Grades 3-6 Sunday School Lesson
New Testament Women of Faith
The Unnamed Woman’s Faith in Action
Author’s Notes: This week we’ll continue our series on New Testament Women of Faith with a woman whose name we’re never told. What we do know about her is that she was saved by her faith, and lived out that faith for everyone to see. What an inspiration to the world, to encourage each of us to live in such a way that others will see our faith in, and love for our Lord.
Coloring Page for Young Visitors
Opening comments/story:
For the past couple of weeks, we’ve been learning about New Testament women of faith. We looked at Jesus’ mother, Mary, and the faith she had which allowed her to lay aside whatever plans for the future she might have had, to willingly follow the Lord’s plan, instead.
Then, last week we learned about Mary and Martha, and how they still trusted Jesus even when it looked like He had let them down.
Before we look at this week’s woman of faith, let’s take a moment to make sure we first understand what faith is, and what it looks like. Did you know that you can actually “see” faith? We’ll get back to that idea in a minute. But first, who can tell us what faith is? (allow the students to share what they believe faith is, then add the following thoughts about faith)
There’s an old Sunday School song that says, “Faith is just believing what God says, He will do.” A dictionary would tell us that faith is “confidence or trust in a person or thing” or “belief that is not based on proof…”* And The Bible says it this way, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) So faith would mean trusting in someone or something, even though we have no personal proof of how things will turn out.
It’s kind of like deciding that you’ll sit in a chair, and trust that it will hold you up, even if you’ve never sat in it before. (If you can, bring a chair to the front of your class, and invite a student to help you demonstrate faith) What might help you believe that you won’t fall if you sit in that chair? Maybe you have seen others sit in the chair without falling. Or maybe you have carefully examined the chair, and decided it appears to be sturdy and well-made. Whatever the reason, faith is what brings you to the conclusion that you are going to sit in that chair.
But just saying that you have faith that the chair will hold you up does not prove to others that you really believe it. How will others know that you have faith in that chair? They will be able to see your faith when you actually sit down. Sitting in the chair is putting your faith in that chair into action.
And that’s what our lesson today is about. We’re going to learn about a woman who had great faith. Others around her knew it, too; not because she said it, but because she put it into action.
That’s what today’s memory verse is about: putting our faith into action. Others around us won’t know for sure that we have faith in God unless they see some evidence that it’s true. When we get saved, and Jesus becomes an active part of our lives, there should be some outward signs of our faith in the way we talk and the things we do.
So, as we learn the verse together, think about this: if you have put your faith in Jesus to be your Savior, can others around you see that faith in the things you do each day? Here’s our verse -
Memory verse: (Have the children repeat this verse with you several times, until they are able to say it themselves. And encourage them to repeat it to others several times during the week, so that it’ll have a place in their hearts.)
“…I will shew thee my faith by my works.” James 2:18b
Opening prayer: Lord, thank You for each student who’s here, today. And thank You for Your Word, The Bible, where we can learn new truths about You, and Your plans for us. Help each one of us here, today, to be attentive to what You would have us learn. Give us open ears and hearts, ready to listen to Your words. Amen.
This Week’s Lesson: The Unnamed Sinner’s Faith in Action (Luke 7)
(faith is what saves)
We’re going to start today’s lesson reading completely through the Scripture passage first, because the last few verses are very important. And we must understand them to have a better understanding of what happens in the first few verses.
(Luke 7)
36 And one of the Pharisees desired him that [Jesus] would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat.
37 And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment,
38 And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.
39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.
40 And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.
41 There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.
42 And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
43 Simon answered and said, I suppose that he, to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.
44 And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head.
45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet.
46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.
47 Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.
48 And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.
49 And they that sat at meat with him began to say within themselves, Who is this that forgiveth sins also?
50 And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.
The first thing we need to understand about this passage comes in the very last verse. Jesus acknowledged that this woman of faith was, indeed, a sinner. But He also declared that she was saved. What did Jesus say had saved her? Was it the things she had done? No. Jesus wanted to make it very clear that it was her faith that had saved her, not her works.
Sometimes people look at the passage our memory verse is taken from and mistakenly believe that James was saying that we can be saved by good works that we do. But that was not at all what James meant. James used the example of Abraham, and his willingness to obey God by sacrificing his son, to explain that people do things that show their faith. But he was careful to note in James 2:23 that, “…Abraham believed God, and it was [counted] unto him for righteousness;” It was not what Abraham did that saved him. It was his faith in God that led him to be obedient.
And the same is true for our New Testament woman of faith in today’s lesson. Jesus forgave her sins, not because of the nice things she did for Him, but because He could see her heart. He could see the faith that was there, that brought her right to Jesus feet.
But only Jesus could see what was in her heart. Others around her were not able to do that. So let’s go back to the beginning of our passage, and see what the Pharisee saw; and learn the importance of putting our faith into what we do so others will see our love for Jesus, too.
(faith is what’s seen in our actions)
Let’s go back, now, to verse 36 to meet today’s New Testament woman of faith. And learn from her what faith looks like when we put it into action.
36 And one of the Pharisees desired him that [Jesus] would eat with him. And he went into the Pharisee's house, and sat down to meat.
37 And, behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster box of ointment,
38 And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.
39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.
Who had invited Jesus to come to his house for dinner? One of the Pharisees, whose name was Simon. Does anyone know who the Pharisees were? They were religious leaders of the Jews who prided themselves on always following the Law. But somewhere along the way, many of them had lost sight of what it really meant to have faith in God, and they had begun to have faith more in themselves, and the rules they were following. And it was evident in the way they acted.
At a later time, Jesus would confront the Pharisees and call them hypocrites because they did all the things that looked good on the outside, but inside they were full of pride and lack of compassion. They counted on all the “good” things they were doing to earn them special favor with God. But He wasn’t looking at those outward things. He was looking at their hearts… hearts that did not have faith in Him. They were black with sin. And their attitudes toward others, such as the woman at Simon’s house, was evidence of their lack of faith in Christ.
So let’s compare the actions of the two people we have met, and see what those actions say about their faith. A woman, who was known to be a sinner, heard that Jesus was in her town. So she went to the house where He was eating. Do you suppose she felt welcomed there? Probably not, from the reaction of the Pharisee. But she didn’t let that stop her from doing all that she could to show Jesus how much she loved Him. This woman wept in the presence of Jesus.
Why do you suppose the woman was crying? The passage doesn’t tell us. But knowing that she was well known as a sinful woman could lead us to believe that she was overcome by her own sin when she was in Jesus’ presence. And that her tears were tears of sorrow and repentance, as she knelt before the only One who could forgive her for all she had done.
She then washed Jesus’ feet with the very tears she had been crying, and dried them with her own hair. Then, the woman opened an alabaster box that held ointment, and used that ointment to anoint Jesus’ feet. It was the customary for the Jews, as a sign of hospitality, to anoint themselves or others with oil, as a means of refreshing their bodies. It was also done to recognize a person as having been chosen as a priest or king.** So everything the woman did came as an act of love and worship. She recognized Jesus as the One who could forgive her sin. And her faith caused her to act accordingly.
But what about the Pharisee who had invited Jesus to his home? What do his actions show us? We see in the verse we already read that when he saw the woman worshipping Jesus, his first thought was of how sinful a woman she was, not how wonderful it was that she was treating Jesus like a king.
Then, listen to Jesus’ record of what the Pharisee did, upon inviting Jesus into his home.
44 And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped them with the hairs of her head.
45 Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet.
46 My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.
When Jesus entered Simon’s home, he didn’t even extend to Jesus what would have been the common courtesies of their day. Not only did he not offer to wash Jesus’ feet; he didn’t even provide any water for Jesus to wash them, Himself. He also did not anoint Jesus head with oil, another common custom to show that someone was welcome in a Jewish home. And Simon certainly did nothing to show any kind of affection for Jesus.
Why do you think Simon neglected to do these things? They were things that would be done for someone Simon cared for or respected. It must be that Simon felt neither love nor respect for Jesus. The only thing we know that he felt was condemnation for the woman.
Not only did Simon have a judgmental spirit, but Jesus also exposed the doubt in Simon’s heart about who Jesus really was.
39 Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner.
40 And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee.
Had Simon made his comment so that Jesus would hear? No. At least he didn’t think so. He was talking to himself. But that didn’t stop Jesus’ ears from hearing what he said. So Jesus proceeded to share a story with Simon about love and forgiveness, and how one should act when they have been forgiven. Jesus led Simon to the final conclusion that those who have been forgiven the most are the most likely to demonstrate their love, in return.
From what we learned of the actions of the woman, and Simon, which of them acted like they had been forgiven? The woman did. She knew she was a sinner, and had faith that Jesus was the One who could forgive her.
Simon, on the other hand, probably went right on believing that he was doing good things, and had no need for forgiveness. He did not understand that Jesus had come to be his Savior, too. If only Simon could have opened his eyes to the truth, he could have ended the day as the woman did, forgiven and saved… free to go in peace. But instead, he remained lost in his sin and pride.
Simon probably thought that everyone looked at the good deeds he did, and assumed his heart was right with God. But his actions, or lack of them, toward Jesus spoke much louder than anything else he could have said or done. They clearly revealed that Simon’s faith was not in Jesus as his Lord and Savior.
But the woman, whose name we never learn, had her entire life changed that day. The love and worship she gave to Jesus was a sign of the faith in her heart. And Jesus let her know that her faith in Him had saved her.
50 And he said to the woman, Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.
Closing Comments:
What if someone were to follow us around today, to watch everything we did, and listen to everything we said or even thought. What would they conclude about our faith? Would there be evidence that we love and worship the Lord in the things we say and do? Or would it look to others like the person we love and worship the most is ourself? That’s the way it was for many of the Pharisees. All of the good things they did were to bring attention to themselves, not bring glory to God.
James says. “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” (James 2:17) In other words, if we don’t have works that match what we say we believe, then our faith is dead. Let’s really consider, today, whether the things we’re saying and doing point to a real and living faith in God; or if we’re just living to please ourselves.
If we truly love Jesus and believe in Him, as the woman at Simon’s house did, what could we do to show Him our love and faith, today? (allow the students to think of ways they could show that they love and trust Jesus)
As we go through this week, let’s first of all be sure that our faith really is in Jesus, and His death on the cross to save us from the penalty for our sins. Then, let’s live in a way that shows the world how much we love and trust Jesus.
Closing Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for the example of the woman who came to Simon’s house, and showed her faith in Jesus by her acts of love and worship. Help each of us to have humble hearts like hers, and full of faith in You: so full that we can’t help living it out in all that we do and say. For we pray in Jesus’ name, amen.
Activity: (Review Questions)
Fill in the Blanks
True or False
1. Simon treated Jesus’ with worship and respect. (false – he did nothing to show Jesus even basic hospitality)
2. Simon judged the woman to be a sinner. (true)
3. Jesus knew what Simon was thinking, even though he didn’t say it out loud. (true)
4. Jesus told the woman her sins were forgiven. (true)
5. Jesus said He was forgiving her sins because of all the nice things she did for Him. (false – Jesus said her sins were forgiven because of her faith)
*http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/faith?s=t
** http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anointing
Lisa DeVinney