Do You See This Woman?
Luke 7:36-50 (Part 2)

Baxter T. Exum (#1785)
Four Lakes Church of Christ
Madison, Wisconsin
May 25, 2025

Good morning and welcome! It is good to be together this morning, and if you are visiting with us today (either here in person or online or on the phone), you are our honored guest, and we’d like to ask that you fill out a visitor card – either online or on a card from the pew in front of you. And we also invite you to pass along any questions or prayer concerns in this way as well.

We are here this morning to share the good news that God loves us and sent his only Son to this earth to save us. He died on the cross, he was buried, and he was raised up on the first day of the week. We obey this good news by believing it, by having a change of heart concerning sin, by confessing Jesus as the Son of God, and by allowing ourselves to be buried with Jesus in baptism, an immersion in water for the forgiveness of our sins, at which point our sins are forgiven we are born into God’s family, and God adds us to his kingdom, the church. And as our custom has been, we are sharing some updates concerning what this actually looks like. We start today with some news from Jarrod Pryor, a friend of a friend who has been doing some mission work in Ghana this week. Jarrod’s wife posted several times throughout the week, so I lost track a bit, but several have obeyed the gospel as a result of their work over there, and we are certainly thankful for the good news from Ghana.

This next update comes to us from the Simmons Street congregation in Denton, Texas. They start by quoting Luke 15:10, where Jesus says, “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents,” and then they say that, “Yesterday two souls were added to the Lord's body! Welcome our new sisters in Christ Cerynaty and Jazlyn!”

There are others, but I just share one more today, this one with a personal connection. This one comes to us from the Lord’s church in LaJunta, Colorado. They say, “Welcome our new sister in Christ, Lauren! God bless you!” Many years ago, my father-in-law was stationed in LaJunta, Colorado, at a remote radar site, and as I remember hearing it, his coworker was a member of the Lord’s church and invited him and his family to a vacation Bible school. The seed was sown, and my in-laws were introduced to the Lord and his church and eventually obeyed the gospel. Perhaps in this baptistery; I don’t know. My future wife was only 8 years old at that point, but her life changed for the better when her parents obeyed the gospel. Back in 2012, I believe, we passed through LaJunta together, and there were members there that Sunday who still remembered my wife and her family from nearly 40 years earlier. They had a great potluck dinner that day, by the way, and it was also the first fellowship meal I’ve ever seen that had roughly ¼ of the giant table taped off as being “diabetic friendly.” Very interesting, and probably needed!

But, we are sharing these pictures as our invitation: If you are ready to obey the gospel, and if we can help with that in any way, we invite you to get in touch. You can send a message to info@fourlakeschurch.org, you can give me a call or send a text to 608-224-0274, or you can simply pull me aside after worship this morning, and we would love to help in any way possible.

Over the past several weeks, we have been looking at “America’s Favorite Verse,” where Jesus says, “Do not judge,” a phrase that is often taken out of context. We’ll be continuing in our study of Matthew 7 very soon, but first we are taking a slight detour as we consider “a case study in judging.” Last week, then, we started a two-part series within a series as we looked at an interesting passage in Luke 7. It’s a passage we’ve studied before, and it’s one of my favorite scenes from the life of Jesus – it’s the account of that time when Jesus was invited to dinner in the home of a prominent Pharisee, but a sinful woman comes in and starts washing his feet with her tears.

Before we return to the text of Luke 7, l want to give the reminder, first of all, that the account in Luke 7 is almost certainly different from three other somewhat similar accounts in Matthew, Mark, and John. As I said last week, it’s easy to get these mixed up. What helps, though, is to look at this in a Harmony of the Gospels. When we look at these side by side, we notice that Luke’s account does have some similarities, but it is also quite different. Again, we won’t dwell on this, but we do have two incidents up here: Luke’s comes first (in the middle of the Lord’s earthly ministry), and the accounts in Matthew, Mark, and John take place later (just a few days before the crucifixion).

Secondly, though, let’s remember (again) that much of Jesus’ ministry in Luke revolves around food. In Luke, it seems that Jesus is almost always eating with people, even to the point where it leads to some accusations that Jesus is a gluttonous man and a drunkard. That accusation, by the way, comes just a few verses before the passage we are looking at today in Luke 7. The Pharisees see Jesus eating and drinking, and they accuse him of being“...a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’” So, Jesus always seems to be eating with people, even to the point that they use it against him.

With all of this by way of review, let’s jump back into it by looking together (again) at Luke 7:36-50,

36 Now one of the Pharisees was requesting Him to dine with him, and He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 And there was a woman in the city who was a sinner; and when she learned that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume, 38 and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears, and kept wiping them with the hair of her head, and kissing His feet and anointing them with the perfume. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner.”

40 And Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he replied, “Say it, Teacher.”  41 “A moneylender had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  42 “When they were unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?”   43 Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have judged correctly.” 44 Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.  45 “You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet.  46 “You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume.  47 “For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.”   48 Then He said to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.”  49 Those who were reclining at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?”  50 And He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

This morning, then, we return to this passage where were see some JUDGING going on! Last week, we focused on the fact that Simon the Pharisee had judged this woman to be a “sinner.” In the process, though, we also learned that Simon had already judged that Jesus must not have been a prophet. First of all, though, we really focused in on Simon’s assessment of this woman who had invited herself into his home. In his mind, this woman is unworthy in every possible way.

This morning, however, I want us to move into the second paragraph here, and I want us to really focus in on Jesus’ assessment (or Jesus’ judgment) of the sinful woman. And we start today where we left off last week. Last week, we noted (in verse 39) that the Pharisee, when he saw the woman doing what she was doing to Jesus, “he said [something] to himself.” He said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching him, that she is a sinner.” And what I want to make sure we don’t miss in our transition between these two paragraphs, is that (in verse 40) “Jesus answered him.” What did Jesus answer? Jesus answers a thought! So, the guy (in his own MIND, to “himself”) accuses Jesus of not being a prophet and Jesus answers the thought!

As with last week’s study, we won’t have a traditional outline of this passage, but we’ll move through the text, and one thing we notice right away (besides answering a thought) is that Jesus aims this parable directly at Simon. Jesus would often tell parables (or stories), but this time the parable is addressed to a specific person to make a specific point. So, here is Jesus with this woman who is worshiping, literally, at his feet, and instead of addressing the woman, Jesus instead, directs his attention, first, to this Pharisee who is objecting (in his heart) to what this woman is doing. Remember: Jesus has come to seek and to save the lost (according to Luke 19:10, just a few chapters later), Simon is objecting (in his heart) to Jesus paying attention to the lost, and even in the middle of it, Jesus is reaching out to Simon...who is lost, but doesn’t even know it! And outwardly, of course, Simon and the woman couldn’t be more different – he’s a man and she’s a woman, he is a well-respected religious leader and she’s most likely a prostitute, he is wealthy and she is apparently not. Jesus, though, starts with Simon.

And Jesus tells a parable, a story about a moneylender with two debtors who are both “unable to repay” (and this is important). One man owed 500 denarii, and the other owed 50. Some of you might have a footnote indicating that a denarius was a day’s wage (what a common laborer would earn in a day). It would be hard to translate this into our modern economy, so I might suggest just plugging in what you make in a day (in Madison, on average, somewhere between $300-400 per day) – and on one hand, multiply that figure by 500, and on the other hand multiply that by 50. Either way, we understand that both borrowers owed a significant debt – and both were “unable to pay” these debts. There is a difference between the two, but both are well out of the realm of possibility for the average person – 50 days’ pay for the one, and 500 days’ pay for the other. We may make different amounts per day, but I think all of us understand the weight of a debt like that. We have been in debt. Most of you have been in debt.

Well, Jesus says (in verse 42) that the moneylender, when these two debtors were “unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both.” And by the way, the NASB gets it right here. Some translations refer to the moneylender simply “forgiving” them both. Jesus, though, uses a word that is often translated “grace” (or “gift”). Literally, the moneylender “graced” these debtors. He “graciously forgave them both.” This is clearly a gift. Now, on a related note here: When a moneylender forgives debt, the debt doesn’t just magically disappear, does it? No, forgiving debts like this comes at great personal expense. But this is the picture: A moneylender graciously forgives these two debts, and at this point, Jesus asks Simon a question, “So which of them will love him more?” Jesus, then, is inviting Simon into the parable. The Lord knows that it will mean more if Simon can answer this question himself. But notice how Simon answers. He answers by saying, “I suppose, the one whom he forgave more.” He’s a bit tentative here, isn’t he? Simon is cautious with this answer, because I think he can see where this is going. But, he does answer, and Jesus says, “You have judged correctly.” Remember: This is a case study in judging. Simon has mis-judged the woman, but he has judged this parable correctly. This is like King David getting it right when he was mad about hearing that story told by Nathan the prophet. Like David, at this moment, Simon the Pharisee gets it right.

Now, though, notice what Jesus does. For the first time in this whole account, Jesus “turns toward the woman,” but as he looks at the woman sobbing at his feet, Jesus speaks to Simon. He’s looking at the woman, but he is speaking to Simon, and Jesus says, “Do you see this woman?” Obviously, yes, Simon can see the woman. He has judged her in his heart. But the implication is that no, Simon has NOT seen this woman. He has seen her with his eyes, but he has failed to see her with his heart. To me, then, this is not so much a question as it is a command. In a sense, Jesus is really saying, “Look at this woman!” because he continues by explaining that this woman did for Jesus what Simon should have done. Simon gave Jesus no water for his feet, but she has wet Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. Simon gave Jesus no kiss of greeting, but this woman, since the time Jesus came in, has not stopped kissing his feet. Simon did not anoint Jesus’ head with oil, but this woman anointed his feet with perfume.

And “for this reason,” Jesus says, “her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” Jesus, then, doesn’t minimize this woman’s sin. After all, he refers to her sins as being “many.” However, her many sins “have been forgiven.” Simon, though, doesn’t even seem to see himself as being a sinner at all! In a sense, Simon could see the “speck” in the woman’s eye, all while ignoring the “log” in his own eye. And in this sense, Simon was spiritually blind. The woman, therefore, was forgiven, and Simon was not. Or maybe we could think about it in this way: Who has a bigger problem: An alcoholic who admits he has a problem and goes looking for help? Or the heavy drinker who refuses to admit that he has a problem? Who is in more trouble: A guy who is sick and goes to the doctor? Or a guy who is sick and insists that he’s fine? So also, who is closer to God: A woman who knows she’s a sinner? Or the self-righteous Pharisee who is judging this woman?

Before we move on, we should probably ask ourselves: Which debtor represents Simon? At first glance, we might assume that Simon is the guy who’s been forgiven little. However, is it possible that it’s the other way around? Is there a chance that we have mis-judged this parable? In reality, Simon at this point has a much larger debt than the woman. Simon is truly in debt, and he’s in deep, but he fails to realize it; he fails to admit it. So, which is worse: Being in debt and being aware of it, or being in debt and not realizing it? Then again, we might compare it to a guy drowning in 50 feet of water who looks over and makes fun of another guy who’s drowning in 500 feet of water. So also, Simon may be judging this woman, but Simon has some issues of his own. Simon reminds us, in fact, of the older brother in the Parable of the Prodigal Son. He reminds us of the Pharisee in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.

Finally, and for the first time, Jesus now speaks to the woman, and he says to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.” The Greek scholars tell us that Jesus uses the perfect, not present, tense here, indicating that her sins had already been forgiven at some point in the past, with continuing results. And for this reason, I’m of the opinion that Jesus and this woman have already met at some point. There’s a story here that we don’t know yet. And I’m pretty sure this is why the woman shows up at the Pharisee’s house in the first place. She was perhaps healed of something in the days or weeks leading up to this, Jesus forgave her sins, she heard Jesus was passing through the area again and would be at Simon’s house, and that’s why she shows up with the expensive perfume in the first place. She’s experienced this change, she’s overwhelmed with love and thanksgiving, and she comes to this meal not to eat, but to worship. And that is what she does. She worships, by the way, without speaking a word (at least as far as Luke is concerned). We learn from this that worship doesn’t always involve speaking.

When they see this, Simon and his guests begin saying to themselves, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?” Notice: They don’t dispute that sins have been forgiven here. It’s obvious. But they leave it as a question. They refuse to make a judgment here. Jesus, then, says to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” Simon, on the other hand, has the Son of God into his home for a meal and does everything possible to make him feel unwelcome. Simon misses the opportunity of a lifetime.

Conclusion:

Do we see this woman? And are we more aware of the sins of others (like Simon), or are we more aware of our own sin (like the woman)? Have we acknowledged the depth of our sin? There’s a sense in which guilt over sin is a good thing. At this point in his life, Simon apparently thought he was pretty good, that he didn’t need forgiveness. The woman, though, aware of what she’s done, encounters Jesus, she’s forgiven, and she responds by pouring her heart out before the Lord in worship.

Before we’re too hard on Simon here, I do want to emphasize that Simon doesn’t really come to a conclusion here, and there is at least a small possibility that Simon hears what the Lord says here and that he has a change of heart. And I mention this, because sometimes, when the gospel writers mention someone by name, it’s because they later obey the gospel and become known to those who read those gospel accounts for the very first time. I’m not saying that this is definitely what happens here, but it is a possibility. If you go back to the opening verses of Luke, Luke explains that others have written about the Lord, but that he (Luke) “investigated everything carefully from the beginning” and that he researched his book by interviewing “eyewitnesses.” Remember, Luke is a medical doctor. Luke has done his research. So, with this in mind, I am open to the possibility that Simon may, in fact, be a source for this account. After all, how would Luke know what Simon “said to himself,” and how would Luke know what the Pharisees were saying about Jesus behind the scenes, leading up to this encounter? There is a chance that Luke got this information from Simon himself. And before we dismiss this as being too far out, let’s remember that Luke ends up as a traveling companion to another leading Pharisee, a man by the name of Saul. And as far as we can tell, Saul was much worse than Simon. Saul actually persecutes the church. So, I’m just saying that I wouldn’t object to the possibility that Simon hears what Jesus says here and that he eventually comes around. We do know that God saves not only sinful women, but Pharisees as well, as long as they are willing to come to Jesus.

In just a moment, Caleb plans on leading us in “Just As I Am – I Come Broken.” God loves us, Jesus came to save us, but we must come to him broken, to be mended; we come to him wounded, to be healed; we come to him desperate, to be rescued; we come to him empty, to be filled; we come to him guilty, to be pardoned.

Before we sing, let’s go to God in prayer:

Our Father in Heaven,

We come to you this morning confessing that we struggle with sin and that we need your help. Thank you for forgiving us, for welcoming us into your kingdom, the church. As we head back into the world this week, we ask for your help in judging righteous judgment, looking to ourselves first, and then reaching out in love, just as you continue to do. 

We come to you today in Jesus’ name. AMEN.

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