David Bahn – Reflections

¹¹ Soon afterward Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. ¹² As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. ¹³ And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” ¹⁴ Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” ¹⁵ And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. ¹⁶ Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!” ¹⁷ And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.

¹⁸ The disciples of John reported all these things to him. And John, ¹⁹ calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” ²⁰ And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” ²¹ In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight. ²² And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. ²³ And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

²⁴ When John’s messengers had gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ²⁵ What then did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who are dressed in splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. ²⁶ What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ²⁷ This is he of whom it is written,

“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
    who will prepare your way before you.’

²⁸ I tell you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” ²⁹ (When all the people heard this, and the tax collectors too, they declared God just, having been baptized with the baptism of John, ³⁰ but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.)

³¹ “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? ³² They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
    we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’

³³ For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ ³⁴ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ ³⁵ Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

³⁶ One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. ³⁷ And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment,³⁸ and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. ³⁹ Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” ⁴⁰ And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.”

⁴¹ “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. ⁴² When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” ⁴³ Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” ⁴⁴ Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. ⁴⁵ You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. ⁴⁶ You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. ⁴⁷ Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” ⁴⁸ And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” ⁴⁹ Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” ⁵⁰ And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Some churches have a sending at the end of the service that goes like this: “Go in peace. Serve the Lord,” says the pastor. The congregation responds, “Thanks be to God!” I have appreciated this sending sentiment. I was reminded of the “go in peace” portion as I read this passage. Jesus forgives the woman of her sins, commends her faith, and tells her to go in peace.

What does that mean?

It does not mean that we’ll never face death or have to deal with grief. Even though Jesus raised the widow’s son, he will one day die. His mother will die. The disciples will die. Jesus will die. We all must face death—unless Jesus returns before we die. We can go (on) in peace even in the face of death because Jesus has power over death. And the young man’s resurrection prefigures Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus’ resurrection has eternal implications for those who believe.

Going in peace also does not mean we’ll never have doubts. John had doubts, and he is the one of whom Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist” (Matthew 11:11). He had doubts because he was languishing in prison even though he was Jesus’ forerunner. Yet Jesus promised a peace that transcends even this dark hour.

To go in peace certainly does not mean dismissing Jesus’ ministry. The Pharisees were decidedly without peace as they saw what Jesus was doing. They were holding to their own power and position. They feared losing their influence at the hands of Jesus’ teaching. We cannot dismiss Jesus’ teaching—be it convenient or convicting.

A life of judgmental condemnation of others is not a life of peace. If we’re constantly worrying about how someone else is living out her faith, we won’t find peace. If all we can see in another person’s life is how God seems to treat him more favorably than us, our hearts will be distressed. If we expect God to conform to our sensibilities we will not experience the joy of the Lord and beauty of his grace.

Going in peace requires that we are humbly aware of our faults, failures, sins, and shortcomings. The widow at Nain, John in prison, and the woman of the city, a sinner forgiven: all knew a peace that passes understanding.

If I am to go in peace I must ask myself a question or two. Is my life aligned with God’s will insofar as it is possible with me? Am I expecting God to align himself with my ideals rather than living in humble faith in his goodness? Do I realize how great a debt Jesus took on and paid for my sins? Do I believe Jesus who said, “In this world you will have troubles. But rejoice! I have overcome the world”? Do I believe his promise, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27)? Jesus’ resurrection greeting, “Peace be with you,” is a blessing we all need and which Jesus freely gives to those who trust in him.