Another individual who missed recognizing Jesus was Simon the Pharisee – Luke 7:36-39

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.”

Simon the Pharisee missed Jesus because he thought he would be more exclusive. Jesus never wanted our sin or our past, to keep us from coming to him. The physical closeness helps us be motivated to “love much” and repent. For us to find Jesus we need to let go of exclusiveness and watch Jesus befriend all types of people. Our churches need to reflect an ease and availability to all who draw near.

Next time, we see how the Apostles themselves almost missed Jesus in Finding Jesus – Part 3.