Forgiven: No Greater Blessing
Google Images Why would a man invite someone whom he despised to supper? Simon the Pharisee did just that. He invited Jesus to dine with him. But his feelings were clear from the beginning. The accepted custom was for the host to ensure that a servant washed a guest’s feet as he entered: to relieve him of the dust from the road and refresh him for the meal. Simon did not do this (Luke 7:44). Neither did the Pharisee offer a kiss of friendship when Jesus came into his house (7:45). Certainly he never honoured the Lord by recognizing him by anointing him with oil (7:46). The signs were all there. This was an inquisition not an invitation to dinner. But one lone woman messed it all up. How “ a woman who had lived a sinful life ” (7:37) got into Simon’s dining room is a mystery. Mind you, God does move in mysterious ways so it is quite possible that she walked in because God ensured that she was invisible to doorkeepers and servants. Simon saw her and was incensed. Jesus saw her a...