36 When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38 As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.

39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”

40 Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.”

“Tell me, teacher,” he said.

41 “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[c] and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.”

“You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.

44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

49 The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

“Approach”, a simple word that we just do not appreciate. We can approach basically anything at any time, but Covid-19 has shown us a new appreciation for an approach. How do we shake hands? Can we go to grocery store? What about TJ Maxx?  Suddenly “approach” doesn’t seem so simple.

This morning, I can not help but wonder what this sinful woman must have thought as she approached the house where Jesus was. Will he be mad at me? Will he condemn me in front of all his friends? What will he think of my “store brand” perfume (while this perfume was expensive it is more than likely that she had an “entry level” version of it)?

I would be afraid. Truthfully, sometimes I am afraid to approach Jesus. This is GOD OF THE UNIVERSE. Yet, as many of you would agree, sometimes we treat Jesus as a novelty almost like a weekly Santa. I think this is why this story is so encouraging for me. Despite her sin or the surrounding leaders, Jesus receives her approach with gentleness and kindness.

We can focus on the gentleness and kindness, but let’s just acknowledge how great it is for her to be received at all. JESUS RECIEVES YOU WHEN YOU APPROACH. This gives us confidence when we know that our life is sinful, sticky, and spiritually lazy. We can be confident that when we approach Jesus, he will receive us.

There is no better time to approach Him. Today is the day to approach Jesus. He WILL receive you. Do not wait for a better time because there is no better time then the present to rest your soul in the hands of our savior.