Luke 7:36-38 NIV
36 When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38 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.
I don't know how many times I read this passage and completely skipped over the word "reclined" and just envisioned Jesus, the Pharisee (and whoever else might be there) sitting on chairs at a table. In verse 38, we read that the sinful woman stood behind Jesus, at his feet. If he were sitting on an upright chair, how could she have been behind him AND at his feet? Why I never questioned this before is a puzzle.
According to Roman custom, tables were set up in a horseshoe with cushions or special couches around them. A diner would recline - lie on his stomach or left side - while eating. Now, picturing Jesus lying on his stomach to eat, we get a different perspective of this story.
Imagine what courage it must have taken for this woman, well-known for being sinful, to walk right into a Pharisee's home while he was having dinner with guests. I think she was there to see Jesus, because she believed he could change her life somehow. She could have walked in the middle of the tables like the servants did, and plead her case to Jesus. She could have apologized and begged for forgiveness to his face. Instead, she shows incredible humility by simply standing behind him, weeping.
Maybe she thought through her tears, "Lord, I am not worthy to be in your presence. I don't want to live this sinful life anymore, but I don't know how to get out. I've heard about what you've done for others - how you've healed and forgiven people, changing them. I want to be changed. I believe that you can change me, but I am so ashamed of who I've become." Falling to her knees, perhaps in desperation, she began wiping his feet with her hair and kissing them. ((Remember, Jesus is on his stomach, so the sinful woman is kissing the bottoms of his feet.))
Then, looking at the alabaster jar of perfume that she had brought, she may have wondered if the gift was enough, coming from someone like her. Even so, she began to pour the perfume all over his feet while she continued to wet them with her tears and wipe them with her hair. In the same way that Jesus knew when the woman with the issue of blood touched his garment, I believe that he felt her heart being poured out as she poured out the perfume. He sensed the love for him and the faith that she had. I think of a worship song:
Here I am Once again I pour out my heart For I know that you hear Every cry You are listening No matter what state My heart is in You are faithful to answer With words that are true And a hope that is real As I feel your touch You bring a freedom
To all that's within In the safety of this place I'm longing to Pout out my heart To say that I love You Pout out my heart To say that I need You Pout out my heart To say that I'm thankful Pout out my heart To say that You're wonderful
Jesus knew her heart. He knew that she longed to be different, to be changed by him. The Pharisee did not, which is why he spoke accusingly toward Jesus for allowing a woman such as this one to touch him. Jesus then told the Pharisee a parable about two men who owed money to a lender. One had a debt of 500 denarii, well over a year's worth of work. The other had a debt of 50 denarii, less than 2 months' worth of work. The moneylender forgave both debts. Who loved more? The one with the bigger debt, of course.
Luke 7:44-48, 50
44 Then he turned toward the woman ((I picture him sitting up, facing her, and touching her face or holding her hands)) 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—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
How astonished she must have been. How grateful and amazed. What a weight that had been lifted from her shoulders to know that all of her sins had been forgiven. And then to make matters even better:
50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Jesus did not tell the woman not to sin anymore. I don't think he needed to. She got the change she was looking for. She was forgiven, saved, at peace, and filled with a love greater than she had ever known. She could ask for nothing more. Her soul was satisfied.
The same could be for you, if you would just pour out.
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