By Casey and Amy Jones
The podcast currently has 16 episodes available.
Is God only interested in religious or good people? Do you have to be religious to please God? In this episode, Casey and Amy explore how Jesus inverts our expectations about who may come to Him.
This is the second episode in the Stories of Hope Series.
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Text: Luke 18:9-14 | The Pharisee and the Tax Collector
The Knowledge Gap:
Pharisees - 1st Century groups in Israel concerned with keeping ritual purity and protecting the Law of Moses. They looked for a coming “messiah” who would free them from foreign oppression.
Tax collectors - The Romans employed locals to collect tribute and allowed them to overcharge. Many became rich off of their kinsmen; regarded as blood traitors; often disowned and shunned.
God in the Bible - perfectly eternal, self-sufficient, tri-person Creator God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, together as one; never lonely. God delights in personal relationships with humans based on His merciful love. We see God’s mercy in the Bible culminating in the sacrifice and power of Jesus’ death and resurrection. If we receive the Son, he saves us and adopts us as children of God (John 1:12).
Q1 What does this passage say about Jesus/God?
Illustrates Jesus’ teaching “blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3).
God is not Karma (reaping only what we sow) or Fate (once on a path, we cannot leave it). He is a Person who shows mercy to a humbled tax collector, while keeping distant from the proud Pharisee.
Q2 Is there an example here to follow or to avoid?
The marginalized are lifted up and forgiven, because they show humility and recognize their spiritual poverty before God. (Also see episode “Hope for the Rejected:” Mary and Simon (Luke 7:36-50)
Q3 Is there a promise in this passage (stated or fulfilled)?
“Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Christians forget humility is not “thinking less of ourselves; it is thinking of yourself less” (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity). We ask people to look at us and our goodness, instead of God and his goodness. We don’t have to feel like an imposter. The One who made us shows us our true self in Him.
Q4 Is there an instruction to follow?
Jesus’ story reflects Old Testament teachings to “seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God.” (Micah 6:6-8)
We start in brokenness, but God made a way for reconciliation. We are reconciled to God by humbling ourselves (Ephesians 1 and 2). When we realize our spiritual reality, we will feel small and inadequate. In that moment we can turn to God. We walk away from “grown-up” pretensions and come to Jesus like a carefree child (who have no problem receiving free gifts) (Matthew 19:14).
Q5 What do we learn about humanity?
Whether we identify with the Pharisee or the tax collector, both need to get right with God. The flaw is in our heart, and God promises a heart change (Ezekiel 11:19). Our actions and desires then flow from God's abundance, rather than our neediness or scarcity.
We detrimentally cherry-pick parts of the Bible. The Pharisees had the Bible, but emphasized some parts and ignored others to consolidate power. (After Jesus’ resurrection, many Pharisees saw the truth of Jesus in Scripture and believed.)
Q6 Who would you share this story with?
Those trying to understand morality or trying to please God. It shows the aim of the Gospel is to bring the spiritually dead to life, not merely make bad people good.
Those from religious backgrounds that need to do something to gain a deity’s favor to deal with brokenness. It shows that we don’t have to clean up our act before we come to the God of the Bible. Jesus will clean us up when we give ourselves to Him.
For the irreligious, this story challenges the belief that you need merely to justify or believe in yourself. Therapy, mindfulness, or self-talk are not enough to truly deal with our brokenness. Our Creator meets us there and offers new life.
Jesus, a woman with a bad reputation, and a religious man meet at a dinner party. What follows turns everyone's expectations upside down. Join hosts Amy and Casey as they explore this story as found Luke 7:36-50. This is the first episode in the "Stories of Hope" series and the inspiration for this podcast!
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Show Notes:
Series: Stories of Hope
Episode 1 - Hope for the Rejected
Text: Luke 7:36-50 | The Sinful Woman (read here)
The Questions:
Knowledge Gap
This was a banquet in a shame/honor culture. Hospitality was a vital part of life. In this culture, guests of honor would eat together with the hosts. Jesus is seated with honor, but the host Simon showed little honor to Jesus by not offering him the customary cleansing upon arrival. When Jesus allows the woman to touch him and speaks to her, he goes against customs about the separation of genders, as well as possible ritual cleanliness. The woman is named in another book of the Bible as Mary the sister of Lazarus, and after this story she joins Jesus' group of disciples.
"Sin" in the Bible is not a list of "Do Not DO"s, but rather sin means anything that goes against the Creator or creation. As Jesus says in another place, "the greatest Commandment is to love the Lord your God with all you heart, and the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets come down to these two things (Matthew 22:38-40). It was not Jewish custom for even religious leaders to forgive sin. Only God can forgive sins.
What do we learn about Jesus?
He acts with authority and forgives sins. He is acting with the authority of God.
Is there a positive or negative example?
The woman (Mary) and Simon the Pharisee are presented as two reactions people have to Jesus/God. On a human level, Simon appears to have it all together, but he acts wrongly. In contrast, the woman has a bad reputation, but acts out of love. Jesus says through the parable and her actions that she is revealing how much forgiveness she's experienced. This is another example of how God looks at the heart, not the outside of a person (an attribute that is mentioned in the Bible in I Samuel 16:7).
Is there a promise?
Jesus offers a promise of forgiveness, not for a sin or socially unacceptable sins, but for all sin. We see that forgiveness of our brokenness is connected to our reaction to Jesus. Simon is seen as religious, but he treats Jesus poorly as though he owes him nothing. Mary worships Jesus extravagantly in front of people who look down on her. According to the parable, this means that she has experienced forgiveness from God, and implies that Simon and the audience can experience this promise of forgiveness as well.
Is there an instruction here?
The one who receives forgiveness, will love Jesus. Implicitly, Jesus is saying come to me for forgiveness. If we are in Christ, we have peace with him and ourselves.
What can we do with this story? To whom would you share this story?
This is a pivotal story that reminds us all that we need to come to Jesus like the woman. Forgiveness allows us to live fully and full of love. We can share with others that Jesus is not some religious leader, but the God who loves them. He is not the church, but the God a person can come to for forgiveness. Jesus is approachable to both religious and nonreligious people.
This story is a great introduction to Jesus. Jesus was not here to make bad people into good, but he was here to bring the dead people to life. This is the beginning of the gospel.
If you have any questions or comments, please reach out at [email protected]
What is the Christian view on life after death? What do we understand a person to be? Join Amy and Casey as they explore Jesus's claims about life after death. This is the fifth entry of the "Seven I AM Statements" from the Gospel of John.
The Seven I AMs Series
John 11:17-27 - "I am the Resurrection and the Life"
Next Episode: I am the Way, the Truth and the Life
Previous Episode: I am the Good Shepherd
For more information, visit www.bibel-erkunden.de
To leave us a question or comment, email us at [email protected]
Jesus describes himself as the Good Shepherd. What does this reveal about his character and authority? Join Casey and Amy as they continue the "Seven I AM Statements" series from the Gospel of John.
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The Seven I AMs Series
John 10:11-21 - "I am the Good Shepherd"
Next Episode: I am the Resurrection and the Life
Previous Episode: I am the Door
For more information, visit www.bibel-erkunden.de
To leave us a question or comment, email us at [email protected]
Did Jesus claim to be the only way to God? Join Casey and Amy as they discuss Jesus' claims about himself. This is episode three in the series "Seven I AM Statements" from the Gospel of John.
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The Seven "I AMs" from the Gospel of John
"I am the Door" - John 10:1-10
Next Episode: I am the Good Shepherd
Previous Episode: I am the Light of the World
For more information, visit www.bibel-erkunden.de
To leave us a question or comment, email us at [email protected]
What did Jesus mean when he said, "I am the light of the world?" Join hosts Casey and Amy as they discuss one of Jesus' most famous sayings, and talk about what it means to have the light of life. This is the second episode of the seven part series "Seven 'I Am' Statements" from the Gospel of John.
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The Seven "I AMs" from the Gospel of John
"I am the Light of the World" - John 8:12-20
Next Episode: I am the Door
Previous Episode: I am the Bread of Life
For more information, visit www.bibel-erkunden.de
To leave us a question or comment, email us at [email protected]
What does it mean to consume Jesus? Find out how Jesus' students responded to one of his most outrageous teachings.
Join Amy and Casey as they tackle this difficult question. This is the first episode of the seven part series "Seven 'I Am' Statements" from the Gospel of John.
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The Seven I AMs of the Gospel of John
"I am the Bread of Life" - John 6:43-69
Next Episode: I am the Light of the World
For more information, visit www.bibel-erkunden.de
To leave us a question or comment, email us at [email protected]
There's dead, then there's dead. Find out how Jesus definitively showed that even death isn't too powerful for him. Join Casey and Amy as they conclude the series, "Seven Signs of John."
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The Seven Signs of John
Previous: Episode 6 - Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind
For more information, visit www.bibel-erkunden.de
To leave us a question or comment, email us at [email protected]
The podcast currently has 16 episodes available.