Holy Textures

Luke 8:26 - 39

The previous verses had demonstrated Jesus' power over the demons within nature by calming a storm, now we will see Jesus' power over the demons within people by calming a wild man.

The description of the behaviour in verses 27 and 29 is exactly how a possessed person behaves: shouting, naked, living among graves; and how the community responds: isolating, guarding, chaining.

Notice the honorific greeting used to greet Jesus: "Son of the Most High God." When Jesus, asks him his name in verse 30, this is a sign of Jesus' higher status: well-behaved subjects speak first only to acknowledge the sovereign, "Your Majesty," and then wait for well-behaved sovereigns to ask for their name. Giving one's name gives power to control and direct.

The name "Legion" has a double meaning. Literally, it means, "Many, thousands, multitudes." But it also alludes to the occupying Roman soldier legions which numbered 3,000 to 6,000 each. Many Israelites felt the Roman legions were a demonic occupation.

The presence of a herd of swine nearby indicates that this scene is taking place in land used by non-Israelites.

Why are the people of the city afraid of Jesus, instead of welcoming? Perhaps they prefer the stability of demonic occupation by Roman legions to the disruption and destruction that might come with them being cast out?

The man seeks to follow Jesus out of devotion and out of the debt now owed to Jesus for freeing him. But Jesus directs directs him to give his devotion to the one who truly freed him - God. Notice that the man fails to do this and instead continues to praise Jesus.

Questions (from LESSONMaker)

• What situations seem hopeless to you?
• What has been your first reaction when meeting wild behaving, "possessed" people?
• Why did the man beg Jesus not to torment him? What was Jesus doing - or going to do - that would be tormenting?
• In what ways do people today ask Jesus to leave them alone?
• What can you do this week to become more aware of Jesus' ability to help you with your most serious problems? What form do expect this help to take?

Luke 7:36 to 8:3

Jesus! How Could You!

Meal times are rich with assumed, unspoken, expectations and customs. And meals with invited guests are even more so. What food will be served? What drink will be served? Who will sit beside whom? In what order will people be served? What will be "polite" conversation? What thanks are to be offered? To whom? By whom? Etc.

This lesson from Luke both reveals and takes for granted many such meal time customs in Jesus' day.

In Jesus' day, there were no paved roads, no socks, and no running water. So it was an expectation that a host would provide guests with a servant to wash the guests feet on their arrival, and provide some scented ointment for their hair. Meals were served onto low tables, and the guests would lie on sofas, propped on their left side, taking and eating food from serving dishes with their right hands. Only men would eat together. Women would enter the room only to serve food. They would not talk with the men. And as always, a woman would always have her hair covered and would never directly speak to or touch a man in public.

Thus, when the woman in this story comes into the room where the men are eating, she is violating a huge standard of socially respectable behaviour for a woman - just by being in the room.

I wonder why she is weeping? For joy? For sorrow? For loss? For repentance? For relief?

It is shocking what she does. Washing Jesus' feet with her tears. Touching him with her hair. Anointing him with ointment. But then, she is already a woman with a reputation. She has no "good name" left to lose. But what about Jesus? Any proper man would have re-acted with outrage and anger at her behaviour. Any proper man would have absolutely prevented the way she touches him in public. Allowing this behaviour tars Jesus with the same reputation as the woman touching him. And if left unchallenged would bring dishonour on the host as well.

However, an interesting twist takes place. Just as the host is thinking to himself, "Doesn't Jesus know what sort of person this woman is," Jesus tells a story to make plain that he does indeed know what sort of woman she is, and more than that, knows what sort of person his host is as well. Ouch.

Only Luke reports this event in Jesus' ministry. I wonder why? Certainly Luke was from the same social class as the Pharisee in the story. I wonder if this story was particularly poignant for him? Reminding him - and causing him in turn to remind us - that God's care, love and forgiveness is for all - without distinction. But not without inequality. All are forgiven, but not all are forgiven equally because some have greater debts, and God's forgiveness is never partial, never half way, never with a hidden catch. It is always total, whole, full and complete. Ouch. It is good news that my debts are forgiven, but hard to hear that someone else's much larger debt is also totally forgiven.

And yet, it is exactly this good news of God's hospitality being extended to all without distinction that was one of the marks of the new community of those who followed the Way of Jesus. I wonder what our churches would be like if we could fully live this hospitality? I wonder if others would still find that distinctive and attractive?