Fides | Faith

He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” – Luke 7:50 (WEB)

 

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When reading through the gospel of Luke, it is quite interesting to see that Luke had a particular interest in outcasts and women as well.  Luke mentions women who are not mentioned anywhere else. One of these is the incident of an unnamed sinful woman who anointed Jesus’ feet in the house of a Pharisee.

In Biblical times, women had a less important place in Jewish society. However, Jesus frequently reversed the conventional rules of society. This raised the eyebrows of the Pharisees and many others.

The verse that stood out for me from this passage in Luke 7 is verse 50: He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” The question comes up: if the woman’s faith saved her, what did the woman believe that saved her? From Luke 7 we can see that she believed that if she just came to Jesus as a repentant sinner, Jesus would not send her away. This woman probably heard that Jesus welcomed and received sinners. Maybe she was among the multitudes and heard Him preaching. She believed that He would not send her away. He did not. 

Reflecting on this passage, there are some lessons we can take from this unnamed woman:

First lesson: be at the feet of Jesus. The feet of our Jesus Christ are frequently mentioned in this passage of Luke 7:36-50. Sitting at the feet of Jesus means we acknowledge His greatness and wants to be His disciple. Mary “sat at Jesus’s feet and heard his word” - Luke 10:39. In Jewish tradition, “sitting at the feet” was what a disciple had to do. In Acts 22:3, the apostle Paul tells us that he was educated “at the feet of Gamaliel.”

Second lesson: be focused on our Saviour. This woman was focused on Jesus Christ and knew how important it was to be focused on Him. She was focused on Him, and Him alone.

Third lesson: it is not always just about receiving something from our Lord Jesus Christ. Here this woman was giving her gift of ointment, worship, tears and time to Jesus Christ.

Fourth lesson: words are not always necessary. The worship of this woman was without one word. It is possible that she spoke to Him, but Luke did not record any words. Sometimes, the most honest worship may be wordless.

Fifth lesson: be not hindered and wait for perfect timing. There were many reasons why this woman could have stayed away from Jesus. She was most certainly not invited to the Pharisee's house. She was not wanted and unworthy. But despite all the possible reasons, the woman was not hindered and did what she needed to do: to see Jesus. She showed up despite all the uncertainties. No situation should ever keep us away from Jesus Christ. 

This woman came to Jesus Christ in uncertain conditions. However, she did not postpone until the conditions were more ideal or more certain, or when she had a better situation in life, or when she had more time. She did not stay away. She knew what was important. At the end, she could go and live her new life, saved and in peace.

Jesus says “Come to me, all you who labour and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest”. – Matthew 11:28

Reflection on Luke 7:24-50 by Hanne Teach

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