There was a woman who was said to be of “ill repute”, a prostitute. We only know that she came to Jesus full of true contrition for her sins while Jesus dined at the house of a pharisee. I imagine that earlier that day or at least quite recently, she had encountered Jesus. Being a prostitute, her encounters with men were probably very superficial and the conversations, possibly, inappropriate. Had she ever been loved by any of those men? Did any care about her as a person? Perhaps her reputation was too tarnished for any man to consider her. Perhaps, when she met Christ, she sensed the difference. Maybe He Looked at her, even for a millisecond. She would have felt His Goodness, Love, Purity. She also must have sensed He could really see her, and all that she had done. She probably could have done as Judas did, and let despair get the best of her. Instead, she allowed herself to experience the full breadth of her sin, leading her to feel such remorse and guilt. But, unlike Judas, she knew there as hope and she boldly presented herself to only One who had the power to forgive her. It must have taken a lot of courage to enter the house of a pharisee, uninvited, and no doubt, not looking her best. She would have felt the eyes of condemnation and contempt. If Jesus rejected her, it probably would have broken her spirit. She had every expectation that He would not. She received not only forgiveness, but was rewarded with a new life, new spirit and she would serve as an inspiration for every woman, every sinner, every marginalized person.
44 Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look! See this woman kneeling here! When I entered your home, you didn’t bother to offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You refused me the customary kiss of greeting, but she has kissed my feet again and again from the time I first came in. 46 You neglected the usual courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has covered my feet with rare perfume. 47 Therefore her sins—and they are many—are forgiven, for she loved me much; but one who is forgiven little, shows little love.”
Luke 7:44-47