Forgiven Anyone Lately?
Luke 7:36-8:3

Ever heard this one? “I eat peas with honey, / Been doin’ it all my life; / It tastes kind of funny, / But it keeps the peas on my knife.”

Have you ever eaten peas with a knife? I vaguely remember my dad eating some of his food that way. My wife is thankful that it’s one of the odd things my dad did that I chose not to make a part of my life.

Cori Connors told the story of how it came to be a custom in her family in a story she wrote for Guideposts a few years ago. Her mother was often teased for eating her peas with a knife, but it’s the reason she did it that has left a deep impression on Cori and the rest of the family.

Her mom grew up during the Depression and like so many didn’t have very much. The family did have a vegetable garden though and strangers passing through town were often at their dinner table for the evening meal.

Cori’s grandfather, her mother's father, brought home a man named Henry one day. Henry didn’t know much English but he left no doubt of his appreciation. When they sat down for the evening meal the family politely waited for Henry to take the first bite. To their amazement he began to eat his peas with his knife! The children could hardly contain their giggles. A look from their dad that told them to keep it under control helped. But, it’s what he did next that would stick with Cori’s mom. He picked up his own knife and began to eat his peas with it as well. He wasn’t as good as Henry but he stayed at it until he captured every pea.

Cori’s mom ate peas with a knife the rest of her life because it reminded her of her dad’s commitment to treating people with dignity in spite of our differences. She saw what her dad did as a concrete example of what it means to truly accept others. Her children and grandchildren continue the custom to remind them of the importance of accepting others.”1

Paderewski, the great pianist, was invited to attend a piano recital of a friend’s daughter. When the little girl saw the famous pianist in the audience, she froze and was unable to perform her piece. She broke down in tears.
After the recital, Paderewski walked up to her and without saying a word, bent down and tenderly kissed her on the forehead and left.2  

A Pharisee once threw a dinner party. Jesus was invited. Now, houses of well-to-do folks in that day were built around an open courtyard. Meals were often eaten out there when the weather was warm. (The courtyards were sort of the decks or patios of our day.) One of the customs of that day was that when a rabbi was present anyone could come in and stand around listening for the pearls of wisdom that were sure to be spoken.3 Some Bible scholars believe that’s why the woman was there.

Despite the New Testament’s portrayal of Pharisees as these sort of bad guys, they were really regarded as good people – devoutly religious folks. They were committed to living according to the ways of God.

Some have wondered why the Pharisee invited Jesus to his party. Some have suggested that he might actually have been an admirer of Jesus – that he sympathized with him. The fact that the Pharisee was discourteous to him – not offering him the kiss of peace or washing his feet when he entered as was the custom of a host in that day – probably is cause to rule this idea out though.

Others have suggested that he might have invited him in hopes of enticing him into making a comment or performing an unlawful act that would give his enemies the ammunition they needed to bring charges against him. This seems unlikely as well since the Pharisee called him “Rabbi.”

Most Bible scholars believe what was going on was that the Pharisee, whose name was Simon, liked being seen with important people. Thus, they believe he was trying to capitalize on the fame of Jesus.4

Now, Jesus was known for enjoying a good party. Religious people accused him of being a winebibber and glutton. But, the real charge against him was because of the kind of people he often partied with – those known to be sinners.

Take the woman who showed up at Simon’s party. She was one bad girl, folks. Everyone else at the party apparently knew it and Simon was embarrassed by Jesus’ apparent lack of recognition of her unworthiness. Everyone knew she was a woman of the city – a prostitute. She probably wasn’t dressed appropriately for a party at a Pharisee’s house. Her make up was probably a bit excessive compared to the other women present. And then, there were the rules of etiquette she broke – a woman letting down her hair in public was a no-no. Her behavior had to be embarrassing to most who were there: emptying perfume on someone’s feet – blubbering enough tears to use them to wash another’s feet – kissing his feet. The people at the party had to have been more than a bit repulsed.

One bible scholar offers his take on the scene with these words: “Luke goes to great lengths to show the scandalousness of Jesus’ defiling contact with this sinner. Luke paints her actions toward Jesus in the most sensitive, sensual colors. And Jesus has allowed this woman to touch him. The Greek word for ‘touch’ here … can mean, and may mean here, ‘to caress, to light a fire, to fondle.’ Obviously, a kind of scandalous eroticism permeates this encounter, which adds to the general scandalousness of the episode.”5

I think it took a lot of courage for that woman to go to that party. I mean, to go uninvited into the home of a known religious man like Simon; to go when she was neither a member of the family or an invited guest; to go in and know that people were going to point at her, whisper about her and that her actions were going to be met with disapproval, condemnation. It took a lot of courage to do that.

I wonder if she’d have enough courage to attend a gathering of some of Jesus’ followers in our day – you know, a church. In Philip Yancey’s book What’s So Amazing About Grace he tells this really tough story that a friend who works among the down and out in Chicago told him.

His friend told him of a visit from a prostitute who was homeless, sick, and unable to buy food for her two-year-old daughter. While crying she told Yancey’s friend that she rented out her two-year-old daughter to men. She said that she made more renting her daughter for an hour than she could earn in a night. She told of doing it to support her daughter and her drug habit.  (I know, pretty sick, right!?) Yancey’s friend shared how he could hardly bear hearing her story because he was legally liable to report it as child abuse. He said he was desperate for something to say to this woman. And so, he finally asked her if she had ever thought of going to a church for help. It’s what she said next that is why Yancey thought the terrible story important to include in his challenging book: “’Church!’ she cried, ‘Why would I ever go there? I was already feeling terrible about myself. They’d just make me feel worse.’”

“’What struck me about my friend’s story,’ says Philip Yancey, “is that women much like this prostitute fled toward Jesus, not away from him. The worse a person felt about herself, the more likely she saw Jesus as a refuge. Has the church lost that gift?” Yancey asks. “Evidently the down-and-out, who flocked to Jesus when he lived on earth, no longer feel welcome among his followers. What has happened?”6

Friends, if persons who are feeling guilty, ashamed, in need of the grace of God are afraid to enter a church to experience it because they sense all of us who are already in are too good for them – too religious – can’t relate to what they are going through – will judge them – look funny at them – be able to tell they don’t belong – where do they turn? Is there anything we can do to turn it around – to make the church more like Jesus – accepting of the unacceptable – rather than an inconvenient place to find Jesus?7  

There’s no question about it, Jesus sided with sinners whenever the opportunity arose – no matter what the cost might be to his reputation. No matter how uncomfortable it makes us, we have to accept that these stories about a prostitute washing his feet and the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son and the woman caught in adultery and … Jesus opted for a ministry of acceptance. Sometimes it’s just more than we decent people can swallow. But, it’s what motivates a good sound bite like our United Methodist media campaign: "Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors."  It’s not just “a nice advertising gimmick”, as one woman smirkingly whispered during a session of the Annual Conference a few years ago to those of us around her when it was used on the floor during a debate of why membership in the United Methodist Church should be open to all. We need these stories to keep us forever aware that Jesus is on the side of sinners and the church is not the church unless our ministry reflects that.8

That last comment wasn’t spoken first by me despite how passionately I agree with it. The preacher who stated it in a sermon went on to describe an experience he had at his annual conference a few years ago. He had written all the ministers of his conference urging them to support a petition taking what he considers the moral high ground on sexuality issues which was going to go to that year’s General Conference of the United Methodist Church. He went on in this sermon to share an experience he had that I think is one of the dangerous byproducts of our trying to carve out who is in and who is not – who is acceptable and who is not.

Here’s the rest of his account: “A retired preacher was expressing his appreciation for my strong stand, but then he threw me a curve. He started talking about a preacher who had baptized a baby born outside of marriage. There was anger in his voice, condemnation. He used the word ‘bastard’ as a label for this child. And there was venom in his voice as he talked about the father of the baby being present at the baptism. How could the preacher do it? Baptize this baby born out of wedlock and the father allowed to be present.

“I thought I was talking to Simon the Pharisee, and I thanked God he was a retired, not an active preacher. I wondered. Had he missed that throughout his ministry? Open door to whom and to what? Christ is on the side of sinners!”9 All of us sinners, not just those who go to church with us or hold the same moral attitudes or can pass the litmus test of acceptable doctrinal and/or denominational beliefs.

The greatest need we have is to be accepted. Acceptance is so powerful it’s been known to change people. “A child psychologist told about a boy who was brought to him who was labeled ‘incorrigible.’ The child was supposed to be ‘uncontrollable.’ He was moody, and at first wouldn’t even talk to the psychologist. There simply seemed to be no ‘handle’ with which to take hold of him. The boy’s own father, said, ‘This is the only child I’ve ever seen who doesn’t have a single likeable trait, not a single one.’ The psychologist realized this was his starting point. He started looking for some one thing he could approve. He found several. The boy liked to carve and he did it well. At home he had carved up the furniture and been punished for it. The psychologist bought him a carving set, a set of carving knives, and some soft wood. He also gave him some suggestions about how to use them, and didn’t hold back his approval. ‘You know, Jimmy,’ he said, ‘You can carve out things better than any boy I ever knew.’ To make a long story short, the psychologist soon found other things he could approve, and one day Jimmy surprised everyone by cleaning up his own room without being asked. When the psychologist asked him why he did it, Jimmy answered, ‘I thought you would like that.’10

This past weekend we went to see Smurff's 2. I've already admitted on Facebook that I like animated movies - can't wait to go see "Planes" - the grandkids give me excuses to go see them. There were many wonderful one-liners in Smurff's 2, but one is especially relevant to what we're dealing with now. Papa Smurff comments at one point that they didn't accept Smurfette because she changed, but that she changed because they believed in her. That will preach, folks!

Aceptance changes lives. We’ve all seen it happen. When people feel accepted, they find the power to change. I think it’s one of the secrets of Jesus’ ministry. He accepted people just as they were and he changed their lives.

We, the church, are called to be an accepting community in order that people’s lives might be changed. We are not an exclusive club, membership in which is reserved for the already good. The purpose of our getting together is not so we can congratulate one another on how good and righteous we all are. We are those who have been accepted and are committed to passing on that acceptance to others.

Robert Falconer was once witnessing among the destitute people in a certain city. He read to them the story of the woman who wiped Jesus’ feet with her tears. While he was reading he heard a loud sob and looked up at a young, thin girl whose face was disfigured by small pox. After he spoke a few words of encouragement to her, she said ‘Will he ever come again, the one who forgave the woman? I have heard that he will come again. Will it be soon?”

Falconer replied that it would be soon.

After sobbing again uncontrollably, she said, “Sir, can’t he wait a little while? My hair ain’t long enough yet to wipe his feet.”11

I don’t know about you but I crave to be part of a community of faith, or a community of any kind, where people might know they are welcome and able to receive not only the grace of God theoretically but experientially.

1 Cori Connors, Guideposts, “On the Cutting Edge,” March 1997, p. 36.
2 John R. Brokhoff, Lent: A Time of Tears, CSS Publishing Company.
3 William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible: The Gospel of Luke (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1956), p. 92-93.
4 Ibid., p. 93-94.
5 William Willimon, “Jesus: Eating and Drinking with Sinners!,” Pulpit Resource, April, May, June, 2007, p. 54.
6 Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing About Grace? (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1997), p. 11.
7 David Kalas, Emphasis, May/June 2007, p. 55.
8 Maxie Dunnam, “Who Loves More?,” 2006, 0-000-000-400.
9 Ibid.
10 King Duncan, “On Eating Peas with a Knife,” Collected Sermons, Dynamic Preaching, 2005, 0-000-0000-20.
11 Stephen Brown, When Being Good Isn’t Good Enough (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), p. .