Verse of the Day for September 19

Jesus is talking to Simon the Pharisee, but in verse 48 he finally turns to the woman. And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven. Up to that point everything had been said about her. Now it is said to her.

That shift matters. She had heard him defend her to the host. But being defended is not the same as being spoken to. Jesus wanted her to hear it with her own ears, face to face.

Look at what each person had. My head with oil thou didst not anoint, he tells Simon. Simon had oil. It was his house, his feast, his servants. He simply did not use what he had for Jesus. The woman brought what she had, ointment, tears, her hair, and poured it out.

Neither of them needed something new. The difference was not in their resources but in their love. And Jesus ties that love to forgiveness: to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.

You may feel you have little to offer God. But you already have something. A voice, a kitchen, a spare hour, a small sum. Love does not wait to have more. The woman used what was already in her hands, and she went home having heard words spoken directly to her.

Jesus does not only speak about the forgiven, he speaks to them.

Love works with what is already in your hands.