Sunday, February 23, 2025

Theme

This week we will be holding the annual meeting. We will hear from Ministry Teams about the good work they have done over the last year. I like to have these reports as a part of the worship service, during the sermon, because this work and actions are one of the ways that we have preached and lived out the word of God in the last year. We will also hear about the exciting new structure for Ministry Teams, the presentation of the budget, and the annual vote on my Terms of Call. 

In this week’s text, we see that Jesus is used to talking to lots of different people. He is invited to the house of the Pharisee, one of the ruling elite. But while there, he encounters a “sinner” as well.

While the Pharisees have a bad reputation in the New Testament, they were well respected in the first century. Simon inviting Jesus to a dinner is a sign of mutual respect. Often these gatherings were meant for deep theological and ethical discussions. These dinners would be hosted in open courtyards where the community could gather and listen to the debates or conversations, kind of like a first century podcast. However, it seems that while Jesus is invited into this feast, he is not given proper hospitality. He was not greeted with a kiss, did not have his feet washed, or given oil for his head; all which would be customary for a guest being welcomed into an upper-class household.

There is another person, likely a sex worker or at least a ‘loose woman,’ who comes into the courtyard and washes Jesus’ feet with her tears, hair, and expensive ointment. The Pharisee takes this as evidence that Jesus is not indeed a prophet because if he was, he would have known who was touching his feet. This makes sense if you see the world like a Pharisee: full of clean and unclean people, the ones you want to associate with (and raise your status) and those you should avoid (because their low status might rub off on you). But Jesus does not see the world that way, he sees children of God longing for healing and wholeness. So he tells a story about a master with two slaves, one who owes a great deal, and the other who owes little. Both are forgiven their debts, and Jesus asks “which one will love the master more?” All of us are forgiven, some know that they have made many mistakes, and some, like the Pharisee, who thank that they have little (or nothing) to be forgiven of.

I am thankful to God that St. Andrews is a place where we seek to show true hospitality, where all are welcome not as those who are clean or unclean, but as children of the Living God in need of healing and wholeness. I look forward to the year ahead with all of you.

Questions

– If you are honest, do you feel more like the Pharisee or the woman when it comes to forgiveness?

– What have you been most excited about or inspired by this last year?

– What are you most excited about in the year to come?

Reflections:

Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany

Introit: One of two hymns referencing our scripture reading, we use “A Prophet Woman Broke a Jar” as the Introit as only the first verse of this text recalling the biblical witness of women is relevant to the story of the woman who washed Jesus’ feet.

Opening Hymn: Pulling from the them of ‘gratitude’, we sing this hymn of Thanksgiving, a paraphrase of Psalm 111: “A Grateful Heart”.

Transition Hymn: For the month of February is “I Depend Upon Your Faithfulness”.

Special Music:

Responsive Hymn: The other hymn referencing the scripture reading, this popular Korean praise and worship song, is sung in the voice of the woman who washed Jesus’ feet: “To My Precious Lord”.

Sending Hymn: As looked for other hymns to fill out our selections, I ended up focused on the portion of the scripture that talks about forgiveness. From the footnotes of “Forgive Our Sins as We Forgive”; “Few petitions of the Lord’s Prayer are as difficult to pray as this one, and we would dare not pray it if we has to depend on ourselves rather than the example of forgiveness we are given in Jesus Christ.”

Benediction: Our benediction for the month of February is “May the Love of the Lord”.