Sermons

Introduction

So, let's turn this morning to Luke chapter 7, Luke chapter 7. I know Michael was here last week, and the first thing I done after I got home from church last week was listen to Michael and see was he going to steal my thunder, and he done such a great job in setting up this morning's message as you guys have been working through the book of Luke. So let's read what Michael preached last week as context and then the verses that we will consider this morning. Luke chapter 7, and we're going to read from verse 36. 

Luke 7:36, "One of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him, and He went into the Pharisee's house and reclined at table. And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that He was reclining at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed His feet and anointed them with the ointment. Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, 'If this man were a prophet, He would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.' 

"And Jesus answering said to him, 'Simon, I have something to say to you.' And he answered, 'Say it, Teacher.' 'A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he canceled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?'  Simon answered, 'The one, I suppose, for whom he canceled the larger debt.' And He said to him, 'You have judged rightly.' Then turning toward the woman He said to Simon, 'Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave Me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss My feet. You did not anoint My head with oil, but she has anointed My feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.' And He said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.' Then those who were at table with Him began to say among themselves, 'Who is this, who even forgives sins?' And He said to the woman, 'Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'" Amen. This is the very word of the Lord. Let's bow and let's pray and ask for God's help as we come to His word. 

[Prayer] Father, we humble ourselves in Your presence and acknowledge this morning that we are bowed in the presence of Almighty God, that You are the creator of heaven and earth, that You are the self-existent God who has need of nothing. You certainly don't need any one of us. But what a wonder, Father, that You choose to reveal Yourself to us and commune with us and speak to us. We long this morning as we open Your word to hear the voice of God Himself. Lord, we know that in and of ourselves we can't understand these things, so we need the illumination of the Spirit of God. So, Father, will You take the word of God and will You illuminate it to us by the Spirit of God that we might understand, and that we would leave this place this morning, Father, desiring to live lives that are worthy of the gospel. Will You teach us today? You know the needs of each of our heart, those needs that maybe only we know. We thank You that Your word is sufficient, so speak to us from it. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. [End] 

As we come this morning to these verses in Luke chapter 7, we are continuing to eavesdrop in on this most fascinating dinner party at the house of Simon the Pharisee. Last week you began looking at this passage and you remember and you see that the Creator of the universe, the Savior of the world is dining in a room of curious critics. And yet, as this room is filled with the guests of Simon the Pharisee and the many bystanders who crowded the scene, none apart from one saw Jesus for who He truly was. Everybody was there inquiring, trying to put their finger on who this most mysterious man was, and most were there with a critical spirit. 

But there was one there, a notoriously sinful lady whose looks so graciously labels as simply a woman of the city, a great sinner, and she knew exactly who Jesus was. And she wasn't there with a critical heart, but she was there with an adoring heart; and she knew Jesus not by intellect, but she knew Him by experience. And having stepped out of the shadows, she had done something that had stunned the room. Breaking all social and hospitality protocols, she silently stepped forward, she kneels behind Jesus, and she washes and she anoints His feet. And what was a remarkably courageous act of worship attracted collective scorn from the room, not least from the host. And yet in the verses that follow, in verses 40-50, Jesus not only defends the actions of this woman, but He explains them, and He uses the life of this woman as a lesson to all who were in the room, especially to Simon. 

If you're looking for a title for the message this morning, you could use this one. Jesus heals her actions as a fruit that follows forgiveness: "The Fruit that Follows Forgiveness." You see, this lady had had her life transformed by Jesus, and the actions that seemed absurd to those in that room, Jesus says they were actually admirable. They were tangible evidence that she was truly a follower of Christ. They were telling expressions of loving gratitude. And so Jesus will use the actions of this woman to show Simon, and to show all of us this morning, that there is fruit that follows true forgiveness. 

Those in the business world talk about ROI, a return on investment. And Jesus here presents this woman as Exhibit A of a return on investment. As Jesus has moved in her life and as Jesus has just transformed her life, He points to the actions that she performs and He says, "This is the return on My investment. These are the actions that follow forgiveness." You see, folks, you need to understand this morning that a work of grace leads to works of gratitude. A true work of grace leads to true works of gratitude. 

You see, for the Pharisees, like Simon, their relationship with God was all about strict religious protocols and self-righteous piety. All their actions were rooted in legalism. They were bound dutifully to the law, and yet the unconventional actions of this woman, they were rooted in love, and they were bound devotionally to the Lord. 

As you and I this morning sit before the word of God and as we examine our lives, I want to ask you a question this morning, as I have asked myself, "Has forgiveness given birth to fruit? Has a work of grace led to works of gratitude? Is a love for Christ the driving force behind all my labors for Christ?" That's the challenge of the second half of this scene. And this morning, we're going to walk through this text from Luke 7:40-50, as we pick up the rest of the scene. We're going to look at it under four headings as we consider the fruit that follows forgiveness. 

‍A Striking Answer

Let's look, first of all, in verse 40 at what I've called "a striking answer, a striking answer." Look at verse 40: "And Jesus answering said to him, 'Simon, I have something to say to you.' And he answered, 'Say it, Teacher.'" 

Now, Simon is a stereotypical Pharisee, he's one who is looking to indict Jesus. There's been a lot of talks surrounding his identity. He's the talk of the town wherever he goes. He's a most mysterious man, everybody just trying to put their finger on who this guy is. And there were two main thoughts. 

If you glance back into chapter 7, verse 16, there were those who thought He was a prophet, those at name, for example, when He raised the widow's son. It says in verse 16, "Fear ceased them all, and they glorified God, saying, 'A great prophet has risen among us!' and, 'God has visited His people!'" And so there were those who concluded, "Who is this man? Well, He's a great prophet, likely sent from God." 

On the other end of the scale in verse 34, Jesus Himself offering commentary on how He's been receptive in the community. Well, they think He's a deadbeat. If He's not a prophet, He's a deadbeat. Jesus says, "The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look at Him, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and of sinners.'" And so Simon the Pharisee, he's going to settle this matter in his mind: "Which one is He?" So, what does he do? Well, he's going to get to know Him over a meal and he's going to invite Him into his house, and Simon's going to work out who this man truly is. 

And then this incredible incident takes place. This lady steps forward. She washes Jesus' feet. And what does He do? Absolutely nothing. It's stunning to the Pharisee. And this gives the Pharisee, or so he thought, all the evidence that he needed to deliver his verdict. He's got it. He's cracked the case of Christ. 

And so, look at verse 39. That's where Simon delivers his verdict. "Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, 'If this man were a prophet He would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner.'" Simon's smug. Simon's got it. Five minutes in the house with Jesus, he knows exactly who He is. He's a deadbeat. He had seen enough to discard Jesus as having any kind of spiritual or social credibility: "This isn't a guy we need to worry about, certainly not sent from God." 

Jesus' seeming ignorance is what indicted Him. If you were to look at verse 39 in the original Greek, it literally would be something like this: "If this man were a prophet (which He absolutely isn't), He would have known (which He clearly doesn't) who and what sort of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner." Simon writes Jesus off, "This is no prophet. If He was truly a prophet sent from God, He would have known exactly who this woman was, and He wouldn't have permitted for it. He wouldn't have stood for it." And so he's smug and he's satisfied and he's vindicated, "Jesus is no threat." And this is the setup that makes verse 40 such a striking answer. 

Now, look at it again, verse 40: "And Jesus answering said to him." What? Hang on. Whoa. Simon didn't say anything. Did you notice that? Look at verse 39. Simon didn't speak. Simon thought he was being cute; he kept his smug assessment to himself. Look at what it says: "He said to himself." He didn't dare vocalize it, he maintained his pious posture. He didn't dare vocalize his conclusions out loud. 

How ironic that the man who knew nothing apparently seems to know everything. How ironic that the man who knew nothing apparently seems to know everything. What do we find here in verse 40? Simon has been confronted by omniscience. This was a prophet. This was the Prophet of all prophets. This was the One who was more than a prophet. This was the omniscient God-man, and Simon didn't see it. 

And Jesus, in His striking answer to Simon's silent question in verse 40, is showing that He not only knows the kind of woman who washed His feet, but He knows the kind of man who was judging her, and He knows the kind of man who was judging Him. You see, there was nothing that Jesus needed to learn. He knew both the history of this woman and the heart of this Pharisee. Why? Because He's the one, as Acts 1:24 tells us, who knows the heart of all. He's the one, as the Psalmist says, who discerns our thoughts from afar. He's the one that, Jeremiah concluded, searches the heart and tests the mind. He knows. 

You know, this fact, folks, this morning should bring both great comfort and great conviction. It should bring great comfort to you this morning. If you have a history like this woman, Jesus knows. Jesus knows. Jesus knows. And I love this: when the accuser of the brethren who so often is there and he comes along and he whispers in our ear and he stands before God and he says, "Look at her," or, "Look at him. Do You not know what they have done?" And the accuser constantly, as believers, he brings charges against us and he brings them to the throne of God. And do you know what Jesus does? When the accuser of the brethren comes, He says, "I know." 

What a blessing this morning, folks, that no evidence can be brought to God that He hasn't already examined. What a blessing this morning that we can say with Paul in Romans 8, "Who shall bring any charge against God's elect. It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn Christ Jesus, the one who died; more than that, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who is indeed interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" Does it not encourage you, folks, this morning that He knows our flaws, that He knows our failures, that He knows our shortcomings, that He knows our sin, and praise God, it was while we were yet sinners that He died for us, that no charge can be brought against us because Jesus already knew everything about us. And He said, "And everything I know, I'm still choosing to die for them." That's why, folks, this morning it's always futile to try and hide who we truly are before God because He knows. He knows if you have a history like this woman. But He knows—and here's the conviction side—if you have a heart like this Pharisee, Jesus knows. 

‍A Searching Analogy

How's your heart this morning before the Lord? Is it cold? Is it critical? The one that we greet with a smile on our face but a scorn in our heart, Jesus knows. And I wonder this morning as you sit in God's house this morning, is there bitterness against a believer that needs to be dealt with? Jesus knows. He knew the heart of Simon, and He knew the woman that he was judging. Everything that follows is then a direct answer to Simon's attitude; and rather than immediately rebuking Simon, Jesus leads him on a journey of self-awareness because a striking answer in verse 40 leads, in verses 41 through 43, to a searching analogy, "a striking answer leads to a searching analogy." 

Verse 41, "A certain money lender had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they could not pay, he counseled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?" Simon answered the one, I suppose, for whom he counseled the larger debt." And He said to him, "You have judged rightly." 

Jesus now proceeds to tell a short parable with a simple premise: two debtors find themselves unable to pay a creditor. If you look at verse 41, they both owed a debt: one owed five hundred denarii, that was five hundred days wages for an ordinary laborer—that's like a year-and-a-half, that's a big amount. The other owed fifty denarii, that was fifty days labor or two months wages. Now it's obvious that Jesus is drawing parallels from this parable. God is the creditor, and the woman and Simon are the two debtors. The woman is the greater debtor, and Jesus is trying to show Simon that he's the lesser debtor. And in one way, Jesus is using this parable to level the playing field. And the first thing that Jesus wants Simon to see, and it's so important that we all see it, in verse 41, is that they were both debtors. 

Look at what it says: "A certain money lender had two debtors." Now their amount differed, but their status was the same. And that's why in verse 42, the amount becomes somewhat irrelevant. Why? Because look at what it says: "When they, they could not pay." The amount becomes irrelevant because neither of them could pay. They were both powerless and penniless debtors who found themselves at the mercy of this money lender; and in that day, money lenders weren't merciful. 

Really what Jesus wants here is he wants Simon to see his true state before God. You see, Simon not only had a wrong assessment of the present condition of this woman, but he had a wrong assessment of his own condition, didn't see himself for who he was. You see, he was in his mind an upright Pharisee. He was the epitome of exemplary righteousness. In his mind, he was the absolute antithesis of this woman. 

You know, back home in the '90s we had a sitcom—I will be surprised if anybody has heard of it, although it is the BBC's largest exported sitcom. It's called Keeping Up Appearances. You may have your own version of it. It's a sitcom that followed a central character, an eccentric and snobbish, middle-class social climber called Hyacinth Bucket. But she convinced everyone that she was Hyacinth Bouquet. 

The sitcom follows Hyacinth in her attempts to prove her social superiority and gain standing with those that she considered upper-class. We call it "keeping up with the Joneses." And her attempts are constantly hampered by her lower-class family whom she desired to hide because she had started from lower-class roots, and she still, in many ways, was. And much of this humor comes from the conflict between Hyacinth's vision of herself and the reality of her underclass background. And every episode is built around the idea that she lands herself in some farcical situation battling to protect her social credibility. She never dared to acknowledge who she truly was. There was no connection or correlation with the lesser lower-class. Her life was consumed with keeping up appearances. 

And that was Simon. He was desperate to hide who he truly was. His life was all about keeping up religious appearances. And yet, the Lord leveled him. And, sure, he hadn't sunk as deeply into sin as this woman, but he was still a debtor to God. The difference between him and the woman was that she knew her true condition before God. And, folks, I want to say to you and me this morning, it's a dangerous place to be in when we lose sight of our true condition before God, when we find our righteousness in ranking ourselves to other sinners, "I'm not as bad as him, or I don't have the past baggage that he has or she has." 

If I, as gentle as I can, just level us all this morning, every single one of us in this room is a debtor to God. Whether we've been cradled in church or the worst criminal in the world, we're all debtors to God. We're all unable to pay, no matter how small we think our debt is before God. What does that hymn say? "Not the labors of my hands can fulfill Thy laws demands." 

Look at verse 42. What happens? What does the money lender do? Well, it says, "When they could not pay, he canceled the debt of both." That word "canceled," such a tremendous word, it literally means "he graced the debt of both." He chose to express undeserved, unmerited favor on both these debtors. Instead of exacting punishment, he extended grace. 

Now, it's so important, folks, that we don't misunderstand what the word "cancel" means. It doesn't mean to ignore or forget. That's a much too simplistic way of thinking about forgiveness. This creditor had to absorb those debts himself. It was out of his own money that he had lent them, and it was of his own assets that he would recover this debt. He took the debt to himself, and he took it upon himself, and by himself, he satisfied the demands of himself. It was all of himself. 

What a picture of the gospel. If you're not here, if you're here this morning, and you don't know Jesus Christ as your Savior, this is what God in Christ has done for us. We are all debtors to God. Every single one of us, religious or irreligious alike, we need forgiveness. We need one to pay God on our behalf; and the one who pays God on our behalf is God Himself. I wonder this morning, if you're not a believer, do you realize that you're in debt to God and you can't pay that debt yourself. You need a Savior, and His name is Jesus. Don't be like this Pharisee. Don't rank yourself, and look, find your righteousness in yourself; but look to Jesus Christ, the one who's able to save you. 

The point where this analogy gets even more searching is when, in verse 42, Jesus asked Simon the pointed poignant question, "Now which of them will love him more?" What a question. You see, what Jesus is doing here is in asking that question and contained within it is the idea of a response. In other words, what Jesus is saying is, "In light of this forgiveness, who would you expect to be the one to display the most gratitude?" In other words, if someone's forgiven, there's gratitude, right? 

Simon says, "Well, I suppose, the one who's forgiven more." And he says, "I suppose," because maybe he's uneasy, or realizes he's trapped, or the penny's starting to drop. He's like, "Uh-oh, if I'm forgiven, there's nothing in my life to show it." You see, Jesus is continuing to lead Simon into self-awareness, and Simon needs to understand that great gratitude is the normal response to great grace. He needs to understand that the actions of this woman are not abnormal, but they're expressions of a great sinner who's got a great love for a great Savior. 

‍A Stinging Application

Verse 43, I love this: "Simon answered, of course, 'The one, I suppose, for whom he counseled the larger debt.' And Jesus said to him, 'You have judged rightly.'" Isn't it ironic? This thing's saturated with irony. But isn't it ironic that Simon judged the analogy right but reality wrong? Jesus has got Simon with his own words to essentially declare that the fruit that follows great forgiveness is loving gratitude, and Jesus is going to show Simon the true difference between him and the woman is not social affluence but spiritual affection. And that's the thing that marks us as believers, not social affluence, but spiritual affection, which brings us to our third point. We've seen a striking answer, and a searching analogy. Look at verses 44-47 where Jesus presents "a stinging application, a stinging application." 

"Then turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, 'Do you see this woman? I entered your house, and you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave Me no kiss, but from the time I came in, she has not ceased to kiss My feet. You did not anoint My head with oil, but she has anointed My feet with ointment. Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she love much. But he who is forgiven, loves little." 

Jesus is going to turn the screw a little bit more as He presents the stinging application of this parable. In verse 44, I love how it begins: "Then turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, 'Do you see this woman?'" If you look at verse 39, "Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw the woman, this." Simon had looked once at this lady in disgust. He had sneered at her. And Jesus here in verse 44 says, "Simon, look again at this woman. You looked the first time and you came to the wrong conclusion, so I want you to look at her actions again. Walk through them in the light of the parable I've just disclosed, and while we look at her, let's contrast her actions with yours." Uh-oh, this isn't going to be pretty. 

In seminary, my Greek professor does this thing, which I wish he didn't do. You take an exam. We just had our midterm. And he says, "On Thursday I'm going to give them back and we're going to walk through them." And I'm like, "Why? Can I just be like the Lord and forget my past transgressions? I don't want to see where I've went wrong, it's just painful." You can imagine Simon going, "Lord, do we have to walk through this?" 

You see, in verses 44-46, Jesus again breaks social protocol and He does something that nobody would ever have done and He criticizes the hospitality of His host, and He begins to expose some of the flaws in Simon's greeting, and He sets out three actions. Now, we need to understand that the three actions that Jesus mentions, they were customary, but they weren't compulsory, okay? They were the things that you should do, but they're not the things that you must do when you invite a guest into your home. 

Now, hospitality was a big thing in that culture. However, if one had had a guest that he had any kind of respect for, he would have at least performed these three things. He would have least provided water for their feet or had a servant. And Simon, being probably affluent, would have had a servant who should have washed Jesus' feet. That was the right thing to do. Not only would you have provided water, but you would have greeted the guest with a customary kiss on the cheek. It was a mark of courtesy and friendliness and welcome. Can I just say this morning, I'm grateful for a handshake. We don't need to do holy kisses, okay? That was then, that's not now; handshakes are great. 

But that's the kind of same thing: you shake their hand. Since I've got here, a bunch of you—I've known what Southern hospitality is. You've shook my hand. You've welcomed us. It would be kind of weird to just land in and just have nothing. And so, Simon here, it's as if he didn't even shake Jesus' hand. So, he didn't wash His feet. He didn't even shake His hand. And he didn't provide inexpensive oil, which was like olive oil, that would have been given for the guest to moisturize or refresh their face, which was perhaps dried out from the sun or dust, and so he hadn't done these basic things. So although Simon technically did not do anything wrong, he in no way went out of his way to welcome Jesus or show Him any honor or respect. 

By contrast, this woman who was a visit her nonetheless, not the host, she also breaks all kinds of social protocol. She risks her reputation; she takes the place of a servant and she humbly cares for Jesus' feet. She focuses on His feet. That was the place where servants focus. And she washes them not with ordinary water, but with her tears. She kisses them in an act of homage, and she anoints them not with simple oil but precious perfume. There couldn't be two greater contrasts. 

Verse 47 gets to the point that Jesus has been trying to show Simon: What do these actions prove? This is the pinnacle of Jesus' point. "Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much." What do these actions prove? They prove her forgiveness. And by the way, just a little side note. Did you catch the nod again to the omniscience of Jesus? He said, "her many sins." He's just kind of digging into Simon again: "By the way, I do know her. Here's the thing: I know her many sins, and they're forgiven her." Her actions of lavish love were the fruits that have followed forgiveness. Jesus is showing Simon what a truly transformed life looked like 

Now at first glance you might read verse 47 and you might conclude that this woman has earned her forgiveness. You could read the verse that way, that Jesus has rewarded her love to Him with forgiveness. But that's works-based salvation and not found anywhere in the Bible. That's not at all what Jesus is saying. Rather, what He's saying here is that it's evident that this woman's many sins are forgiven because she loves much. Her actions simply prove her pardon. 

In fact, if you were—I learned something in Greek, okay, not very much, but I learned a little bit—that if you look at the little term "are forgiven," or maybe your Bible says, "have been forgiven already," it's in the perfect tense. In other words, this is not her conversion. Her forgiveness had already happened sometime prior perhaps on another ministry occasion. Maybe it was the day before or the week before or the month before. Literally it could be rendered "having been in a state of forgiveness." 

Darrell Bach, the commentator, says, and he uses this great analogy, "We say it is raining because the windows are wet. That does not mean that the water in the windows is the cause of the rain, but rather the water on the windows evidences the presence of rain." And that's the sense of the sequence of actions in this verse. Love evidences an awareness of, a reception of, and a response to previous forgiveness. Because of her forgiveness, she loved much. This is 1 John 4:19 in action, "We love" – why? – "because He first loved us." She's loving Christ because He first loved her. 

Let's be honest this morning. I've wrestled with this honestly. Can the same be said of us? Is He truly the one our souls love? You see, this ought not to be the reaction of only great sinners who have been forgiven of many sins. And certainly it's natural for a sinner who's been redeemed from the debaucherous life to be filled with great gratitude for grace of God's transformation. And Simon's answer was right: the one generally who's been forgiven from an evil and wicked life loves more. We see it in Sunday nights in Grace when they're baptizing, and you'll get somebody occasionally who's been saved from such a terrible life, and they break down and they're just so grateful for the grace of God in their life. So the principle is true. But here's the thing: it shouldn't only be relegated to them. 

You see, backing up to the parable—listen, folks, are we not all debtors to God this morning? It's easy to conclude that our conversion isn't that big of a deal. Simon, like so many of us, didn't appreciate his debt. He didn't get the fact that he too needed grace, that his little debt was still enough to send him to hell. You think about that? 

You know, for so long—I'm so grateful I grew up in a strong Baptist church at home. I was carried into church by believing parents. I have a conversion story. I don't remember when I got saved. I was a child. I never lived in the world. I didn't have any—and for such a long time, I refused to give my testimony because in our church—and you probably know what this is like. You have people come on a Sunday night, and you have the drunkard or somebody from just a wicked life and they tell their story and the transformation, and I used to sit there and think, "Man, I can tell my testimony in five minutes," and it's like, "Wake me up when it's over." That's how I thought. And I remember being rebuked. And a man said to me, "Your testimony is greater than anybody else's because God saved you from that life. Yours is a great testimony. Thank God that you didn't end up in the depths of those sins." 

Listen, folks, if you have been cradled in church and never known a wicked, wayward life, I want to tell you the sin that you were born with is still enough to send you to hell. Are we grateful? As we examine our lives in light of this stinging application, what do they say about our love for Christ? Do our actions communicate adoration, and perhaps more importantly, is adoration the motivation for our actions? Do our actions communicate adoration, and is adoration the motivation for our actions? Let me give you this from J. C. Ryle. It's quite long, but he says it better than I can, so let's listen to him. 

He says, "No stronger proofs of reverence and respect could she have given, and the secret of her giving such proofs was love. She loved our Lord and she thought nothing too much to do for Him. She felt deeply grateful to our Lord and she thought no mark of gratitude too costly to bestow on Him. More doing for Christ is the universal demand of all the churches. It is the one point in which all are agreed, all desire to see among Christians more good works, more self-denial, more practical obedience to Christ's commands. But what will produce these things? Nothing, nothing but love. There will never be more done for Christ till there's more hearty love to Christ. The fear of punishment, the desire of award, the sense of duty, are all useful arguments, in their way, to persuade men to holiness. But they're all weak and powerless, until a man loves Christ. Once let that mighty principle get hold of a man, and you will see his whole life changed. 

"Let us never forget this. However much the world may sneer at feelings in religion, and however false or unhealthy religious feelings may sometimes be, the great truth still remains behind, that feeling is the secret of doing. The heart must be engaged for Christ, or the hands will soon hang down. The affections must be enlisted into His service, or our obedience will soon stand still. It will always be the loving workman who will do the most in the Lord's vineyard." 

What a challenge. Are we truly motivated by the extent of our forgiveness? Robert Falconer tells a story of witnessing among destitute people in a certain city and of reading them this story of the woman who wiped Jesus' feet with her tears. And while he was reading, he heard a loud sob, and he looked up at a young girl, thin, whose face was disfigured by smallpox. And after he spoke a few words of encouragement to her, she said, "Will He ever come again, the one who forgave this woman? I've heard that He will come again. Will it be soon?" "Oh, He could come anytime," said Falconer. "Why do you ask?" After sobbing uncontrollably, she said, "Sir, can't He wait a little while? Because my hair isn't long enough yet to wipe His feet." 

Lord, give me a love like that. Do you desire a love like that, that is so infatuated with the forgiveness that you have got in Christ that all you want to do is do something for Him because you love Him. 

‍A Strengthening Assurance

We have a striking answer. a searching analogy, a stinging application. Let's wrap this thing up, verses 48-50, with "a strengthening assurance, a strengthening assurance." "And He said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.' Then those who were at table with Him began to say among themselves, 'Who is this who even forgives sins?' And He said to the woman, 'Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'" 

Having set Simon right, Jesus now addresses this lady who has been silent up to now. Have you noticed that? She's been silent up to now. Everything we know about this lady is told to us by others, but she has done her talking with her actions. But if you notice in this passage, twice she's been declared to be a sinner. In verse 36, she's known to be a sinner by the public. "One of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him, and He went into the Pharisee's house and reclined to table." Verse 37, "And behold, a woman of the city who was a sinner." That's showing us that that was her reputation among the public. Everybody knew she was a sinner. So she's been declared to be a sinner by the public. 

Then verse 39, she's declared to be a sinner by the Pharisee. Those who knew her gave no room for grace to transform her: "A lady like this never changes. Leopards never change their spots. No, she's not a follower of Jesus. She doesn't know the true God." And yet Jesus seeks to strengthen her refresh with assurance which surely had been weakened by this interaction. You can imagine in that room, every eye in that room was a dagger to her soul, every whisper crushing to her spirit, every tut and attack on her assurance. What a strengthening assurance to hear afresh from the mouth of the only man whose assessment mattered, "You are forgiven." 

Again, the word "forgiven" there, it's in the perfect tense, completed action in the past. In other words, Jesus is saying, "You're already forgiven. You're in a state of forever forgiveness. And in spite of the assessment of man and the slur of the Pharisee, nothing has changed, you're still forgiven, and you remain forgiven." 

You know, folks, can be hard to lose the label of a past life, can't it? Maybe that's how you feel this morning. You still feel the weight and the shame of a sinful past; and yet you're here this morning, and you love the Lord, but you just are struggling. Praise God for the state of forever forgiveness. And I want to encourage your heart this morning by saying to you it does not matter what we're labeled to be by man but what we're declared to be by God. It does not matter what we're labeled to be by man but what we're declared to be by God because you can be right with all the men of the world and it matters not an ounce if you're not right with God. And I want to encourage you this morning, it doesn't matter how you feel before God, but what matters is the fact of what you are before God in Christ. 

Verse 49, this declaration gives rise to another discussion about the identity of Jesus: "Then those who were at the table with Him began to say among themselves, 'Who is this who even forgives sins?' This crowd of theological critics at the table jump on Jesus' words. Their understanding of this man is further confused because having eyes, they can't see. And yet, what does Jesus do? He doesn't cast His pearls before swine. He doesn't entertain their inquiries. But rather, verse 50, He focuses in on this woman again. "He said to this woman, 'Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'" He reminds her how she was forgiven and what she can do as a result. She was forgiven the same way every one of us are. She is forgiven not because of her love, and she's forgiven not because of her labors, but she's forgiven by grace appropriated through faith. 

I want to tell you this morning that's the only way one gets right with God, by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. And if you're trying to work your way to get right with God, cease your working. Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us, "For by grace you are saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it's the gift of God; not of works, lest any of us should boast." The only work that matters is the work of Christ that He done on the cross, and that work is finished. And all He calls you to do is do what this woman done, and realize your debt, and look away from yourself, and find forgiveness in Christ. And him that comes to Him seeking earnestly to be forgiven, He will in no ways cast out. 

What does Jesus then say to her? "Go." It's an imperative. It's a command. "Go now in peace." Because she was at peace with God, she could now go with the peace of God. What comforting words. 

‍Conclusion

Oh, as we close this morning, our passage is presented to us, "The fruit that follows forgiveness," that love manifests itself in its labors for the Lord. As you and I examine ourselves before the Lord and in the light of His word, does that prove true in each of our lives? Even if we aren't immoral like this woman, we're all debtors to God, and we owe Him our lives of love. 

Are we Simon, or are we the lady? Pastor John says it like this, and with this I'm finished: "Profuse love for Christ is the single greatest proof visible to people of the power of the gospel. An ungrateful, loveless Christian undercuts the testimony of the gospel. Let us put on display our gratitude, our lavish love to our Christ, and the world will take note that our sins have truly been forgiven." May we go and live lives of lavish love and bear the fruits that follow our forgiveness. 

[Prayer] Father, we are thankful for Your word. We're thankful for how it searches us. And, O Father, as we examine ourselves in the light of what we find in this passage, forgive us for cold hearts. Forgive us, Father, where we rank our righteousness based on others. Help us to see afresh that we're debtors to God, that even the most religious of us have debts of sin that would have taken us to a lost eternity if it wasn't for Your merciful forgiveness. Help us to go and live like this lady, a life of lavish love that does everything, loving You because You first loved us. 

For any here this morning, Father, that are like this Pharisee who are trusting in their own self-righteousness, who don't recognize their debt, use Your word and Your Spirit to bring them to repentance and faith, and get glory to Your name for souls out into the kingdom, because we pray it in Jesus' name. Amen.