Category: Uncategorized

Luke 7:48 “Then He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

   All of Scripture is inspired. It is all given for our edification. But, sometimes we find ourselves in need of stopping. We need to take a ‘selah’ pause to reflect. We know all is helpful and we rush on and on. And that’s ok, to be familiar with all of Scripture. But, we need also to just stop and think and meditate and pray. We can’t just rush on, we have to breathe in the significance of things. And, at times we find the perfect spot to do that.
   Here in Luke 7:48 we find just such a spot. Jesus looks at the woman and says what every one of us needs so badly to hear, your sins are forgiven. Jesus made it a point time and time again while He was here with us to tell people their sins were forgiven. Yes He did this because He wanted people to know He had that power, that authority. But, beyond this He knows that it is our deepest need. Without forgiveness through Him, nothing else matters.
   Meditate upon this verse. Don’t let it escape you. Mull it over, as the country preacher would say. Let it sink into your soul and find a place to rest and stay. Jesus forgives. That is the most powerful thing you will ever encounter. That is the essence of freedom. We can escape the destruction that sin has brought into this world. What shall be our response? We know we can never pay Him back. We know we can never deserve it. Do we then give up and not try? No! Try and try and try! We can spend our entire lives responding, thanking Him, loving Him, praising His Name. This is what it is all about, we love Him because He first loved us.

   Heavenly Father, thank You for forgiveness in Christ! There is nothing so amazing as Your plan of redemption. You are wise beyond all that I can ever understand. Never can I ever reach to the bottom of ‘your sins are forgiven’, or know the utmost of what I might do to respond. But I know You have given me by Christ the ability to praise You for all of eternity future. And I will, I will. Thank You, all praise to You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:47 “”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.”

   We are not told here the response of Simon to this. To be sure it gave him a lot to think about. But, it probably also gave him more reason to suspect Christ. As a Jewish teacher, Simon would understand that only God can forgive sins. So, for Jesus to make this statement about the woman, Jesus would have to be making Himself equal with God.
   Jesus does not gloss over the greatness of this woman’s sin. But be very careful to see what He does say. Her sins, which are many, are forgiven. And why? Because she loved much. In other words, the woman understood there was much against her. She had a mountain of sin to be forgiven. So the one ‘to whom little is forgiven’ is not necessarily any less of a sinner. But they are forgiven far less for they have little sensitivity to their unworthiness before a Holy God.
   This is not the only time that Jesus taught this concept. He always called the religious leaders to repent of their own sins before they began to judge others. The problem was not that Simon recognized the very sinful state of this woman. The problem was that he took little to no notice of his own sins. His estimation of the woman’s great sinfulness was very correct. But, he was totally blind to his own horrible condition.

   Heavenly Father, I want to love You very, very much. I want to have a sense of what You have done for me in Christ. Sin is a heavy load that I don’t have to bear! Praise the Lord! You are Awesome, Wonderful, Powerful, Gracious, Loving, Holy, Just, and So Good! I can never stop praising You. I understand Your great holiness more and more all the time. Thank You for being You! You are my song all the day. You alone are worthy. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:46 “”You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil.”

   The the anointing of Jesus’ head was not necessarily a societal expectation. And He was not complaining. Jesus is here simply highlighting the difference in the response of the woman to Him, and that of Simon the Pharisee. As a Pharisee, Simon would immediately understand what Jesus was getting across here. He knew more of the Scriptures than the woman would have. And yet, his knowledge served to condemn his unbelief.
   I have met and heard of many people who feel themselves slighted because Jesus only was here on earth for a short time. They feel that if they could have met Him in person their outlook would be altogether different. I suggest that such persons are not too different from Simon. Instead of accepting the testimony of the prophets, the miracles, and even what he might have discovered by plain conversation with Jesus, Simon had a preconceived notion of the nature of this Man that others called Christ. In the same way, those who think themselves cheated by not seeing Him in the flesh are also unwilling to accept what they have been told about Him, and in its place harbor their own idea of Who and What they believe He is. They would be, I think, very probable to find His nature not to their liking.

   Heavenly Father, may I never forget that I see the face of Christ every day. Or at least, that I have the opportunity if I will but take it. I can see His hands and feet at work, and hear His words. Oh You have blessed us in Him! How can I ever grasp the amazing depths of the mysteries of Christ? He is my joy, He is the delight of my innermost soul. How can we know Him more? And yet that is all we will ever do, know Him more and more! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:45 “You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.”

   So again we must compare this to the customs and societal norms throughout history. This woman’s kisses are here described with a word that is derived from the other word in the verse used to describe kisses given by men to other men. And, in other contexts that exact word is used in the same way. Further, Jesus is pointing out that Simon didn’t give Him a kiss. Although there are those who want to see sexual overtones everywhere, that simply is not being faithful to the text. This type of kissing was affectionate, yes, but romantic or erotic, no. The woman was kissing Jesus as if he were a familiar friend. And, given the context, she and Jesus both considered her actions to be worship.
   Again, Simon was not necessarily questioning the propriety of her actions. His focus was on what he perceived as Jesus’ lack of knowledge. He was operating, as the majority of humanity has throughout history, under the impression that there are those who are to be considered untouchable for one reason or another.

   Heavenly Father, Your wisdom is too wonderful for me! I find so many things that are difficult to understand or accept. But, I remember that as we are we are broken. We need Your truth and grace and love. We need Your holiness in our lives. Thank You for revealing Yourself to us. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:44 “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.”

     Jesus wasn’t being whiny. Simon’s neglect in his lack of preparation for foot washing was not necessarily an intentional oversight. But, if he had been especially interested in making a good impression, or in making his love known, he would have provided at least water for Jesus’ feet.
   As it is, Simon was not that concerned with impressing the Lord, nor was his love that lavish. The woman, on the other hand, specifically came to show her love for the Lord Jesus.
   By the way, remembering the lifestyle of this woman we might wonder if there was anything inappropriate about her touching Jesus in this way. Even Simon wasn’t suggesting that. Simon didn’t think the woman was propositioning Jesus, or flirting with Him. He understood, as we must, that washing a person’s feet was not seen in that way in that time. It was an acceptable form of service, kind of like shinning someone’s shoes. It was a humble act of kindness, yes, but it was not inappropriate. Simon suggested an issue simply because of the character of the woman, not because of the action she had chosen. Had he felt anything overtly inappropriate was going on, he would have expelled the woman, and possibly Jesus.
   It is also interesting to note that Jesus specifically mentions her tears. We are not told much about this woman, or why she did what she did. But, the response of Christ seems to indicate her tears were due to sorrow unto repentance because He also forgives her. Apparently this was her way of reconciling to the Lord. It is possible that she was also making known her intention to give up her past life. The fragrant oil she was using may very well have been a valuable tool of her trade, and using it up on Jesus’ feet might symbolically be akin to the drunkard pouring the booze down the sink, though to better use.

   Heavenly Father, love is what You deserve! Yet my love is so imperfect. I feel it. I know it. I must rely on You even for that. Even for the love with which to show You my appreciation I am completely dependent upon You. As the woman who washed the feet of the Master, I cannot offer much. But, with Your help, and by the Spirit and Christ in me, I will offer You my future. Each day lived for Your glory is a small token of my genuine love for You. I love You and thank You for allowing me to be and to know You for another day. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:43 “Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have rightly judged.”

   Again we must be careful to understand what Jesus is saying, and what He isn’t. Jesus isn’t teaching that it is alright to love Him less on the basis of our perception of our own sinfulness. He is helping this Pharisee to understand the natural tendency folks have in connection with forgiveness. We tend to love most those who we see as having forgiven us for a lot. These persons know us and our faults and stay with us anyway. Thus we will love them the more.
   What Jesus is teaching here is that love for the Lord is the right response. But, that love must be based on the greatness of His forgiveness, not our perception of the depth of our sin. We need to realize that we are entirely lost and without hope if we have not the forgiveness found in Christ.

   Heavenly Father, though my perception of my sinfulness is imperfect, I do understand Your forgiveness is my only hope. Thank You for Your salvation! Without it my life would be so different, and I would be lost and aimlessly wandering. I find in You not just a Savior. You are my Master, You are my God. You are the One to Whom I pray. You are my song. I will praise You forever! I love You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:42 “And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both. Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?”

   To be sure the creditor could have had legal proceedings against either or both of his debtors. The sums they owed were not so small. The point here is forgiveness. This creditor actually chose to forgive the debts at cost to himself. And, as we are told, this was a great thing for the debtors because neither of them were able to pay their dues.
   Looking at this story from Christ we might initially argue with it. It makes it sound as if the Pharisee is not much of a sinner, and the woman is so much more awfully terrible. Many would take offense, thinking the Pharisee is the more evil of the two. Here we need to remember two very important things.
   First, the amounts make no difference from the standpoint of the debtor’s ability to repay. In other words, because there is nothing a person may do to ‘work off’ the debt of sin, it does not matter ‘how much’ sin debt has accrued. The creditor genuinely forgave both.
   Second, our perception of the result of sin is quite mistaken most of the time. Remember, we do not know everything like God does. I do not think the idea Jesus was communicating was that the Pharisee was not a really bad sinner. Instead, Jesus was making it clear that regardless of the amount owed, forgiveness was needed. The amount only changed how persons responded in love. So, only God knows how ‘bad’ of a sinner you truly are. If the Pharisee comforted himself thinking he was the less sinful, then he missed the point completely. Our perception of the depth of our sin does not matter because in any case we are, like the debtors, totally unable to pay our debt.

   Heavenly Father, our perception of You is so far off from reality. I long to know You as You would have me to. You alone have the answers I seek. You alone can pay for the life I want to live. Without You, life is a jumble of relative evils. With You there is a pathway to something better. I love You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:41 “There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.”

   Ancient monetary values can never be calculated with complete exactness. But, a close approximation is surely possible. The Roman denarius was worth about a day’s wages in that time. So for our purpose here that helps us to see the difference between the two sums. The one debtor owed what would be the equivalent of several hundred dollars, up to maybe a thousand. The other owed more on the order of tens of thousands, up to one hundred thousand.
   These amounts give us a good understanding of the comparison made. Both of these debtors owed enough to be consequential. But, the one owed such a sum that, depending on his circumstances, he might never hope to repay. The one who was forgiven less would surely be grateful, but the one forgiven more would feel indebted for his very life to the creditor.
   Imagine if a person gave you a brand new riding lawn mower. You would be that person’s friend for a long time. But, if that same person gave you a house, well that would make them very special to you. You might even feel unworthy of the present.

   Heavenly Father, I can be so skewed in my understanding of You. When I begin to glimpse the depth of my sin and the greatness of Your mercy and grace, it is overwhelming. I cannot help but wonder if my response is anything like what it should be. I don’t know what to say. In the face of Your amazing love and perfect justice I can only prostrate myself in wonderful awe. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:40 ” And Jesus answered and said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” So he said, “Teacher, say it.”

   Notice that Luke says Jesus answered and said. This was in direct response to Simon’s thoughts. The fact is that though Simon might have wanted Jesus to think something different about him, it is not altogether impossible that Simon would have at some point made his thoughts known to those present, possibly even Jesus. Jesus preempted this and let Simon know He had a comment on the subject.
   Simon likely had that ‘take your best shot’ attitude that Pharisaical persons usually display. Rather than expecting the Lord to have some rebuke in store, Simon expected to find either praise, or an argument that Simon could rebut. This attitude is not uncommon among the self-righteous.

   Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love for us! Your mercy in spite of our evil is amazing. It is only due to Who You are, and has nothing to do with us to be sure. I can only approach You in the grace that we have in Christ. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:39 “Now when the Pharisee who had 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.”

   It is interesting here that the Pharisee believes that Jesus should know so much about this lady ‘if he were a prophet’. A good reading of the Old Testament will show that prophets were not always given perfect knowledge of everything and everyone. The fact that the Pharisee sticks upon the identity of the woman suggests he had not invited her, and verse 37 seems to confirm this since the woman herself came because she heard Jesus was present.
   Of course, we are here hearing the thoughts of the Pharisee. Though many reading the gospels miss it completely, one of the wonders that Christ performed on several occasions was the reading of people’s minds. Indeed, based on what we have recorded of Christ’s abilities on this point it is doubtless that He not only knew the thoughts of Simon the Pharisee, but of the woman and every other person present. This is significant as His abilities in this area are unparalleled. Just as many other things He did or said, it is only possible because of His Divinity.
   As a Pharisee, Simon was used to finding reasons to distrust, judge, belittle and disbelieve. However, it must be kept in mind that there is often a fine line between hypocrisy and understanding. When persons become very familiar with God’s Word, the enemy will very commonly use hypocrisy as a chief temptation. As a result, the Pharisee may be at once the most loathsome to us, and yet the person who, if converted, will be a shinning light for the Savior. Take Paul for an example.
 
   Heavenly Father, You only are worthy of all glory and honor and power! You know everything about us. Every thought is already known to You before we will think it. Only You understand absolutely everything. You are so wise and good! May we live to serve you always. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.