Luke 7:36 -37’And one of the Pharisees desired him that he would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee’s house, and sat down to meat.
37 And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that [Jesus] sat at meat in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster box of ointment’.
A woman who was a sinner heard that Jesus was in Simon’s house and decided to go there. Why was she not afraid? I wonder why? I thought sinners, would run away from God because they are not doing what He want them to do.
Oftentimes when I go out to evangelise, some of the common words i hear from people are: ‘I am not ready’, ‘I used to go to church but I stopped’, ‘there are hypocrites in the church’ etc; and all that these people are trying to say is that, because of my life style which I know is a sin, I am not yet ready to go to God. How come then, did this sinful woman decide to take a step towards Jesus?
The sinful woman knew that Jesus had come to save the lost. As it is stated in Luke 19:10 ‘For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10, KJV)’
We are not to run away from Christ. Whatever sin that makes us run away from the Lord, He came to save us from that particular sin. Will you run away from your saviour? She followed the word that says we should come boldly to the throne of grace ‘Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16, KJV). When we come boldly to Christ, we obtain mercy for our wrongdoings and get grace to do the right things.
But why do people stay away from Christ instead of coming to him like this sinful woman?
It is because of the attitude of some Christians like Simon the leper. ‘Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw [it], he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman [this is] that toucheth him: for she is a sinner. (Luke 7:39, KJV) ‘They see themselves as holy and they think that, Christ hasn’t got room for sinners. They look down on sinners, forgetting that they were once like them and that Christ saved them or, that their journeys in life were not like this sinful woman. Maybe, they had it so easy in life and might have come from a Christian home or might not have been exposed to some of the toxic environments that this sinful woman was exposed to. Sometimes, there are spiritual forces battling people that prevents them from doing the will of God; but because some of those in the household of God have no love – although they think they love people – they do not allow ‘sinful women and men‘ to join them in serving God.
I remember going to a charismatic church when I began university and there were these fashionable clothes from my country and I wore one to church. The worship leader instead of saying hello after service and trying to know me, said something like ’are we doing fashion here’ and walked off. I still have that picture in my mind. Imagine not being rooted in God at that time – what will make me go back to that church? Only the love for Christ will make me go back there. I remember another incident at another charismatic church which I visited with some friends . They were hosting a film about the coming of Christ and was invited by a branch pastor to attend because he used to have bible studies with us. We went for the program and as expected there were many people in attendance. A gentleman who I believe belongs to that branch couldn’t see the screen and he told us to move away so that he could see and he called us ‘on lookers’ who have entered the church to see what is happening. What will make me go back to that church? Only the love of Jesus.
Some Christians are also over righteous, they do not have space in their hearts for the failures of others. They hate them because they are not like them and wouldn’t choose them for anything in their churches because they see them as stubborn, proud and insubordinate. But that could be because these people just do not know how to behave in the household of God, and need people to be patient with them and get to know them. I remember when my husband wanted to go out with me and was advised not to choose me because I was proud and insubordinate and would make things difficult for him. Do you think if I ever had a problem I could go to the person who gave the advise for help after we got married? No, I always had those words in my mind, and it prevented me from seeking help till the Lord showed me mercy and healed me from that condition.
The lesson we must learn from this sinful woman is that, she was at a hostile environment but she did not let anyone stop her from following Jesus. ‘Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw [it], he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman [this is] that toucheth him: for she is a sinner. (Luke 7:39, KJV) She went to the house where Jesus was, she had a gift for him and she gave him the gift.
I don’t know what you have encountered in your journey of wanting to know Jesus, follow this sinful woman, go boldly to the throne of grace. You are the one Jesus died for. You are the one he is waiting to see, so return to him. He paid the highest price for your soul, so don’t allow anyone to stand in the way of your salvation.
We will look at her access into God’s presence next time.
Let pray 🙏
Father thank you that you love me and are always waiting for me to come to you. Today, I ask you to take my life , forgive me for all my wrong choices and wash me with the blood of Jesus.
Amen.
Chara-Joy 🌸 