Luke 7:36-50
Jesus Eats with Other Sinners
36 When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38 As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”
40 Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”
“Tell me, teacher,” he said.
41 “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[a] and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”
43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”
“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”
49 The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”
50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Jesus often ate dinner with sinners and tax collectors, according to the Gospels...He was always trying to reaching the lost and the marginal people to help them...The most common explanation of Jesus regularly eating with sinners is that Jesus was on a mission to reach those who were considered outside the fold of respectable society...By sharing meals with them, He demonstrated God's LOVE and how they are included in God's Plan...
Jesus regularly challenged the religious hierarchy of Israel...The religious elite of His time, were the Pharisees and Sadducees, as they looked down on these marginal groups...Jesus' actions challenged their social and religious norms and His association with "sinners" was seen as a provocation...He showed others the opportunity was the true and right thing to do for transforming society in which all are included...And they are to be included wherever they are or wherever they go...Sharing meals was a way for Jesus to connect with people on a personal level and have open conversations with them and about their ideas and plans...This showed them how He cared for them...This could and would create opportunities to teach them and inspire them to change their lives...
Jesus is our example of what it is to be Truly Human...He is our model for compassion, forgiveness, and acceptance...Jesus' willingness to eat with sinners embodied His message of LOVE and acceptance for all people, regardless of their background or past actions...Jesus was fulfilling the prophecy of the Old Testament, by eating with them...Some interpretations see Jesus' association with sinners as fulfilling prophecies about the Messiah reaching out to the marginalized people of the world...
In Jesus eating with others it was an important part of His ministry...Matthew 9:10-13: Jesus eating with tax collectors and sinners, and defending His actions by saying, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."...In Luke 15:1-2: The Pharisees and scribes were grumbling about Jesus receiving and eating with tax collectors and sinners...Jesus responds with the parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin, emphasizing the joy in Heaven of finding those who are lost...In Mark 2:15-17 (parallel to Matthew 9:10-13): This passage describes Jesus eating with Levi (Matthew) the tax collector at his own house, and again Jesus uses the analogy of a doctor needing to be with the sick...Also in Luke: Jesus is invited to the house of a Pharisee named Simon for a meal...A woman known to be a sinner enters the house, weeps at Jesus' feet, and dries them with her hair...The Pharisee criticizes Jesus for allowing this "sinful woman" to touch Him...Jesus defends the woman and tells a parable about forgiveness, ending with the statement, "Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her love shows...But whoever has been forgiven little loves little."...
It's important to note that Jesus' actions in eating with others were very controversial...Some people were drawn to Him because of His inclusivity, while others saw it as a sign that he condoned sin...
Overall, Jesus' meals with sinners were a way to demonstrate God's LOVE for all people, and they challenge the religious hypocrisy of His time and even our times, and they offer opportunities for transformation and a more loving society and culture and country and world...