Do You See This Woman? Luke 7:35-50 - Seventh Sunday after Epiphany

I always try to be careful about what I say. But sometimes, my face will say things I’d never speak with my mouth.

One such occasion happened when I was supply preaching in a congregation prior to my ordination. They invited me to the social hall for a luncheon following the service. As I went through the serving line, I was greeted by an older woman who asked me if I’d like a piece of her cake. I said, “sure,” and she served me a slice of yellow cake with chocolate icing that was so large, it practically filled an entire dinner plate. 

I mediately noticed that the coloring was a bit off. When I took my first bite, I almost gagged, because it tasted like Palmolive dish detergent. But with the woman seated nearby, I couldn’t cover it up with a napkin and toss it away. I ate a few more bites, and grabbed a salad bowl to cover the plate, so I could take it to-go. 

As I was on my way out, another woman stopped me and asked what I thought of the cake. As I paused to think of how I’d answer her, she said, “you don’t have to lie.” She went on to explain that congregation members tend to avoid eating whatever covered dishes she brings, because she uses way too much detergent and doesn’t rinse it off. 

There are many things I can grin and bear, but Palmolive cake isn’t one of them. Thankfully, I wasn’t coughing up soap bubbles on the drive home, but a bad-tasting cake wasn’t worth hurting anyone’s feelings. 

In today’s Gospel, a Pharisee invited Jesus and his disciples to dine at his home. Soon after, a woman showed up, uninvited, who was known to everyone as “a sinner.” 

She brought with her an alabaster jar of ointment, and used it to bathe Jesus’s feet, and then dried them with her hair. 

Click here to read the Scripture text

Jesus looked up and saw the disgust on his host’s face, as well as Simon Peter’s face, at what Jesus was permitting this “sinner” to do to him. 

He asks Peter, “suppose you have a moneylender who forgives two debtors: to one, he forgives five hundred denarii, and the other, fifty. Who will love him more?”

Peter rightly answers, “the one for whom he canceled the greater debt.”

Jesus then asks, “do you see this woman?”

Let’s consider the gravity of this simple question. Here you have a woman who had been publicly branded “a sinner.” Luke doesn’t tell us what she’d done, but it isn’t hard to imagine the possibilities. I dare not repeat the cruel slurs that get applied to such women.

The fact that she was labeled a “sinner” demonstrates that she wasn’t a person but a parasite within her community. She was unworthy of belonging. She was unworthy of humanity. 

The only way you can truly understand what she was feeling is if you yourself have been labeled with disgrace, whether it’s for something you’ve done or because you’re guilty of being who you are. Either way, you’re different. You’re not one of us; you’re one of them. 

This doesn’t just happen to individuals. This happens at a societal level. People are being labeled with disgrace over who they are, where they’re from, what they’ve done, what they believe in, and so on. They’re not considered people but as parasites. 

Social media has made this problem infinitely worse. At no point in history has bigotry and hatred been amplified at this scale. Labeling other people has become a national pastime. It’s a great way to get likes and shares, podcasts, TV shows, book deals, and win elections. 

The spiritual damage these labels do is especially catastrophic, because when people of power, authority, and influence label you in disgrace, you begin to believe that’s how God has labeled you. That feeling of worthlessness poisons your soul, so that you give up on doing good works. You withdraw from community so that you don’t have to suffer peoples gossip and their disapproving stares. You don’t reach out for help and support, because you can’t bear the being labeled even more.

Jesus puts a stop to this when he asks everyone looking on in shock and disapproval, “do you see this woman?” A child of God? A human being created in God’s image? A sinner just like you? A person in need of saving grace, just like you?

Her acts of lavish adoration and devotion to Jesus demonstrate what Jesus had done for her: not only did he forgive her sins, but he also destroyed her label. He took away her disgrace. He showed her that she mattered to God. He affirmed that she belonged. And for everyone looking on, Jesus obliterated their judgment. 

Jesus didn’t just do this for the woman, he did this for everyone. 

Hearts and minds that that label, belittle, and exclude others are hearts and minds that resist the Gospel. Unrighteousness is exposed in how you treat “the least of these.” This is why Jesus warns, “do not judge, and you will not be judged.” And is it really fair for you to judge someone when you haven’t walked in their shoes? Is it fair to judge someone for acting in response to circumstances you’ve never faced? Is it fair to exclude another person when Jesus has refused to exclude you?

Regardless of who you are, what you’ve done, or where you’ve come from, Jesus sees you. His love eviscerates people’s labels of you; he banishes your shame; he gives you resurrection and rebirth. See the person in the mirror as the child Jesus loves. See the poor, the despised, and the rejected as the children Jesus loves.

Remember who you are, and whose you are, and live accordingly. Love accordingly. Be at peace.