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Sermon, September 20, 2026, Luke 7:36-50, Pastor Peter Nicotra #gbcny † gbcny.org
"She Loved Much"
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Well in 1967 there was a pretty radical movie a movie that sort of broke all boundaries in that day. And it was called guess who's coming to dinner. All right story of about a woman named Joanna Drayton 23 year old white woman who returns from a Hawaiian vacation to a parent's home in San Francisco, and she brings with her dr John Prentice who Was a 37 year old black widower, and they fell madly in love.
They get engaged and they tell Joanna's parents who although they are very liberal They have a hard time accepting this interracial marriage. In fact in 1967 Interracial marriage was still illegal in 17 states.
But Joanna's parents warm up to dr. John and then Joanna has John invite his parents to dinner to meet her parents. And this dinner was an absolute surprise and an absolute shock. Well, it's kind of what's going on in our text today.
We're a woman shows up at a dinner party that causes the host Simon a Pharisee and probably most others around the table to feel very uncomfortable. Causes causes Simon to feel very uncomfortably see this woman being there and doing what she was doing was socially unacceptable and if interracial marriage was a big deal and a tough pill to swallow in 1967 you can be sure that this woman who is only known as a sinner in our text was insulting and surprising and shocking for Simon.
That Jesus would interact with her. And be accepting of her and in the end actually defend her. So with this short setup I'd like to look at this this beautiful account of forgiveness and faith and love.
Which should stir up the hearts of all Saints and give hope to those who are maybe not Saints even this day. And I'd like to do so in a sermon titled. She loved much using three simple points the people.
The parable and finally the pronouncement the people verses 36 to 39. I'll read it again. And one of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him. And he went to the Pharisees house and sat down to eat and behold a woman in the city who was a sinner.
When she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisees house brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil and stood at his feet behind him weeping and she began to wash his feet with her tears and Wipe them with the hair of a head and she kissed his feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.
Now when the Pharisee heard invited him saw this he spoke to himself saying this man if he were a prophet. Would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching him for she is a sinner. I don't know text today.
We're introduced to three people Simon a Pharisee Jesus and a woman who was only called a sinner. And odds are some of Jesus's disciples are there with other guests of Simon. Also, the public would also wander in often and out.
Why to listen to maybe a rabbi or some other religious leaders speak? Now Simon the Pharisee asked Jesus to eat at his house and the reason I believe he does this is not because he's a friendly Guy, it's not because he's enamored with Jesus, but I think he wants to interrogate him.
He wants to find something possibly to accuse him of. Remember that the Pharisees have already had many runs With Jesus so far and he's already ruffled their feathers back in Luke 5 They accused him of blasphemy for telling the paralytic his sins were forgiven him.
And then again in Luke 5 they accused him of eating with tax collectors and sinners and then in Luke 6 They accused him of breaking their man-made Sabbath laws and then nine verses later They are full of rage because he heals a man on the Sabbath add to that Simon offered Jesus none of the basics of hospitality that everybody would offer as we will see in verses 44 to 46.
So this is not a friendly encounter and Jesus knows that he knows what Simon's motive is for this invite. But he is gracious and he goes giving Simon the opportunity To be exposed by his sin and his hypocrisy and to seek forgiveness.
Then Luke says He went to the Pharisees house and sat down to eat. Now when they sat down to eat it wasn't like with tables and chairs as we know it. That not not that way at all in that culture. The table was really just above the floor a little bit and the people would recline around the table.
And so what they would do is lay on these low pillows. With their head towards the table with their feet and back of them kind of like leaning this way on their left elbow and picking the food with their right arm.
That's how they would eat. This is why John could lean on Jesus's breast. We're told at the last supper in John 21 20. Now that now the table that they ate at was often like in the form of a U. Form of a shape of a U wasn't like our tables again, which are usually rectangular and again.
They're not sitting in chairs. They're leaning on their left elbow feet back out there and they're doing this. I don't think I could ever do that. It may harm go numb. Anyway, this is the setting where we read the words in verse 37 and behold and behold and and Behold tells us something very out of the ordinary is going to happen.
And the out-of-the-ordinary thing is that a woman who was a sinner? Comes into Simon's house and places herself right behind Jesus. And I know this seems odd to us that an uninvited person just walks into the dinner party.
It would be clearly Inappropriate on our day to do that like one of us would do that. But it wasn't back then it wasn't inappropriate at all. You see it was common for people to walk into a dinner party even though they weren't invited.
Not to eat but to stand around and in back of them and just to listen especially if some renowned rabbi or Religious guru was there to speak so they would want to hear it. And they would come and sit and stand around in the back.
So this woman being there wasn't abnormal but what is abnormal is who she is who she was and Luke calls her a sinner and Simon called her a sinner in verse 39. And a sinner from Simon's perspective is.
Anyone who is a lawbreaker and a lowlife? Someone who was an outcast. Someone who was notoriously bad. And the Pharisees didn't see themselves that way at all. All the tax collectors were this way. The thieves were that way.
The prostitutes and the Gentiles. They were sinners and most commentators believe this woman was a prostitute. So we could say she took. So her trade was sinned besides her being a sinner, so she was a sinner by profession.
She was a public and notorious sinner and Spurgeon said this he said me thinks we are all sadly sinners by profession. So Simon won't use her name. He just calls her a sinner and everybody knew she was a great sinner.
That she went above and beyond the rest they knew that and Jesus Acknowledges that she's a great sinner in verse 47 when he says though her sins are many. He doesn't sugarcoat that her sins are many. So that a word being said in these first four verses the narrative plays out and we read the woman came to Simon's house because She knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisees house, so she's searching for Jesus she finds out where he is and.
And and then she has to go there though. She knows she will not be Appreciated or welcome there. It's kind of like a Republican going to a Democratic convention or vice versa like they don't belong there.
That's a misfit. It's like a Met fan. You know hanging out in the Yankee dugout. It's a little unusual. Not that's not a good fit. And so so she knew what the people would say she knew what they would think she knew it would not be social socially acceptable and even Scandalous, but she doesn't care.
She doesn't care. All right, she wasn't gonna create a scene that wasn't her objective. She just wanted to worship Jesus. She just wanted to worship Jesus. That's it. She wanted to show her love to him.
She wanted to show her love to the one who loved her and Saved her. That's what she wanted to do. She wanted to show her love and She is probably You know newly saved right? No, she's not coming to be saved.
All right, you got to get that clear now. She's not coming to be saved. She's not coming to be saved. She she is saved. All right. She is saved. She's coming to this house as a forgiven sinner. All right.
She comes because she has already been saved and she's probably very newly saved someone who has heard him teach somehow somewhere. Or was part of one of the many crowds that followed him. Maybe maybe when Jesus forgave the paralytic of his sins, maybe she was there.
Maybe she heard about it. Well, maybe she saw him embrace Levi the tax collector or his friends tax collectors and sinners. Or maybe she witnessed the raising of the widow's son in name. We don't know but whatever the case she somehow heard Jesus was convicted of her sin and believed that he could forgive her for all of them for all of them and She believed that he loved her and she couldn't help but love him for loving her.
And what we see is that forgiven sinners want to be where Jesus is. Forgiven sinners want to be where Jesus is. They want to worship him. They want to express their love for him and They're not ashamed to show it they're not ashamed to show it for true believers know what Christ has saved them out of and Expressing their love for him.
It's not hard. It's not hard to tell your mother you love her, right? It's not hard to hug your mother. And I hope you do that and it's not hard to love your father. I hope you do that too, but it's not hard at all to love Jesus who loved you all the way to the cross.
Not hard. It's not hard to express your love for that. The question is is it hard for you to express your love for Jesus? Is that a hard thing? Is it a hard thing for you to tell people you love Jesus.
I Hope not. Well, the woman comes to the dinner party and she brings an alabaster flask of fragrant oil or perfume and this is a stone flask with a long thin neck that had really expensive perfume in it and and Once you opened it, you couldn't close it.
So you break the neck and that's it. You're gonna use it all right you're saving this for like some big deal and she intended on using it all on Jesus and she brought it with the intention of Lavishing it on Jesus.
We're talking a lot of money here Lavishing it on Jesus and we read that she did four things in verse 38. And the first thing she did was she stood behind him weeping. Weeping and we because the present tense or she's continually weeping.
She's literally overwhelmed with deep emotion and she's weeping because she's been forgiven by the Lord of all of her sins and She's weeping because of his great love that she knows has wiped away all of her sins.
Do you not sometimes? Become overwhelmed when you think of what he did for you. That he would die for you that he would trade places for you that he would take the the fierce wrath of God for you. So that you would never know that but only know his love and his mercy does not sometimes get you in the heart.
She's weakening because she's been pardoned and she knows she's been pardoned. She's weakening because of the joy of forgiveness. For she knows she was a great sinner. She knows that This woman who sold herself to men was now purchased by Christ she was now sold out for him and She knew that she was precious in his sight you see she was amazed that he could love someone like her and Forgive her and make her his own.
We should never stop being amazed. We should never stop being amazed that Jesus would love someone like us and. And that he would die for us. Make us his own. That he would leave heaven and the glory of heaven so that he could come be with us.
So that we could one day be with him now and forevermore. So I went to this conference this past week as my wife did and because Alice's as well. And this pastor preached a sermon on Sunday night. And it's marvelous job on on how deep God's love is that we can only scratch the surface of knowing what she loves us.
And he said basically we can't forget what he did for us. We can't forget like how how he loved us all the way to the cross, and here's what he said. Remember your story. Remember your story. Your story is different than my story and.
Then everyone else's remember what he saved you out of. Remember how vile your heart was your thoughts your deeds the words remember you. Remember what you were like and how he saved you from that. All right, just remember you because it's easy to say whoa.
Yeah, I was not a murderer. And you know I wasn't in jail, and you know oh, maybe not. But you would a vile wicked heart and kids you to have a vile wicked heart. Remember your story. You know oftentimes people think they've gone too far.
They've sinned so greatly that they really can't be forgiven. I've heard people tell me that God could never forgive me. I said well you'd be the first. You would be the first that he couldn't forgive because you're so bad.
Right, but that's the thing he came for bad people. He came the sinners. He didn't come for people that are good because no one is good or people that think they're good. He came for sinners. And that's what we read when pastor Nick read Isaiah 61.
He came to preach good tidings to the poor. This is all gospel language, right? He was sent to heal the brokenhearted. To proclaim liberty to the captives we were captive by our own sin. And the opening of the prison to those who are bound and that's what we were.
To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and day of vengeance of our God to comfort all who mourn. That's us to console those who mourn in Zion to give them beauty for ashes the oil of joy of Mourning the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness that they may be called trees of righteousness the planting of the Lord.
He may be Glorified. He came to save sinners. He came to bring hope to the hopeless. That's what he came to do. That was the mission. All right, so but he came for those who know their sinners. You got to know you're a sinner and you got to know you have no hope you got to know that and Listen, you don't see forgiven sinners weeping at the Pharisees seat.
Nobody's coming and weeping at the Pharisees feet. Because the Pharisees would never let them near their feet. I Don't want her touching me get her away from me. They couldn't comfort them with the balm of the gospel, but only condemn them with the law of God.
But sinners are welcomed at Jesus's feet. They're welcomed. So so this woman weeps Over the feet of Jesus and begins to wash his feet with her tears and this word wash literally means rain. It's raining and we see this word used in Matthew 5 45.
So he makes the Sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain. That's the the washing right there sends rain on the just and on the unjust. So this woman is raining tears on his feet. She is raining tears for the joy of forgiveness.
She's so amazed in her in a man that Christ loved her and Forgave her. Then we read she wiped his feet with the hair of her head and the word wipe means It's continually wiping shouldn't she's not just doing a little here there.
She's wiping and wiping and wiping and wiping. And since she had no towel she lets down her hair and dries her his his feet with her hair. And this was socially a taboo. For all Jewish one were expected to always wear their hair up hair up when in public.
To not to do that would be a sign of shame and a sign of looseness. But this woman doesn't care. She doesn't care what it looks like. She doesn't care what everyone around that table thought she does not care.
The fact that she let her hair down in public shows that that She had forgotten everyone except Jesus. Her focus is not on Simon. What anyone else at the table? It's Jesus? She's at his feet washing his feet crying over his feet drawing his feet pouring oil on his feet.
That's her focus. Brothers and sisters at the end of the day all focus is Jesus all focus is Jesus. So she doesn't care what anyone else thinks. All right her love for him her worship of him was not quenched by public opinion.
Or by social norms she wouldn't let anything restrict her love for him nor her worship of him and The question is is there anything? Restricting your love or worship for Jesus. Anything are you ashamed to show your love for him publicly.
Are you ashamed to speak well of him to the crowds? It's kind of like the girl who has a boyfriend but she doesn't want to bring her home to the parents to meet or even her friends to meet him because She's afraid that they're not gonna like him.
She's kind of ashamed of them. Listen. We should never be ashamed to show our love for Jesus. We should never be ashamed of his gospel his word and to declare it to others. What's the worst that could happen?
Kill the body. That's what Jesus said the Matthew 10, but they cannot touch the soul we have to so get over ourselves and So get over the people around us and so have the tunnel vision that this woman had that Christ is everything.
This stuff won't matter. They mock us. They joke about us. They exclude us. He doesn't. We're accepted in him. So we shouldn't care what the world thinks about our Lord because he loves us and. And nothing in heaven or it can change it.
He loves you and that's never gonna change and he loves you deeply more than you and I can ever even begin to grasp and That love is going to keep going for all eternity and When all of this is said and done and all the markers and naysayers and everything else so in the grave and standing before him in Judgment time he loves us and he's paid for us and he's bringing us to himself in glory.
Let us not be ashamed. Let us not be let us not care what people think. Listen what remember what Jesus said in Luke 9 will get to this in a couple of months. He said for whoever is ashamed of me and my words of him.
The Son of Man will be ashamed when he comes in his own glory and in his father and the angels glory. If we're ashamed of him now, that's an evidence that we really don't know him and He'll be ashamed to say he knows us.
Therefore as the psalmist said let the redeemed of the Lord say so say it. Say it cry it out. You're right. He receiveth sinful men say it. Tell those naysayers tell those people you love he receives sinful men.
So as this woman is drying his feet with a hair. She's kissing them and anointing them with perfume and this word kissing. It means to kiss fervently not like in a passionate way, but rather like tender kissing like you kiss a little baby, right?
It's it's this tender kissing like the kiss the father of the prodigal son gave his son when he came home. So she she rains tears on his feet and then she drives them and kiss them and then she anoints them.
So she spent a lot of time at Jesus's feet. She spent a lot of time at Jesus's feet brothers and sisters. We need to spend time at Jesus's feet. Right like Mary did listening to him learning from him gleaning from him.
Meditating on him as we pray to him and fellowship with the Saints we need to spend time at his feet. Oh, we spent a lot of time at the feet of the TV or at the computer or at wherever. We need to spend time at his feet listening to him.
Listen at his feet. That's the proper posture for worship at his feet. You see this woman is preoccupied with Jesus and that's what worship is it's preoccupied being preoccupied with the person of Jesus.
And and worship is not Concerned with getting something from him but giving something to him because he's already given us all things in him. We have everything in him so we come to church to give yet many come because they want something a feeling an Experience a pick-me-up a booster.
But worship is all about giving the Lord all of us and it should it should not be easily hindered so. So nothing stopped this woman from worshiping him. She's not invited she's not wanted and she was scorned, but she went to worship the one who had her heart and Truly apart from genuine providential hindrances, nothing should keep us from Corporate worship.
I mean we really can't give too many good excuses unless the car died. I'm sick as a dog and you know, you know, you know the the cat took the keys. I mean nothing should stop us from wanting to do this because we want to it's Motivated by love love for him because of his great love for us.
But I fear there are more than a few things that keep us from corporate worship, I fear that. Well in verse 39 Simon sees all of this and he says to himself this man. Now he's talking to himself. If he were a prophet.
Would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching him for she is a sinner. So some people are saying Jesus is a prophet but Simon reasons with himself he can't be a prophet. Because if he's a prophet he's gonna know What kind of woman this is and he's allowing her to touch him.
Defile him. Right. He would know that she is a great sinner. No rabbi worth his salt would ever let a woman like her touch him therefore he's no prophet and Simon's proud Self-righteous heart is mortified at the sight of it.
But Jesus knew absolutely who this woman was and he came to seek and to save her. Just as he absolutely knew who you were and who I was. When we were wallowing in our sin and our hearts were covered with filth.
Remember he didn't come to call the righteous but to those who know. They're not righteous. Those who know they are undeserving sinners and so we see the people. Secondly now the parable in verses 40 to 43 and Jesus answered and said to him Simon I have something to say to you.
So he said teacher say it. He said there was a certain creditor who had two debtors one owed him five hundred an era. You know the 50 and when they had nothing to which to repay he freely forgave them both.
Tell me therefore which of them will love him more. Simon answered and said I suppose the one who for he forgave more and he said to him you have Judged rightly. Well, Jesus knows exactly what Simon is thinking.
He knows he's judging this woman and himself. So he does what he does often he tells a parable. And it's brilliant. This is a brilliant parable because it forces Simon to admit he's a sinner and to actually condemn himself.
So so Jesus tells Simon about a creditor who has two debtors. Two men who owe him money. I won't owes him 500 an era and the other owes him 50 and a denier. I is about about a day's wage and and in today's money so what you have is one owes him about $50 ,000 and the other owes him about $5 ,000 and neither of them can pay the creditor back.
Jesus says the creditor freely forgives both the debtors wipes away each of their debts. Now the creditor in this parables God. The debtor who owes 500 denier right? That's this woman and the one who owed 50 denier right?
Well, that's Simon. Then Jesus asked Simon which of the debtors would love the creditor more. And and what he's doing is he's throwing Simon a fastball if you will right down the middle of the plate because the answer is very obvious.
It's very obvious, but Simon is reluctant to answer it. So he says I suppose I suppose the one whom he forgave more. You got to think you suppose. Yeah, yeah, you suppose. It's a smug Arrogant way of not wanting to answer Jesus.
Well, I'll throw you the bone. I suppose. All right, that's what he's saying. But there's no supposing here. By agreeing with Jesus Simon acknowledges. He is a sinner too and that he is a debtor. He may not outwardly be as bad as the woman but he's a debtor to God for he violates the very law of God.
So what this parable shows Simon is that both he and the woman owe God a debt for their sin. Which neither of them can repay? And no one can pay but God back. What they owe him for this and nobody can for the wages of sin is death and nobody could pay that.
Jesus asked in Matthew 16 26. What will the man give an exchange for his soul on the day of judgment? What could you tell the Lord? Listen, I don't want to go to hell. I know I did some bad stuff, but let me give you this.
Let me tell you the good things. Let me tell you all the stuff I own like the answer is rhetorical nothing you have nothing absolutely nothing. You have nothing to say nothing to give you have nothing.
What can a man give an exchange for a soul? Nothing, you lose it. You go to hell. That's what he's saying. And the psalmist said in Psalm 49. Truly no man can ransom another or give to God the price for his life for the ransom of their life is costly and never Can never suffice.
Nobody could pay. So Where both of them are in over their heads both were unable to pay their debt, so then. Which which debtor is in bigger trouble? Which debtor is in bigger trouble? It's like who's in bigger trouble the guy drowning in 50 feet of water or the guy drowning in 500 feet of water like who's in bigger trouble I Mean it would be crazy for the guy drowning in 50 feet of water to look at the guy drowning in the 500 feet of Water and think I'm in better shape than that guy.
He would be ridiculous yet sinners think like this. Yeah, you know what. I'm better than the sexual deviant. I'm better than the abortionist. I'm better than the murderer than the thief than the extortionist which is all the 500 feet of water like I'm better than those guys.
Meanwhile they're drowning in 50 feet of water filled with greed and pride and self-righteousness and lust and lovelessness. And and and hatred and on and on and on you see you see they're both drowning.
So the only way a person's sin debt will ever be paid in full is if the creditor freely forgives them both. And only God does that and he only does it through his son the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul said it in 2nd Corinthians, and you got to get this because it is a powerful Powerful verses that that pastor Nick read second.
I'm in Colossians. Colossians 2 13 and 14 and you. Being dead in your trespasses and uncircumcision of your flesh dead means spiritually dead. You are spiritually dead if you're two years old or if you're 92 years old.
You're spiritually dead unless you say everybody is spiritually dead. He has made alive together with him. You can't help yourself. You're a spiritual corpse. He God made you alive together with Jesus.
How having forgiven all your trespasses having wiped out the handwriting of requirements and by the way. That's this the Word of God having wiped out the handwriting of requirements. All right, which was against us which was contrary to us.
And how did he do it having taking him out of the way and having nailed it to the cross? You see your sins were nailed to the cross. They were nailed there. Do you believe that does that like rivet the soul your sins were nailed to the cross?
He didn't have to do it and owe you this and you don't deserve it. Love drove him there. Listen Jesus said to his disciples at the Last Supper in Matthew 26. Then he took the cup and gave thanks and gave it to them saying drink from it all of you for this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
I Shed my blood To wipe out your sin problem. So the only way there is for forgiveness of our sin debt is through the blood of Jesus and Romans 6 23 says. Says it in its entirety for the wages of sin is death.
That's what we get. But the gift of God it's a gift is eternal life and Christ Jesus our Lord. We have a debt we can't pay and Yet God gives a gift and the gift is eternal life in his Son. So God needs to freely forgive the prostitute as well of the self-righteous religious Pharisee that who everybody admires.
Because he still has a heart that is deceitful and desperately wicked so this parable shows Simon he needs forgiveness of his sins and his law keeping and his circumcision and his tithing and Fasting and keeping the Sabbath none of those things can help out.
None of those things can take away a sin or in our case being good going to church giving money helping the ladies cross streets. On and on and on that's useless. They are useless. They can't forgive sin.
Now because Jesus says the one forgiven of the greater debt will love him more. This shows us that the fruit born from forgiveness is love the fruit. Born from forgiveness is love for a loveless Christian is really if you think about it No Christian at all.
It tells us that forgiveness should be the most sought-after thing in everybody's life for nobody enters heaven without it. No matter how good you think you are or how much you know about Christ. You see the advantage the woman had over Simon was she knew she was a great sinner.
No, no sugarcoating it. She knew I'm a great sinner. I'm Wicked. I don't deserve even to be around this man. She knew it. She knew where she stood and that's what you need to know. You know where you stand she knew it and how many people will close their eyes today?
This very day for the very last time not realizing the stench of their own sin before God. Do you realize today a hundred and fifty thousand people will die every day a hundred and fifty thousand people die and the vast majority of them Don't know just how bad a stench this sin is before a holy God.
Convincing themselves that all is well between them and God convincing themselves believing that they're good enough. Every religion in the world apart from biblical Christianity says you can do something.
You can somehow work this out whether it's praying enough giving enough going enough saying enough whatever you can do something. Biblical Christianity can't do anything. But Christ did everything and for the one that comes to Christ. He does it for you.
So how about you? Are you like the woman or the Pharisee? Do you know you're helpless apart from the grace of God? Or in the back of your mind, do you think. Not that bad guys at school are worse than me people at the job.
They're worse than me. My neighbors this way in that way. I'm kind of rough. All right, do we do we do we judge horizontally or. Do we see the Word of God and say this is what I must let's measure myself against.
I don't measure good at all now understand the debts. The debts were not forgiven because of the debtors love but because of the creditors love and free grace and mercy and compassion. The only reason Sinners love God is because they're forgiven.
Their love is a result of their forgiveness. Amen. All right, so we saw the people secondly the parable now finally the pronouncement verses 44 44 to 50. Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon.
Do you see this woman? I entered your house. You gave me no water for my feet. But she has washed my feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. You gave me no kiss. But this woman has not ceased to kiss my feet since the time I came in.
You did not anoint my head with oil, but this woman has anointed my feet with fragrant oil. Therefore I say to you her sins which are many are Forgiven for she loved much, but to whom little is forgiven the same loves little.
Then he said to her your sins are forgiven. And those who sat at the table with him began to say to themselves Who is this who forgives sins? Then he said to the woman your faith has saved you go in peace.
Well, Jesus tells Simon the parable of the two debtors and their inability to repay. And the creditors forgiveness of their debts and now he's going to give Simon a practical application of the parable.
So he turns to the woman. He's looking at the woman. And and he speaks to Simon at the same time and he asked do you see this woman? And here's here's Simon's fundamental problem. He doesn't really see her.
He doesn't really understand. All right, he doesn't really see her. Sees her as something that she's not and himself is something that he's not. And so he doesn't see it here. He had no category for a former prostitute whose life has been radically changed by Jesus.
How could this be? How could a prostitute now be saved? How could a murderer now be saved but you and I can say how could a liar now be saved? How could a luster a fornicator a Hater now be saved. We could say that right and and so Simon has no category.
Then Jesus is going to show him How this woman loved him by comparing her to Simon? So he says I entered your house. You gave me no water for my feet. And in that culture washing someone's feet when they came into your home was a sign of hospitality.
Which really the first duty of a of a host was to wash your feet. And he says you didn't show me even the basic courtesy of washing my feet that roads are dusty. We wear sandals, you know wash my feet.
But he says she washed my feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of a head. So with her tears prompted by her love and gratitude towards me. She washes my feet and because she has no towel. She dries them with her hair an Act of disgrace and shame to you but a show of great humility and love to me.
Then he said you gave me no kiss. This woman does not cease to kiss my feet since she came in and a kiss is like the kiss on the cheek thing. Right and and it's a common and even today in many Eastern cultures.
It's it's a common greeting of a guest showing honor and respect. So so so you didn't show me this social kindness. Which everybody does in that day and so again some do it today yet this woman hasn't stopped kissing my feet.
Then he said you didn't anoint my head with oil, but this woman has anointed my feet with fragrant oil. So you didn't show me the dignity of refreshing me with oil on my head yet this woman while kissing my feet and anointing them.
She's anointed them with expensive oil. You see you showed me no hospitality no honor and certainly no love, but this woman couldn't help herself but to show me great love and Because of her great love for me.
I say to you her sins which are many they're forgiven for she is loved much. And again remember her sins weren't forgiven because of what she did. Right and that and and and that she loved him. No. They she loved him and did what she did because she was forgiven.
Because he had forgiven her and saved her and then he says I say to you I Said it which means Jesus says this with total authority. I say to you and if Jesus says your sins are forgiven guess what your sins are forgiven indeed and The evidence of that forgiveness is she loved much.
Meaning she loved him with all her being and above everybody else. Jesus said in Matthew 10 37 tough words for the world to hear but here it is. He loves father and mother more than me is not worthy of me.
And he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. You see Jesus said I either have top slot of the heart. I don't have the heart. Right if you love others more than me. He's not saying don't love your mother and your father and your sister and brothers of course love love love love love.
But love me more. Love me more and the evidence of that is how you live and how you speak and how you use your money and how you use Your time right that's the evidence. So she knew she didn't deserve forgiveness.
Yet she was overwhelmed by it. She couldn't help but deeply love him and She loved him. Because he wiped away all of her sins. Which Jesus said were much, but he forgave them all and because she loved him much.
Her prostitute days were over and because she loved him much. She worshipped him much and Because she loved him much nothing was too Extravagant for him like pouring very expensive oil on his feet like I don't care I don't care that I've been saving this for some big occasion.
This is a big occasion. Worshipping Jesus is a big occasion. We ought to think about that how we use our resources. Are we stingy as a day is long when it comes to the kingdom or do we use our resources?
You know to worship him. He gave it to us anyway, right? You see and here's the key she saw herself as a 500 denarii debtor. She saw herself as a 500 denarii debtor and truly this is how all men must see themselves as a 500 denarii sinner.
You must see yourself that way and if you've grown up in a Christian home and You've been decent and you're a moral person and you kind of obey your parents. But you aren't saved. You must see yourself as a 500 denarii sinner.
Don't think that you're a 50. Because you're good because you're Moral because you will help people because you make a show of being good. Don't think that. Think yourself like this woman. You are a 500 denarii sinner.
Think that way at the point is the point is We must all see ourselves as great sinners. For if we truly understand how much we owe God for his mercy and love then we would see ourselves that way. But if we see our sin is minimal.
Right, we will not be amazed by his grace if I see so, you know, I'm not that bad. I've been a moral person. I don't cheat on my wife or my husband. I'm good to my kids. If you see that if you say you said to yourself, then your sin is gonna be minimal.
It's gonna be minimal in your mind and you will not be super amazed by his grace. Listen one sin we're told in in James chapter 2 verse 10 one sin condemns a person to an eternal damnation. James says hypothetically if you were to keep the whole law that commit one sin you're guilty of all.
Not not even one sin. Can afford you a place in heaven you got to go in perfect and you can't. But Jesus can make you that and he does that by taking your sins paying for them and then putting on you His perfect life as a man.
And that's how you're accepted and that ought to amaze us that. The lies we tell the the wicked thoughts we have the lust that we harbor in our own souls the Unwillingness to do what we're told to do before God.
We want to see it that way. We ought to be amazed. We ought to be amazed that that we're not in hell this very day. We ought to be amazed that all the sins were nailed to the cross. Think about that every sin you would have ever committed or will ever commit was already nailed up there a done deal paid in full.
That's why you can hold on to Romans 8 1 there is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. No judgment, no hell because Jesus paid it for you. No condemnation because you're in Christ.
So if we don't see your sin as high crimes for a holy and high God. We won't be riveted by the price of course Jesus to pay for them and forgive us. Listen as we grow in awareness of the great debt. We owe God and Our inability to pay that debt that should lead us into a deeper love for Jesus.
Who paid it for us the more we grow in? Understanding what happened at the cross and what he paid what it cost him to purchase us the more that should make our heart Love him. Well, then Jesus speaks directly to the woman.
For really sweet words probably the sweetest word she ever heard he said to her. Your sins are forgiven. So first he he told this to Simon about the woman and now he tells it to her directly. What a great joy must have been to her soul that the beloved loved her and forgave her.
And and this is all that really matters at the end of the day if you think about it all that really matters at the end Of the day is that your sins are forgiven that you've been forgiven. Before the Lord says well done good and faithful servant because you want to hear that too.
You first have to know that your sins have been forgiven. The question is Has he already forgiven you of your sins? Do you know that? Would you would you anchor your eternity on that without a shadow of a doubt or is it a little sketchy maybe?
Don't let it be sketchy. Now in verse 49 he sat at the table. And those who sat around and they're surprised and confounded and really troubled and they say to themselves who is this? Who even forgives sins all right?
It's one thing to do miracles and teach like no man ever taught. But it's totally another thing to forgive sins. And this is what he said to the paralytic back in Luke 5 and this was the response of the scribes and Pharisees back then.
Who is this who speaks blasphemies who can forgive sins, but God alone? Well, then Jesus says to the woman your faith has saved you go in peace and Faith is the vehicle through which we are saved right faith is how we receive the grace.
Right and faith is also a gift of God, so we don't muster up the faith. We don't muster it up. He gives it and he says it very clearly in Ephesians 2 8 for by grace you have been saved through faith and.
That none of yourselves it is the gift of God. So the faith of the woman that what this woman was given and she exercised saved her and Go in peace means you no longer have to live in guilt anymore. You no longer are at war with God.
You're no longer his enemy. But the peace of God has made peace between you and him and that's happening through the blood of Christ. Romans 5 1 says We have been justified by faith. We have peace with God.
How through our Lord Jesus Christ We have peace with God. Well, let me close by asking you two questions and leaving you with just a couple of thoughts. The first question is this do you see yourself as a 500 denarii debtor or a 50 denarii debtor?
Don't answer me here. Don't do this and this and this just you know. Do you see yourself as a 500 denarii debtor or a 50 denarii debtor if you don't see yourself as the 500? You're falling short. You're gonna fall short.
How you answer this will determine the direction of your Christian life. It really will. Second question if you say you love Jesus much is there evidence in your life that proves that. It's easy to say.
I love Jesus. I love Jesus. Oh, I love Jesus and people do that all the time. But is there evidence not just the waving the hands and the saying in front of others is there evidence? And Does does does your life prove it and and if you don't love him much today.
Then I say to you dear Saint the remedy is fix your eyes on Jesus. Fix your eyes on the cross see what your sin cost him. See it make it very personal. See what your sin cost him. Don't the sin of the world know the sin of you.
See what your sin cost him. Now my first thought is this. If you know his forgiveness then go in peace then go in peace go. Publish the gospel of peace be an ambassador for the Prince of Peace who has made peace by the blood of his cross.
For you go in peace tell your friends and neighbors and co-workers about the peace of God. Tell them what great things he has done for you. Second thought second thought is this although God has forgiven your sin debt that debt still had to be paid.
So he said free done. Debt is paid in full, but you understand when the creditor forgave the debt forgave the debts of the debtors. He's he had to incur the debt. He had to pay what was owed. All right, the debts didn't go away unpaid someone had to pay them, and that's the gospel.
That is the gospel the debt is being paid and the debt is paid or charged to Jesus, and he pays for us. I know you know that. But it's never we should never get tired of hearing it like like I want to hear it.
Should I get a deathbed and anyone be around around here keep telling me that I pump me up. Lastly and this is for all who may not be saved or aren't saved this day, and that is guess who's coming back again.
Guess who's coming back again? Guess who's coming back to judge the living in the dead. Guess who you're going to stand before on the last day with all your sin and Guess who will judge you and condemn you for all your sin.
But please hear this if you see yourself as a great sinner, and you see Jesus as a great Savior one filled with great love and compassion for sinners. One who came to seek and to save the lost one who forgives to the uttermost like he did to the woman.
And you come to him broken over your sin, and you embrace him you will find Forgiveness of your sins, and you too will be overwhelmed by his love for you. Amen. Let's pray Father we are just amazed by your great love.
That you would love even a one of us that you would send your son save us from the very wages of our sins and Christ and love would die for us and the spirit and love would awaken us. And give us all the precious word and promises of God.
Father I pray that we would see ourselves as you really say we are that like this woman we are see ourselves as 500 denarii debtors and. That we would be all the more amazed. What it cost you to wipe the slate clean and Father for those sitting here today who maybe are not saved haven't truly been born again.
Well, I know it's not an easy message and. And what I know that they can't save themselves, and I can't save them that's for sure. But I know you can and you can move in their hearts and convict them of their sin.
We ask that you would do that and you would drive them to Christ who can save their souls. So would you do that for your glory's sake in Jesus name? Amen.