, some examples, and then Jesus says that the one that hears his words and does them builds his life on a solid foundation.  So, how can we summarize the teachings of Jesus?

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  1. Good news!There is forgiveness and you can grasp the kingdom of God.You can enter it now.

  2. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

 

When we come to chapter 7, as we will see, the focus changes a bit.  It does little to answer the question, “What did Jesus teach?” but more to answer the question, “Who is Jesus?”  We can see who Jesus is by his actions.  Let’s look at the first action of Jesus in this chapter.

 

Verses 1-10,

 

After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.  Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him.  When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant.  And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”  And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.  Therefore I did not presume to come to you.  But say the word, and let my servant be healed.  For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”  When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”  And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.

 

Now there were different ranks of Centurions in the Roman army.  They were commanders and they could have anywhere from 100 to 500 men under them.  Things could be said about the Centurion’s faith, or his love for the people in Israel since he built a synagogue for the Jews there.  The key point of this story is that he saw that Jesus could command things such as healings to happen even without being present.  What does the Centurion recognize Jesus as?

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        A healer?

        A miracle worker?

        A commander of illnesses and spirits?

        God?

 

Let’s see what the next action of Jesus is in this passage.

 

Verses 11-17,

 

Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him.  As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her.  And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”  Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still.  And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.”  And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.  Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!”  And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

 

Now Nain is a town in the district of Galilee that is about 5 miles Southeast of Nazareth.  Now the man who had died was being carried on a bier.  Below is an example of a bier similar to what the bearers were using to carry the widow’s son that had died.  The one below is from the 19th century, but the ones in the first century were much like this.  There would be a mattress to lay the body on and a cloth would be draped over the 4 posts that are at each corner running along the length.

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Notice that the Lord had compassion on the widow.  Jesus came up and touched the bier.  This caused the bearers to stand still.  Jesus commands the young man to arise.  The young man sat up and started talking.  I wonder what he talked about.  I remember that one time, my step son that had severe asthma had to be put into a drug induced coma so they could put him on a breathing machine.  After a few days of this, it was decided to take him off the coma drugs and the machine and see if he could breathe on his own.  It was a very tense moment.  We prayed and waited, then we prayed and waited some more.  His mother and I and all his brothers and sisters were there.  Then suddenly he opened his eyes and looked at his oldest sister and said, “Michelle, could you get me some French fries from Burger King?”  We all laughed and were very happy.  I can imagine that this widow’s son rising from the dead was a million more times happier than when Steven came out of his coma.  Here this young man was dead and on the way to be buried.  So what did these people recognize Jesus as?

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  1. A great prophet.

  2. God visiting them.

 

The next thing that Jesus does is answer a question from John the Baptist.

 

Verses 18-35,

 

The disciples of John reported all these things to him.  And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”  And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’”  In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight.  And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.  And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

 

When John's messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  What then did you go out to see?  A man dressed in soft clothing?  Behold, those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings’ courts.  What then did you go out to see?  A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written,

 

“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,

    who will prepare your way before you.’

 

I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”  (When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John, but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.)

 

“To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

 

“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;

    we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’

 

For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’  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!’  Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

 

Why did John send out 2 of his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the one they are expecting?  In John 3:28, John says that he is not the Christ, but was sent before him.  In John 3:30, John says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”  That was before John was in prison and sent disciples to Jesus to ask this question.  So, it is not that John didn’t know who Jesus is, but more that he is sending his disciples there so they will know who Jesus is.

 

What does Jesus’ answer reveal about himself?  Jesus says, “The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.”  This is a reference to a Messianic passage.  Isaiah 35:5-6, “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.”  So Jesus is pointing to himself as the Messiah.  How does Jesus reveal who he is when he talks to them about who John the Baptist is?  John the Baptist was a prophet, but not just any prophet.  Jesus references Malachi 3:1, where it says, “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me.”  So, what is Jesus claiming here?  He is claiming to be the Messiah, but even more than that because in Malachi 3:1 it quotes the Lord as saying that the messenger will prepare the way before himself.

 

What did Jesus mean when he said that the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than John?  When Jesus talks about greatness at first, he is talking about before the final kingdom.  By saying that the one who is the least in the kingdom of God is greater than John, he is talking about in the present order of things.  So, Jesus is saying that in the present order of things, there will be people even greater than John.  Then, Jesus makes a delineation of people.  He mentions that all the people, even tax collectors, declared God as righteous because they were baptized with the baptism of John.  But the Pharisees and the lawyers did not get baptized by John and thus rejected the counsel of God.

 

Who are the people of this generation in the next paragraph?  He is specifically talking about the Pharisees and lawyers that rejected God.  They are like little children playing games and expecting others to do what they want.

 

What prime example does Jesus give?  They criticized John the Baptist for fasting and preaching and said that he had a demon; and at the same time they criticized Jesus for eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners.  So, no matter what you do, they are going to criticize you.  What does it mean that wisdom is justified by all her children?  It simply means that the fact that great crowds followed Jesus shows that there is true wisdom in the message of John and Jesus.

 

Chapter 7 has one more example of Jesus’ actions that tell us more about him.

 

Verses 36 – 50,

 

One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and reclined at table.  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, 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.  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.”  And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.”  And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.”

 

“A certain moneylender had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?”  Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.”  And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”  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.  You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.  You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.  Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven - for she loved much.  But he who is forgiven little, loves little.”  And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”  Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves,

“Who is this, who even forgives sins?”  And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

 

Now, in the other gospels, this event takes place about a week before the crucifixion.  Because Luke puts this here, a long time before that, does that means it is a contradiction?  No.  Luke is telling these stories in an orderly fashion, a logical fashion, not necessarily in chronological order.  In chapter 7, Luke is telling about who Jesus is through the actions that Jesus did.  This story is a powerful event that tells us much about who Jesus is.  So, a Pharisee asks Jesus to come over and eat with him.  A woman, who is noted as being a sinner, finds out and comes over with a flask of ointment.  We find out from other gospels that this ointment is nard, an expensive perfume that even today would cost about $17,000.00.  Now, she stands behind Jesus’ feet, weeping, wetting his feet with her tears and wiping them off with her hair, kissing his feet and then anointing them with the ointment.  The Pharisee says to himself that if Jesus was a prophet, he would know that this woman was a sinner.  Now how do you say something to yourself?  Don’t you usually just think it?  Jesus somehow hears him saying this to himself and has something to say to the Pharisee. 

 

What does Jesus say to the Pharisee?  First Jesus tells him a parable.  A money lender has two debtors. One owes 50 denarii, another owes 500 denarii.  A Denarius was about a day’s wage in that time.  The money lender forgives both debts.  Jesus asks him which debtor will love him more.  The Pharisee gets it right.  Then Jesus compares him and the woman to each other.  The Pharisee showed Jesus no love.  The woman showed Jesus much love.  Jesus makes a point that her many sins are forgiven.  He turns to the woman and says, “Your sins are forgiven.”  The people there say among themselves, “Who is this, that even forgives sins?”

Now, what does this even teach us about Jesus?  Who can forgive sins?  Only God can forgive sins.

 

In summary of chapter 7, we see the following 4 actions of Jesus that tell us who he is:

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  1. Jesus heals a Centurion’s servant without even being there.

  2. Jesus raises a widow’s son from the dead.

  3. Jesus equates John the Baptist with the messenger that is to prepare the way of the Lord.

  4. Jesus forgives the sins of a sinful woman.

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What do these things point to?

 

The fact that Jesus is the Lord God.

 

Now, what else do we know about this story of the woman that washed Jesus’ feet with her hair and tears?  We know that wherever the gospel is preached, that this story is also told.

Song: Alabaster box by CeCe Winans

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