Tuesday: Women of Gratitude and Faith
In Luke 7:36-50, Jesus turned a meal into an event of spiritual magnitude that offered dignity to a sinful woman. Simon, a leading citizen, a Pharisee, invited Jesus for a meal. Invitees seated, there was a sudden disruption: a woman in the city who was a sinner
(Luke 7:37, NKJV) rushed straight to Jesus, broke an alabaster box of very expensive perfume, poured the ointment on Him, bowed down to His feet, and washed them with her tears.
Image © Darrel Tank from GoodSalt.com
What lessons can we learn from the woman’s outpouring of gratitude and Jesus’ acceptance of her act of faith?
When to human eyes her case appeared hopeless, Christ saw in Mary capabilities for good. He saw the better traits of her character. The plan of redemption has invested humanity with great possibilities, and in Mary these possibilities were to be realized. Through His grace she became a partaker of the divine nature. . . . Mary was first at the tomb after His resurrection. It was Mary who first proclaimed a risen Saviour.
-Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 568.
In Luke 8:43-48, a case of supreme wretchedness becomes the object of the Savior’s supreme regard. For so long, this woman had an incurable disease that ravaged her body and soul. Yet, in this 12-year tragedy, a flicker of hope suddenly burst on the scene: She heard about Jesus
(Mark 5:27, NKJV).
What did she hear? A little or a lot, we do not know. But she knew that Jesus cared for the poor; He embraced social outcasts; He touched lepers; He turned water into wine; and above all, He cared for desperate people, of which she was one. But hearing was not enough; hearing must lead to faith (Rom. 10:17). And that faith led her to a simple act of touching the edge of His garment. That touch was faith-driven, purposeful, efficacious, and Christ-focused. Only such a faith can receive the benediction of the Life-giver: Your faith has made you well
(Luke 8:48, NKJV).
It’s so easy to look at people and judge them, isn’t it? Even if we often don’t verbalize it, in our hearts we judge them, which is still so wrong. How can we learn to stop judging others, even in our thoughts, when who knows what wed do were we in their situations?
(33)
In a world of men, Jesus shows compassion to women. Jesus was there for Mary she felt hope and graditude by crashing the dinner and pouring oil on Jesus feet, her tears washed His feet with the oil. Mary used her hair to dry Jesus feet. That to me shows thankfulness, graditude happiness and love for what Jesus said or did to heal her soul.
Jesus means the world to me as I've excepted Him as my persosonal Savior. If it wasn't for Jesus the Father and the Holy Spirit, I Ana-Clarissa Innes wouldn't not be here today. I know Jesus is with me no matter what I go through in life, my Lord Jesus is with me giving me strength.
Just a little touch (via feelings, meditation or thoughts) wrapped with faith is sufficient enough to get saviors FULL attention. At times, I feel unworthy in the eyes of people, and gone astray in my personal endeavors but this lesson teach me a beautiful lesson that ' just a little touch will I be able to capture Jesus' attention. Dear Lord, please help me see You not people in the mist of trials- from You alone I now realize find absolute refuge and love.
"It’s so easy to look at people and judge them, isn’t it? How can we learn to stop judging others?"
Are we being given conflicting instructions, see texts below? On the one hand we are told not to judge one another and a few verses later we are told we will know the good from the bad by their fruits? Paul says as a mature Christian we should be able to discern both good & evil, while the LORD cautions Samuel not to look on the outward appearance only because He looks on the heart.
What is the difference between judging and discerning?
We read over and over again that Jesus when he encounters individuals or groups he makes an assessment of their physical, emotional, spiritual situation and then takes steps accordingly, is this discernment or judgment?
In a court case the judge hears all the evidence and then gives his verdict - guilty or not guilty, he has made a judgement which is bad if you are guilty but is good if you are not guilty. So is judging always bad?
I am very pleased with the gratitude that our Saviour served women with alot of faith and love. Can our men also do so as Christ did?
Not only the men, but can all of us, for women can be judgemental too.
Through this lesson I pray that God makes me more compassionate and less judgmental towards those who appear to be lowly regarded in society, the begger on the street, the unpopular person at work. Help me to value everyone as a potential candidate for heaven.
I think more important here is faith and trust in God always, everything will be easy for us.
What a wonderful Savior! Note in healing a woman (symbol of his church) of a 12 year disease (bleeding sacrifices were not the answer) He goes on to bring to life his new church in the healing of a 12 year old "woman". And voilà his extreme love for his Church is demonstrated! Praise God! God heal your church of its disease, again!?
I am always amazed at the faith of this woman, who despite the odds thought to do the simplest act and was sure she would be saved. Some of us are waiting for mega miracles, direct contact and discussion with the savior! This points to our little faith or the complete lack of it. We should learn that the savior just wants us to believe and we will be saved.
''The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised'' Luke 4:18.
All of us have been impoverished, bruised, shattered in many ways, made captives of, and deceived by sin. Christ is more than willing to deliver, heal and restore all of us. And that is why He gives the invitation: 'Come, and see for yourselves, what I can do for you'... and the more we see the sorry state we are in, the more we are grateful for what He can do and has done for us...and the more He can do for us because we are open to His working on, in and through us.
When someone saves you from death and treats you like a respectable human being in spite of the fact that you are considered by society to be the lowest disrespectful one in the community you tend to have a lot of respect and love for that person. In Mary's case what Jesus said was true of her, "her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little" (Lk. 7:47 NKJV).
An act of kindness where there had only been condemnation and act of love where there was only finger pointing and act of forgiveness and compassion where there was only hatred and self righteousness. I love what Jesus told Simon in His parable. Luke7:41-50.verse 50 says thy faith have saved thee go in peace. Mary Loved the Lord.
Mary was nobody, she had low morals, no one respected her, no one loved her. She was no different from a highly contagious infection. God gave her the opposite of all that. Her tears fell because only Jesus who understood how she felt & only Him who could give her the life, respect, hope and the love she was longing for. Jesus’ words were redemption to her. Mary a woman of gratitude and faith.
I can understand the author's intent in placing the story of the healing of the woman with infirmity in today's lesson, but in my mind, it belongs in the yesterday's. The story of the healing of Jairus' daughter is placed, by Luke - by providence, in direct juxtaposition to the healing of this woman. I don't think the 12 years is accidental. Sharon alluded to this above.
Twelve years before, Jairus' family had a day of joy as his daughter was born. At the same time, this woman entered her agony that was to endure for 12 years. Jairus was a ruler of the synagogue, respected and honored. The woman was unknown, a nobody. Jairus begged Jesus to come to his house. The woman thought not to bother him at all, but just thought to touch the hem of his garment.
Jesus' response to this woman was poignant. Though Jairus was anxious beyond measure, Jesus honored the woman by turning his attention from the first task to giving her what her soul needed. It was never about physical healing.
Do you see the story of Simon and the woman washing Jesus' feet all over again? ... or the story of the widows mite?
None can truly understand how precious Christ is, and the glory of the gospel,
except the broken-hearted.Pharisee, instead of rejoicing in the woman's repentance they thougt of her former bad character, But little did they know about free forgiveness that our gracious Saviour has purchased with his blood,that he may freely put it on every one that believes in him.By a parable,Jesus wanted Simon to acknowledge that the greater sinner this woman had been, the greater love she ought to show to Him when her sins were pardoned.so we learn that sin is a debt; and all we are sinners, we are debtors to Almighty God. Some sinners are greater debtors; but whether our debt be more or less, it is more than we are able to pay its only by the blood of Christ our debt can be payed
And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God.
It is of utmost importance that we are honest and humble in our encounters with the word of God. The word of God is to inform us in order to allow the work of the Spirit to bend us and conform us to God's will and standards.
Do not bend His precepts to fit your ideas or your agenda,the rule is simple..."Do not judge even in the deadliest silence of your heart"...that you have not said it by word of mouth does not make it an non judgemental comment