Sermon on Luke 7:36-50, for the 4th Sunday after Pentecost, "If you had eyes like me..."
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Jesus came to the house of Simon the Pharisee for a feast. It appears that Simon and the other guests wanted to search out and listen to this important new teacher, Jesus, and decide for themselves whether or not He was a true prophet from God. Last week crowds declared Jesus was a great prophet, when they saw Him raise the young boy from the dead. Now the religious authorities are inspecting Jesus’ teaching over a meal. Along with the invited guests reclining at the table, there appears to have been other strangers and bystanders who came in, including one woman standing behind Jesus. She is described as a “ woman of the city, who was a sinner .” Quite unexpectedly, she begins to perform an extravagant act of hospitality and love toward Jesus, to the shock and dismay of Simon, the host of the banquet. With great splashes of her tears falling on Jesus’ feet, she bows before Him with a jar of ointment, and w...