"Keeping Jesus at Lips' Length"

Listen to the sermon from June 16, 2013 by Rev. Rebekah Falk-Jones.In today's gospel reading, we are presented with two types of interactions with Jesus. At first glance, it appears as though the Pharisee is quite welcoming of Jesus. He invites him into his home for a meal. We are not told how Jesus and the Pharisee know each other, but it seems as though the Pharisee is interested in figuring out more about this man he has assumed to this point is a prophet of God. As the evening unfolds, the picture of this scene and Luke's purpose in this passage is revealed through the extravagance of a woman we are told is a sinner.This woman boldly approaches the house of the Pharisee after learning that Jesus will dine there, and comes with the purpose of showing her gratitude, with disregard for her social standing within the community. She is identified, not by name, but by her status as a sinful woman. She is aware of the stigma place upon her, but social etiquette does not keep this woman from nearing the one she desires to show love. She brings an alabaster jar of ointment, intending to anoint Jesus with it. Luke is making a point about the lavishness with which she adores Jesus. As Steven Kraftchick notes, “The use of one's possessions is an indication of the values one holds, including devotion to God.” As she approaches Jesus, she is overcome with tears. She begins to weep and instead of anointing Jesus' head, she comes to her knees and begins to bathe his feet with her tears, kissing him, anointing him, adoring him. What would bring her to such a posture?Much has been made over the centuries about the kind of sinner this woman is, as if it mattered. Much like Simon who has identified her as unclean and clearly not within the righteousness of God, church tradition has sought to identify the kind of sinner she is. Is she a prostitute? The story says nothing about that. In fact, earlier in Luke's Gospel, Simon Peter is identified as a sinner using the exact same Greek word that is used to describe this woman. The type of sin is altogether irrelevant to the purpose of this story and in fact makes the story all the more meaningful.As soon as Simon takes notice of the woman, his thoughts reveal him. His understanding of the righteousness of God is aligned with laws of purity. Surely, this man he thought was a prophet is not because if he knew who this woman was, Jesus would not allow her to touch him. Jesus loves to turn ideas about God's righteousness upside down! The very fact that Jesus discerns Simons' thoughts shows that he is at the very least a prophet. Jesus was waiting for the opportune time to acknowledge this woman and hold her in high esteem, the opposite of how she is currently perceived.The parable Jesus shares about a creditor relinquishing the debt owed by two very different debtors highlights the extravagant generosity of God. He calls Simon out, explaining that her hospitality far outshines his. Simon offered no water for Jesus to wash his feet, which, as Verlee Copeland notes, is really a way of saying, “It's great that you stopped to see me. I'm sorry you won't be staying long.” In other words, Simon is keeping Jesus at least at an arms' length. Whereas by comparison, the woman is as near to Jesus as her lips are kissing his feet. Simon is not so sure he wants to be that close to Jesus. What the story teaches us is that the proportion to which one is acquainted with his or her sin is related to how that one feels compelled to engage with Jesus.That might sound counterintuitive; however, the woman is an example to us of the extravagant love of God. Our sin does not keep us from Jesus. This story emphasizes that our sinfulness does not preclude us from the grace of God. It is the state of our hearts that keep us from being at lips' length from Jesus. Literally, the woman with the alabaster jar is at lips' length, but also, her posture and attitude reveal that her lips are also giving thanks, praise, and adoration to God for the assurance of grace and pardon of guilt. There is grace and goodness in the presence of Christ.The difference between the sinful woman and Simon is the posture of their hearts. Jesus tells Simon that the one for whom little is forgiven loves little. Simon held himself in high esteem, especially in relation to the woman. She is a sinner. He sees himself as righteous and probably without need of forgiveness; hence, he does not have a heart of gratitude toward Jesus. In addition, he doesn't recognize who Jesus is—he doesn't have eyes to see Jesus as holding the authority of God. The woman recognizes Jesus and so her heart reveals her.I think that some of us can relate to Simon because most of us don't like to talk about our own sinfulness. It reminds us of our strict Baptist upbringings that always had us looking at sin and feeling guilty for the most ridiculous reasons. In our case, we might not necessarily think ourselves so righteous as Simon did, but we are afraid of a judgmental, vengeful God who will not greet us with generosity but with punishment in light of admitting our sin. So, we hide ourselves from our sin thinking we can hide from God too.The good news of the Gospel is that Jesus desires to show us mercy. The outcast, those considered unclean, the supposed unrighteous, these are who Luke shows us that Jesus seeks to show mercy extravagantly. Acknowledging our sinful ways, we can receive this generous love of Christ who forgives us readily.Only one who knows and trusts in the goodness of God can acknowledge her own sin without fear and hold the posture of bold adoration. The one for whom much is forgiven loves much. We are not forgiven because we weep over our sin. Because we are forgiven, we have the opportunity to weep in gratitude at the feet of Jesus. The relationship between grace and gratitude can seem confusing, but this text makes it clear that God's love comes first. If we really grasp this, then any fear of the stigma of being a Jesus freak is removed and we bow in humble adoration.The woman with the alabaster jar risked further ridicule among the community as she bowed before Jesus. For us, the stigma of bowing at the feet of Jesus might have less to do with what people know of us and more to do with what people will think of us. Gordon Atkinson shared this image on Facebook the other day, and I had to chuckle a little bit. It is so true, which is why it is humorous. But, thinking about it more deeply, it's a bit convicting. When I saw it, I thought of today's gospel. In this image, I see the difference between keeping Jesus at arms’ length at keeping Jesus at lips' length.Cordial etiquette or lavish hospitality---how do we engage ourselves with the one we call our Christ?  Are we keeping Jesus at a safe distance, either because we think we are righteous enough or because we fear exposure of our sin? Or are our souls acquainted with the generosity of God so much so that we cannot help but fall to our knees and adore him? I hope we can move toward adoration together. This whole story reminds me of an old song: sing it with me. Oh, how I love Jesus, oh, how I love Jesus, oh, how I love Jesus, because he first loved me.