Penance Continued

Lk. 7. 36-48; The Repentant Woman:

On one occasion when Jesus was reclining at table in the home of Simon the Pharisee, He again revealed His compassion for sinners and His authority to forgive sin. A sinful woman entered and, kneeling at His feet, bathed His feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair, kissing them and anointing them with fragrant oil. Seeing that Simon was scandalized that He should let a woman like this touch Him, Jesus defended her and said to Simon, “Her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love.” He then said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.” At that the fellow guests began to ask among themselves, “Who is this that He even forgives sins?”

Lk. 15. 1-35; Three Parables of Mercy:

Luke 15, which shows Jesus dining with sinners and pronouncing three parables of mercy, is the richest instruction on mercy in the entire bible. The fact the Jesus, in the context of proclaiming the good news of God’s Kingdom, dined with sinners was itself an act of great significance, especially given the cultural background of contemporary Judaism. It showed that God does not reject the sinner who will accept His offer of renewed hope and friendship. The Scribes and Pharisees criticized Jesus for sitting at table with these violators of the law. In response to their charge, Jesus tells three parables of mercy. Notice the strong theme running through each of them, of great joy in heaven over the conversion of a single sinner.

The first parable is that of a shepherd who had a hundred sheep and lost one of them. He left the ninety-nine to go in search of the one that was lost. When he had found it, he called in his neighbors and said to them: “Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.” Jesus concluded the parable with these significant words: “I tell you, there will likewise be more joy in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to repent.”

Sincerely in Christ,

Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching