"Washed in Tears" - March, Lesson 3

​     As promised, here is the third and final online March Learning Together lesson. Turn to the story, “Washed with Tears,” on pages 280-285 of The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones.
     Children: The Important Leader and the Important People at the dinner party were angry when Jesus gently scolded them for thinking they were better people than the woman. Jesus said sinning on the inside, like them, was just as bad as sinning on the outside, like the woman. The Important People were guilty of being outwardly unkind to her and inwardly hateful to Jesus, whom they did not like. Jesus could see their nasty thoughts in their hearts.
     All the Important People did NOT believe that Jesus was the Son of God, so they did NOT believe Jesus could forgive the woman’s, or anybody else’s, sins. And they HATED Jesus for saying that he could.
     Have you thought about the question I asked in last week’s lesson, which is “Do you think you could ever do something to make Jesus not like you anymore?” The answer is … NO! He will always love you because you are His child. Forever. And Ever.
     Adults: The Biblical references for this story are Mark 14, Luke 7, and John 12.
     The Pharisees’ invitation was offered to Jesus because they were trying to gather information they could use against him. That they had actually heard Jesus say he could forgive sins was just the evidence they were looking for. How dare Jesus make the false claim that he is God!
     Simon the Pharisee and the rest drew another equally false conclusion: they chalked up the Lord’s reaction not to evil, but to ignorance. That, however, was proof to them that Jesus could not be who He claimed to be because, the Pharisees reasoned, “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner.” How could Jesus tell them things they did not know if He did not even know what they themselves knew about this woman? After all no sensible religious teacher, let alone one claiming to be the Messiah, would ever allow such a woman to touch Him. The Pharisees was both disgusted by the scene they was witnessing, and at the same time satisfied, because it confirmed their belief that Jesus’ ignorance of this woman’s wickedness was proof that He was not a true prophet.
       The sinful woman poured out her precious alabaster jar of expensive perfume as an extravagant act of love and worship. She recognized the Lord’s true value. How do you express your love, devotion, and thankfulness to Christ for His costly sacrifice?
~This week’s prayer: As a child of God, I pray to be kind outwardly and inwardly to all others. Amen
    On Sunday, March 26, there will be Sunday School right after church services, about 11 a.m. “Washed with Tears” will be discussed and a related craft will be done. You are cordially invited to attend!
Stay safe,
Margo