We Belong Because of Grace
Canvas: 30” x 48”
Time: Approx. 4 hours
Cost: $1,500
Artist Statement
Keep company with him and learn a life of love. Observe how Christ loved us. His love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn’t love in order to get something from us but to give everything of himself to us. Love like that. Ephesians 5:2 (MSG)
A prostitute, so moved by the love and grace Jesus must have been pouring out upon “imperfect” people in her town like herself, risks it all--she gives her most precious possession when she breaks her alabaster bottle of perfume to annoint Jesus’ feet. Her perfume represents her hope (likely her dowry, the only means of escaping her situation) and she sacrifices it, offering all her hope to Jesus. She senses somehow that Jesus did not reject her as the “perfect” people had done, but accepted her completely from the start. With tears of joy she celebrates his forgiveness, and soon she will start to feel Jesus’ own heart beating inside her chest, and she will see Jesus’ own thoughts in her mind.
On those mornings when I wake up with fear or anxiety, I’m driven to strive for perfection. It’s a powerful motivator to achieving even the goal of making the “perfect” espresso, which gets me thinking (unconsciously) of myself differently--”I’m good enough...maybe even a little better than the rest”-- and my anxiety eases. But, seeing this woman’s utter joy, freedom and celebration, cracks my defenses. In my brokenness I become aware of my desire for that same extravagant, intense and fearless love that she received and gave back to Jesus.
Finally, notice the anatomy of the heart. The descending ventricle carries deoxygenated blood from the woman. The ascending ventricle then returns the blood to Jesus to be oxygenated so that once again life flows back to her. I did not plan for that, and did not realize it until I was later told by someone else! Praise God, He did have a plan all along!