Luke 7. Our passage this morning will be verses 36 to 50, and I'll read that section now. Luke 7, beginning in verse 36. Then one of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went to the Pharisee's 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 Pharisee's 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 her head. And she kissed his feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil. 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.
And Jesus answered and said to him, Simon, I have something to say to you. So he said, Teacher, say it. There was a certain creditor who had two debtors, one owed 500 denarii and the other 50, and when they had nothing with which to pay, he freely forgave them both. Tell me, therefore, which of them will love him more?
Simon answered and said, I suppose the one whom he forgave more. And he said to him, you have rightly judged. 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 even forgives sins? Then he said to the woman, your faith has saved you.
Go in peace. Amen. Well, let us pray.
Opening Prayer
Father, thank you for the written word of God, and thank you for the blessed Savior that the Bible shows us. And we ask now that the Spirit would shine the light upon the glorious Savior for sinners. and that as believers, our love for Christ would be drawn out even more, that our love for Christ would not grow cold, that our love for Christ would burn hot, and that we would reflect upon our justification by grace through faith, and that this would indeed provoke in us a love for the Savior King. We also pray for unbelievers that this morning they would see the accessibility of our Christ, the largeness of our Christ, the mercy, the goodness, the kindness of our Christ, and the reality of 1 Corinthians chapter 6, that Christ is a real Savior for real sinners. Fill us now with your Holy Spirit, and we pray in Jesus' name.
Amen.
Introduction
Well, this particular account is unique to Luke's gospel. Some see a parallel between this and Jesus' anointing in Bethany. Now, certainly a parallel conceptually, but they are different accounts. The differences are significant in terms of that.
I want to look at the three parties involved in this particular section. We'll note first, the woman who was a sinner. Secondly, the Pharisee who was judgmental. And third, the Savior who is altogether lovely.
So as I said, we'll look at the three parties and then seek by the grace of God to draw out some practical applications. But it's always helpful when we jump into a passage of Scripture to understand our context. And we see the immediate context is there in verse 36. Then one of the Pharisees asked him, that's Jesus, to eat with him.
So the immediate context is there's a man by the name of Simon. He's a Pharisee. He's one of the religious class. He's a leader in Israel.
He is one with some degree of prestige. He is one that's part of a party that for the most part is opposed to Jesus. So we ought to appreciate at this particular juncture that this Pharisee at least gives Jesus a chance. I don't know if that's actually what he's doing, but he has Jesus over for a meal.
So that's the immediate context. But it's also helpful to understand a bit of the broader context. And if you notice in Luke chapter 7 at verse 34, Christ is speaking about the generation to whom he ministers. And he says to them that they are sort of fickle.
John came and he didn't eat or drink, and you said that he had a demon. Jesus comes, the Son of Man, and He eats and drinks, and you call Him a wine-bibber and a glutton, and you call Him a friend of sinners. Well, as we move into this particular passage, that's precisely what we see Jesus is. He is a friend for sinners, and in this we should greatly rejoice.
The Woman Who Was a Sinner
Now, notice in terms of this particular woman, her identity. It says in verse 37, and behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner. Now, this probably indicates that she was a notorious sinner. All of us are sinners to be sure, and we ought never to minimize that.
But we also ought to recognize that there are notorious sinners. There are really bad sinners, if I can use that sort of language. The fact that Luke highlights that, and the fact that several places in the gospel, sinners is related to other types of persons, we see that they were notorious. Tax collectors, for instance.
Heathens. In fact, in Matthew 18, if a man doesn't listen to the church, then he ought to be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. Now, most commentators suspect or suppose that this particular woman was a harlot. She was a prostitute.
She had relations with men for money. And when we look at the particular section, I think there's a lot to indicate that that's probably the case. When notorious groups are mentioned, such as tax collectors, they are linked with sinners, Gentiles, harlots, extortioners, unjust, and adulterous men. But I also want you to notice something else in verse 37.
It says, and behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner. Now, the was there doesn't mean that now she's perfectly innocent. She was a notorious sinner. This idea that we see in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, 9 through 11.
Don't be deceived. These kinds of people are not going to enter the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. I will argue that it's a gross misreading of this passage to see Luke 7, 36 to 50, as this woman's conversion account.
She's already converted. She's already saved. She was a sinner. She finds out now that Jesus is in a Pharisee's house, and she goes to him, not for salvation, but to express the salvation she has already experienced.
She was a sinner, now she's a saved saint, and she acts consistently with what a saved saint looks like. Notice the boldness of this woman. The woman, again, was probably converted. I want to show you this.
Look back at Luke chapter 7 in verse 31. Luke chapter 7 verse 31 and the Lord said to whom then shall I liken the men of this generation and what are they like? They're like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another saying we played the flute for you and you did not dance We mourn to you and you did not weep for John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine And you say he has a demon the son of man is calm eating and drinking, you know And you say look a glutton and a winebibber a friend of tax collectors and sinners But wisdom is justified by all her children now turn to a parallel passage in Matthew chapter 11 Matthew chapter 11, just to show you that Matthew 11 and Luke 7 are dealing with the same time frame. And we know that they're dealing with the same time frame by reference to what we just read.
Notice in Matthew 11, 16, but to what shall I liken this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions and saying, we played the flute for you, you did not dance, we mourned to you and you did not lament. See, I don't need to keep reading it because you just saw it in Luke chapter 7. Now Luke doesn't record what continues in this particular section.
So drop down to verse 25, where Jesus answers and says, I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in your sight. All things have been delivered to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Now note verse 28.
This woman that was a sinner, this harlot that was present, probably heard the language of our Lord Jesus. She was, in fact, one of these weary and heavy laden ones that had by grace, in fact, come to Him. Notice in verse 28, come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
So, if I argue that this is not her conversion account, but this is the response of a converted sinner, or a redeemed sinner, to her Savior when she gets saved. She probably heard Jesus' ministry. She might have heard that, come to me all you who weary, and are heavy laden. This is not her conversion.
This is an expression of her love, devotion, worship, and adoration. And may we notice something concerning the boldness of faith. The next time you're at Tim Hortons, or you're at your favorite coffee shop, or your favorite restaurant, you feel a tinge of embarrassment about praying in public. This woman, which was a harlot, is coming into the house of a Pharisee.
Now, this is as much to mix oil and water as any combination you might have conceived. She doesn't care what the Pharisees are going to say. She doesn't care what the rest of them are going to say. She doesn't care what the prevailing opinions are concerning her new religious faith.
She cares to express love, devotion, and worship to the Savior who had conquered her, to the Savior that had received her, to the Savior that had cleansed her from her sins. While these Pharisees and these religious leaders looked down on such a lot, she knew Christ was altogether lovely and chief among 10,000. This is a great boldness. She goes into the house of a Pharisee.
Again, you just probably don't think a whole lot about that. If you were a prostitute or had been, and you were known through the city, you probably wouldn't go to Pharisees' houses. I'm just guessing that wasn't the protocol. Now, note her actions.
She takes the tools of her trade and sacrifices them to the Lord Christ, her perfume and her hair. Many of the older commentators recognize the significance of that. The perfume and the hair, what is she doing? Things that at one time she utilized in terms of her trade are now sacrificed at the feet of the Master. it this way when he writes, that which was her ornament and pride, and which she took great care of to nourish and put in proper form, to render her desirable, she uses instead as a towel to wipe her Lord's feet and her tears off of them.
You see that? You see, what at one time was precious and near and dear to her heart because it was part of her livelihood, now she sacrifices it to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now it's nothing. Now it's something that she utilizes as a means by which to express that devotion.
Her Humility and Devotion
Notice her humility. She doesn't stand right up in front of Jesus and say, here I am, Jesus, I came to you in that preaching meeting recently, and I just want a fellowship. No, she comes humbly before the Master. Again, all these things are indicative of grace in the heart.
All these things are true of those who have been converted. There is this desire to part with the past. There is this desire to approach God with humility. Not with arrogance, not with frivolity, not in some entertainment sort of way, but we approach the God of heaven and earth as holy, holy, holy.
And it demands that we do so with humility. And that is precisely what she does. She began to wash his feet with her tears, wipe them with the hair of her head. She kissed his feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.
Again, washing, kissing, anointing his feet. It is evidence of her devotion and her worship. So that's the woman that was a sinner.
The Pharisee Who Was Judgmental
Now notice, secondly, the Pharisee who was judgmental. Verse 39, I think I'll grant him at least a surface-level courtesy. In other words, surface-level wise, he's okay. He's all right.
He invites Jesus, and as I said, his party for the most opposes Jesus. But he has Jesus over for a meal. As well, he doesn't immediately demand the exclusion of the woman. He sees her there.
He knows she's there. He knows her reputation. He knows what she was. But he doesn't say, away with her, get her out of my holy digs.
See, there's a surface level courtesy that this man manifests or this man demonstrates. But notice the text specifically, there is a heart level judgmentalism that infects him. A heart level judgmentalism that affects him. And this is where we ought to observe.
Surface Courtesy vs. Heart Judgmentalism
Surface level courtesy ought never to be interpreted as grace in the heart. I mean, just because somebody's friendly to a Christian or somebody's friendly on a surface level to the Savior doesn't mean they're saved, doesn't mean they're in a state of grace. We can't judge good morals as the means by which or the reason by which somebody's saved. There's some pretty moral atheists out there and some pretty terrible Christians out there.
So we need to be careful and cautious when it comes to this particular thing. This man on the surface is nice. He has Jesus over. He doesn't have the woman thrown out.
But notice the heart level sort of judgmentalism. He's just like that Pharisee in Luke 18 that we considered several weeks ago. Why did Jesus tell the parable about the publican and the Pharisee? He told it because there were those who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others.
You see, self-righteousness is always accompanied by judgmentalism of others. This is why it's so bad and dangerous and wicked. We ought not to be a self-righteous people. We ought not to be the sorts of people that thank God that we're not like other men.
Thank you, God, that we're not the Charismatics. Thank you, God, that we're not the Pentecostals. Thank you, God, that we're not the heathen. Thank you, God, that...
No, we ought not to be that way, because it's an offense to God, and it always provokes that looking down on others. And that is precisely what this man does. Notice, he judges the woman, for she is a sinner. And I think whenever we see that sort of thing, and we saw this in Luke 18, it is to minimize sin.
It is to see one person's sin is more bad than my sin. Now, I know I gave some credence to that earlier when I said real bad sinners are notorious sinners. Let me be very clear, all sin is bad. The language of the Westminster Shorter Catechism, I think, is very accurate.
What does every sin deserve? Every sin deserves God's wrath and curse, both in this life and that which is to come. In terms of the woman that was a sinner, again, there's this category that in Israel, tax collectors, publicans, harlots, they were the sinners. This man, when he identifies her as a sinner, he's saying something about himself as well.
Well, I'm not that bad. As well, I think it's a dig upon the grace of God Almighty. This is where I think we need to be careful also. What's sort of implicit in this for she is a sinner?
I think implied is she's beyond hope. She's too far gone. I mean, after all, she's a harlot. She can't be in the presence of God.
She can't be on a good footing with our Lord. Brethren, is that what we think? That somehow there's a sinner out there too bad for Jesus to save? Do we actually think for a moment, well, they're beyond hope.
When there's breath in the lungs, there's hope for sinners. Until that day when they cross that threshold into hell, there is hope for sinners. You say, well, what about apostasy? Hebrews 6, Hebrews 10.
We don't know who's apostate. They don't come with an A on their foreheads. We don't know that. So we continue to preach the gospel to them until they take their dying breath.
Brethren, the reality of the Christian gospel is simply this. Christ Jesus came into the world, sinners to save. There is nobody beyond the scope. There is nobody beyond hope.
There's nobody out there that is too sinful for God to save. And yet this man seems to be implying this when he says, for she is a sinner. We need to be very careful that we don't imbibe the ethic of this particular Pharisee.
Judging Christ and Misreading Grace
But as well, notice he judges Christ. He judges Jesus in this statement also. Notice. Verse 39, 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.
Now this was obvious and this was pretty common knowledge that prophets could discern the heart. Prophets knew what was sort of on the inside of a man. And so you see the man's logic. If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman this is.
He would know who she is. And what's the implication? Having known that, he would have nothing to do with her. This again, just to misread their own Old Testaments.
And think about God's mercy displayed in the Old Testament. Remember that fellow by the name of Hosea? What's God tell Hosea to do? He tells him to marry a prostitute.
Now, people don't like that, so they adopt a figurative or a metaphorical or what God told Hosea to marry a prostitute. Now, there's something going on in terms of that relationship, not only procreation and, you know, trying to live happily ever after, but it is in fact a picture of God's love for Israel. You see, Hosea represents God. And Israel represents Gomer.
And so God is telling Israel that this is what's what, and this is what you need to do in terms of repentance. This man says, if he were a prophet, he would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner. The denial that Christ was a prophet is based on his reception of the woman's devotion. Now, let's look finally, thirdly, at the Savior who is altogether lovely.
We've seen the woman who was a sinner. We see the Pharisee who was judgmental.
The Savior Who Is Altogether Lovely
Let's see the Savior who is altogether lovely. Note first, in terms of the illustration that he uses, verses 40 to 43. What's Jesus do? He doesn't say to Simon the Pharisee, yeah, I am a prophet.
Let me show you my, you know, my prophet card. Let me show you my credentials. But the fact that he speaks directly to the Pharisee's concern, evidences that he not only knows who the woman is, but he also knows who the Pharisee is. Does everybody see that?
Everybody with me? I know it's a warm-ish day and it's, you know, getting cool in here, but I think that this passage affords a great deal for sinner and saint alike to find great comfort and encouragement from the Master. But notice that he speaks specifically to what this man says. He is, in fact, a prophet.
The Parable of the Two Debtors
Notice as well the illustration, and it highlights the grace of God. So Jesus answered and said to him, Simon, I have something to say to you. So he said, teacher, say it. There was a certain creditor who had two debtors, one owed 500 denarii and the other 50.
Now, denarius was a common Roman coin, roughly equal in purchasing power to an agricultural worker's daily wage. Okay, that's kind of what we're dealing with in terms of this denarius or denarii. One owed 500 denarii and the other 50. And when they had nothing with 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 whom he forgave more. So the illustration here highlights the grace of God. And again, the illustration serves as the backdrop to the theology of the passage.
And the theology of the passage develops along the lines of the illustration. They were graciously forgiven of the debt, and as a response or as a consequence, they loved the creditor. To come to this passage and say, well, it's the woman's devotion, it's the woman's love, it's the woman's admiration, it's the woman's expression of these things that gains or garners the forgiveness of sins. No, that's the consequence of her having been forgiven.
The illustration couldn't be clearer. This creditor has two debtors, one owes 500, another 50. And he freely forgives them both. And then he asks the Pharisee, and I love this, notice.
He asks him, tell me therefore, which of them will love him more? Simon answered and said, I suppose. Sounds tentative, doesn't it? Maybe he's somehow conscious now of what's happening.
Maybe he just walked into that trap, and the thing has shut, and he knows he's there. His foot just got lassoed, and he's hanging from the tree. What do you mean you suppose? This is obvious, isn't it?
If I forgive you 500 denarii, you're going to love me a whole lot more than somebody I forgive 50 denarii, 5 denarii, 4 denarii. You see the logic? So there's a tentativeness about the Pharisee at this particular juncture because perhaps he knows what he's getting into. I suppose the one whom he forgave more.
Of course, it's the one who forgave more. Of course, that's just logic, isn't it? That's just consistency. If you go to the bank and your bank says, you know, somebody came in and paid your debt so that you no longer owe.
If you owed 50 bucks, you'd go home and say, honey, guess what happened to me? It was really cool. Somebody paid my debt, and I don't owe 50 bucks at the bank anymore. But if it was 500,000 bucks, your going home would be a little bit different, wouldn't you?
You'd run through the door. You'd shimmy up the stairs. You'd grab your wife. You'd dance around the kitchen.
You'd say, somebody paid $500,000. It's a no-brainer, brethren. The Pharisee knows it's a no-brainer, brethren, but the Pharisee doesn't want to step into the trap, so he says, I suppose the one who's been forgiven more, of course. Now notice Jesus' application of this simple illustration.
He says, verse 44, he turns 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 wipe them with the hair of her head. This was common courtesy. If you come over to somebody's house today, this should be common courtesy, right?
You go to somebody's house, and they say, would you like a coffee? Would you like some water? Would you like something refreshing to drink on a hot day? We won't say that.
Wow, I went over there, and they offered me a glass of water. They are extraordinary beings. But that's not the response, is it? It's pretty commonplace.
You go to somebody's house, it's not a lot to hope for to get a glass of water. This isn't the Sahara. This isn't the Mojave. We have water, and we like to extend that benefit to people as a common expression of kindness.
The Pharisee doesn't even extend the common expression of kindness to Jesus, and yet the woman, the woman that the Pharisee's looking down on, the woman that the Pharisee doesn't like, the woman that the Pharisee is judgmental of. 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. He goes on to say, 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 feet with oil, but this woman has anointed my feet with fragrant oil.
You see what he is saying to this particular man who is looking down in judgment upon this woman that was a sinner and upon the master who is in fact the Savior? He is saying this is all wrong, this isn't right. The fact is, if he was a prophet, he would shoo this woman away. Jesus says, no, listen to the parable, listen to the illustration.
The creditor is owed money by two parties, and he forgives them both. Who's going to love him more? It's the one who was forgiven of the bigger debt. And this is how he underscores it, and this is how he highlights it.
Forgiveness as the Root of Love
Now, notice the specific point theologically in verse 47. He says, 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. Now, this, therefore I say to you her sins which are many are forgiven, for she loved much, that's a good translation, but we could also translate it as therefore.
And if we read it that way, if it's not translated that way, that's theologically how it's supposed to be understood. Therefore I say to you her sins which are many are forgiven, therefore she loved much. He is not saying that her sins were forgiven because she loved much. He is saying that she loves much because her sins have been forgiven.
The theology of Luke 7, 36 to 50 is the theology of the Protestant Reformation. It is justification by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. Now the chief manifestation or evidence of a true justifying faith is what? It's love for the Master.
And brethren, believer, confessing saint, those who have been conquered by sovereign grace, take your cue from this woman. This is what we ought to be. Not cold-hearted toward our master, not standoffish from the master, not resistant to the master, but in love with the master. We don't have the ability, the equivalency, to anoint his feet and to kiss him physically, but we certainly have the wherewithal and the ability to spend time with him in the private place.
We have the ability and the wherewithal to spend time with him in the public place. We can manifest that love for Jesus in terms of devotion, worship, adoration, and praise. Maybe not in the same concrete sort of manner this woman was able to, but those who have been saved by grace through faith, this is the reflex action. Love to Christ.
It's easy to forget that as people, isn't it? Or as the people of God, isn't it? Well, no, not me, brother. I always remember the love of Christ.
Well, you're better than most of us. Because Jesus' indictment to the church at Ephesus, his problem with that is that you've lost your first love. Now, the fact that he doesn't close the church down indicates that it wasn't a lost your first love altogether. It wasn't a lost your first love and had become apostate.
No, because Jesus commends the church in Ephesus for having done good things. They tested those who said they were apostles and were not. So Christ commends the church, but he says, nevertheless, I have this against you, that you've left your first love. Again, it doesn't mean apostasy.
It doesn't mean atheism. It doesn't mean they all collectively woke up on a Monday morning and said, let's go join the Diana cult. Let's go bow before him. No, no, no, no, no.
There are those times in the life of the Christian, isn't there? Being honest, you don't have to nod. You don't have to raise your hand. Don't need one of those every head bowed, every eye closed moments.
But brethren, there's times when we struggle with this particular, isn't it? Isn't this what Jesus says to Peter after the resurrection and the epilogue in John chapter 21? Peter, do you love me? Oh, Lord, you know that I love you.
Peter, do you love me? Lord, you know that I love you. Peter, do you love me? Peter says, you know all things.
You know that I love you. Why does Jesus ask him that? Why doesn't he say, do you know the 1689 London Confession of Faith? Have you read Birkhoff?
Have you been to the Saturday morning meetings? What's your attendance like on Wednesday night? No. He asks him, do you love me?
You see, it's not salvation through love, but it's salvation unto love. What's the two foremost commandments summarizing the entirety of the Torah? Love to God and love to man. Love to God is what this woman expresses here by these concrete activities in Jesus' presence.
So don't say, well, I can't do this because Jesus isn't physically present. Christ is present by His Spirit, through His Word, and we most certainly can express love and devotion and worship and honor and praise and glory given unto Him. And it's very easy, brethren, to blame everything else. Well, you don't know my situation.
You don't know what I've got to go through. You don't know the kind of people that I dwell amongst. Don't blame shift. Don't be the victim.
Just confess your sins to God Almighty and say, Lord, I haven't loved you as I ought. Please fire up my heart to do so. May it be that I'm the bride in the book of Song of Solomon. And I describe the master the way that she does.
He is altogether lovely and chief among 10,000. I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine. That's what ultimately we're about, isn't it? Why does Jesus save us?
Yes, to forgive us of our sins. Yes, to bring us unto heaven. To enter relationship with Almighty God. What's that relationship based on?
God is love. Love to Christ is the chief expression of having had faith in Christ, and that's the emphasis in the passage. Therefore I say to you her sins, which are many, are forgiven. Therefore she loved much, but to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.
The theology here reflects the theology of the illustration in verses 41 and 43. 41 to 43. He doesn't say that they paid back and then he forgave them. He forgave them freely. And then they respond in love.
It's the same with this woman. She was forgiven freely and she has responded in love. J.C. Ryle says her love was the effect of her forgiveness, not the cause.
Does everybody follow what I'm saying here? There are some who teach that we need to bring this to the table in order to be saved. I'm going to tell you, you can't bring it to the table in order to be saved. Because that love, that obedience to God that you must bring to the table is perpetual, it's exact, it's entire, and it's personal.
You don't have it to do. If you think that my approach to God for salvation, I don't mean my gym, yours, you, your approach to salvation with God is He does a little and you do a little. He meets you halfway, and you bring love, and you bring devotion, and you bring worship, and you bring adoration. And when you bring that, and He sees the legitimacy of it, well then, He will convey upon you forgiveness of sins.
If that's your understanding of the gospel, may I gently say to you today, you're absolutely, positively, 100% wrong. You see, we would never come to the table We would never come to the table unless God draws us. And when we get to that table, there's nothing in our hand that we bring. We simply cling to the cross of Jesus Christ.
We don't bring something to the table and say, OK, God, here's this and here's that. And if I do this and if I do that, then you will reward me with salvation. Luther was on the right path. He said the only thing we bring to our salvation is the sin we need to be saved from.
That's what we bring to the table. We don't bring love, we don't bring devotion, we don't bring affection, we don't bring 80% of it, and then God meets us and gives us the rest. That's not the theology of the Bible. That is not the great doctrine of justification by faith.
Justification by faith is by faith alone. It's not by faith, plus works. So listen to Ryle in that context. Her love was the effect of her forgiveness, not the cause.
The consequence of her forgiveness, not the condition. The result of her forgiveness, not the reason. The fruit of her forgiveness, not the root. I don't know how many more ways he could say that to basically say the emphasis throughout the church in its best expression on justification by faith alone is certainly not challenged by this.
This woman was saved. This woman comes as a conquered sinner. This woman comes as one who was. Not in the sense that she no longer sins.
This is in a Wesleyan passage, but she's no longer this notorious sinner. She's no longer a prostitute. She no longer has relations with men for money. Now she worships the master who saved her.
That's what's happening in this particular passage. And that's what Christ is underscoring.
Your Sins Are Forgiven
Now, notice in verse 48, then he said to her, your sins are forgiven. Now, some will say, well, there it is. That's the justification. That's the conversion.
No. Why is it the case that he can't pronounce your sins are forgiven to her for her comfort and her encouragement? If she's heard his preaching from afar and hasn't met him up in person, this is perfectly consistent. But I suggest he's not only saying it for her benefit, he's saying it for the Pharisees' benefit and everybody in the house.
Because in verse 49, it just rocks everybody. They're saying, who does this man think he is to forgive sins? It's one of the emphases of our Lord in His earthly ministry was to demonstrate that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins. So He looks to the woman and He says to her, your sins are forgiven.
The declaration is for the benefit of the Pharisee and those in the house, and the declaration is for the benefit of the woman. Again, John Gill says, and partly on the woman's account, that she might have a fresh discovery of the forgiveness of her sins for her comfort under the severe censure of the Pharisee. and that her faith in it might be strengthened." You see the logic and the rationale? The Pharisee has all but put her in hell. The Pharisee has all but said that, Jesus, come on, don't let this woman, you know, weep over your feet.
Use those feet to kick her away from you. That woman needed a fresh dose of Psalm 130, three and four. She needed a fresh dose of Psalm 25, 11. She needed a fresh dose of 1 John 1, 9.
She needed a fresh dose of that forgiveness that God Most High gives to needy sinners. And that's why Jesus does it. He says, your sins are forgiven. Not for the first time.
This is not justification. This isn't conversion, just like us. Some of us were converted, what, 10, 20, 30 years ago? Do we need to hear your sins are forgiven to us today?
Yeah, we do. You say, well, no, I don't need to hear it. Sometimes I just say to my wife, do you love me? I know she does, but I just like to hear it.
It just makes me happy to hear her say it. Not that she's even shy in saying it. She says it a lot. I just like it a lot lot.
I'm extremely insecure, and I need that for my encouragement. What believer who was converted 30 years ago doesn't need to hear today, your sins are forgiven? None of us would conclude, well, today was the day that we're saved. No, we were saved 30 years ago.
We have sins today. We need forgiveness today. And when we're with a bunch of self-righteous, proud, judgmental Pharisees that are looking down their noses at us and asking, how in the world could this man think he's a prophet when he's standing in her presence? Of course, I need a bit of reassurance.
And this is precisely what Jesus does. Your sins are forgiven you. There are no sweeter words on the face of the earth, are there? Go back to the bank analogy.
Somebody paid your $500,000 debt. It's chump change to the reality that your sins are forgiven. Having the bestest person on the face of the earth say, I do to you. It's great.
I won't call it chump change. But when God Most High says, your sins are forgiven you, there's nothing better. Can any of you in your lives ever think of anything that trumps the reality that your sins are forgiven? I can't.
That's like the most blessed, excellent, wonderful thing on the face of the earth. This is why when we sing 580, God willing, tonight, I think it's on the roster, yep, we'll sing, my sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought, my sin, not in part, but the whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord. Is that the best words you've ever heard?
Your sins are forgiven you? Your sins are forgiven? Yes, isn't it? You don't have to look puzzled.
You don't have to be afraid of being a charismatic or a panic. You can shake it. Yeah, yeah. It's great to be forgiven.
It's great to know my sins have been dealt with. It's great to know they've been covered. They've been blotted out. They've been put away.
It's great to know in the prophet Micah that God takes my sins and he casts them into the depths of the sea. He's not a fly fisherman. He's a deep sea fisherman, and he casts those sins to the depths of the sea. Our God is a God of forgiveness.
Our God is a God of mercy and a God of grace. Our God is a God of kindness and love. The father of the prodigal runs from the porch and falls on that young man, smelling a pig, smelling of sin and wretchedness and evil and godlessness. And he puts a ring on his finger.
He puts a robe on his back. He slays the fatted calf and he rejoices because the son of mine who was dead is now alive. There is a problem with our theology proper if we see God as grudgingly going about his task of saving people. Oh, he does it, but he's not happy about it.
That is not the case with reference to our God. Much better to see him in the language of the prodigal. Much better to see him like Luke 15. To see that older man, don't visualize God to be sure, but in terms of the prodigal parable, this man is running down into the field to pick up his son.
That's our God. That's why this Pharisee, he knew what kind of woman this was. He knew what she was. He knew who she was.
He wouldn't have any dealings with her. This is where you're wrong, Pharisee. This is where you're always wrong, Pharisee, because this is precisely the type of people that Jesus has dealings with. He didn't come to call the righteous, but he came to call sinners to repentance.
I mean, these guys could ruin everything, couldn't they? They ruin everything. God Most High is saving a woman that was a sinner, this woman that was a harlot. She's no longer walking the streets for money.
She's now bowing to the Messiah, and He's upset? I mean, what kind of logic is that? What kind of a mindset is that? It's just like the crowd in Luke 19, when Zacchaeus makes haste and comes down from the tree.
And Jesus says, I got to eat dinner at your house tonight. What does the crowd do? They mumble, they grumble, they complain. It's because God's grace is offensive to the carnal man, because God's grace doesn't make sense.
We reason thus. She's a nasty woman. She's a terrible woman. She doesn't deserve heaven.
Well, I've got news for you. No one deserves heaven. Every single one of us have fallen short of the glory of God. Every single one of us, like sheep, have gone astray.
Every single one of us deserve God's wrath and curse, both in this life and that which is to come. Every single one of us has done this with every commandment of God. None of us deserve heaven. That's the glory of the Christian gospel, that God was, in Christ, reconciling the world to himself.
That's the emphasis in this passage. It's not on the goodness of the woman. It's not on the beauty of this Pharisee and his self-righteousness. It's on the glory of the son of man who is able to forgive sins.
And then notice the confirmation of all of this.
Your Faith Has Saved You
Then he said to the woman in verse 50, your love has saved you. The way you have shown expressions of devotion and kindness and anointed me, that's what says your faith has saved you. Just in case we haven't blasted the theory that persons are saved by faith plus works or just by works, he makes it clear, your faith has saved you. And now the rest of the Bible indicates for us that that's not a meritorious work.
She didn't bring the faith to the table and therefore she has been saved. The faith that she has is a gift of God. The faith that she has has been planted in her heart by the Holy Spirit. The faith that she has is the empty hand that receives the blessings of salvation by grace.
Faith is the instrument that brings us into living contact with our Lord Jesus Christ. The instrument that brings a sinner into saving union with Christ is faith, not love. The woman, by the grace of God, had believed the gospel and love to Christ. Remember, it was the consequence, not the cause.
She's not saved because of her love. She's saved by grace through faith unto love. The woman, as well, having been justified by faith, was now able to have peace with God. Look at that statement, verse 50.
If verse 48 is the best thing we can ever hear, the best thing we can ever know, and I should say when you hear this, it's not audibly, it's not gonna be the case that you believe the gospel today, you believe this Christ this morning or this evening or whenever God willing you subsequently do believe, and heaven will open and you'll hear an audible sound, your sins are forgiven. How does God communicate your sins are forgiven? He communicates it in Psalm 130, verses 3 and 4, where the psalmist said, If thou, Lord, shouldst mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared.
He communicates the forgiveness of sins in the prophet Isaiah. Look to me, all the ends of the earth, for I am God and there is no other." The prophet Isaiah, when God says, I will, blot out your transgressions. He communicates it in 1 John 1. If we confess our sins, He's faithful and just to forgive us.
He communicates it in Proverbs 28. Whoever covers his transgression will not prosper, but whoever confesses and forsakes it will find what? They'll find mercy. He communicates it in that passage that we read in Luke 17.
Jesus is asked, if my brother comes and sins against me seven times in a day, do I forgive him those seven times? And Jesus says, no, you forgive him seven times seventy. You see, that's how God communicates to us that our sins are forgiven. It's not audibly.
It's not, you know, mystically. It's through the written word of God. That's what faith is. It's to believe the Bible.
Faith is to believe all that the Bible teaches. But it has principal reference or the principal acts of saving faith. have relationship to who Jesus is. That's it. It's not magic, it's not brain surgery, it's not, I can't ever be saved because this faith thing is so complicated.
Believe what scripture says. That's faith. Believe what scripture says concerning the doing and the dying and the rising of the Lord Jesus Christ. But if these are the best words we will ever hear, notice the result in verse 50.
Your faith has saved you. Go in peace. Isn't peace great? Peace is, on a human scale, when you're empty nesters, when you're not emptying Asteroids and you have five little kids, you don't know a lot of peace in the home.
It's great, it's wonderful, but peaceful typically isn't the way. Brothers are looking at me thinking, have 10 and think about how peaceful it is. Peace is wonderful, we love peace. Don't you love peace in your marriage relationship?
There's something out of whack, what do you do? Do you whine, grumble, complain? Or do you fix it to restore the peace? You fix it to restore the peace.
You got a problem at work, what do you do? Whine, grumble, mumble, complain. No, you fix the problem so you can have peace. Whatever it is you do, you want to bring glory to God, you need to have peace in that environment.
In order to do that, peace is a wonderful thing. Look at the world today. What does everybody want? They want peace.
We want peace in the Middle East. We want peace with Russia. We want peace with North Korea. These are all good, legitimate things.
We shouldn't want chaos. We shouldn't want disorder. We shouldn't want disruption. We shouldn't want the sorts of things that oftentimes manifest themselves in our families and in our nation.
Peace is a most blessed thing. It's the means by which we acquire peace. Romans 5.1, therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God. We may have lots of disruptions in our home.
We may have disruptions at work. We may have problems in society. There may be a lot of things that want to almost push us over the edge. But in this, we do have peace.
We have peace with God. And that's what this woman has. She has no peace with Pharisees. She has peace with God.
Application
Now, I want to bring this to a conclusion by highlighting three quick things. First, the theology that is wonderfully consistent. The woman heard the gospel, the woman believed the gospel, and the woman was justified. That's the clear reading of the passage.
As well, the woman then manifests the saving power of God in her life by acts of devotion and worship for Jesus. This is why Psalm 122, David says, I was glad when they said unto me, let us go to the house of the Lord. Glad hearts want to come to church. Now I know there's struggles, and I know there's remaining corruption, and I know there are seasons and times when the alarm clock goes off and you kind of just want to go back to sleep.
I get that. There's remaining corruption. But the consistent refrain of the redeemed heart is, I love the gates of Zion too. God loves them more than all the dwelling places of Jacob.
I want to be like God and love them too. I understand there might be a remaining corruption, there might be some remaining challenges, but for the most part, we want to express devotion and worship to the Lord. The woman illustrates what is said by Paul in Galatians 5, 6. I'll read it.
You can turn there if you'd like, because I think it does shed light on this passage, or I'll just read it. It says, for in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love. Again, Roman Catholicism approaches Galatians 5-6, you know, according to their theology, well, it's faith working through love, and it's that which then receives justification from God. That's not what Paul's saying.
Paul's saying what Jesus is saying here, faith working through love. In other words, faith in Christ is the means by which we have justification, justification by faith. But what's the primary manifestation, the primary evidence, the primary demonstration? It's love.
It's love, that's what we see. Machen says love, according to the New Testament, is not the means of salvation, but it is the finest fruit of it. A man is saved by faith, not by love, but he is saved by faith in order that he may love. You know, I think we can forget that.
You know, why am I saved? Why am I here? What am I doing? Do you ever get those big metaphysical quandaries in your life?
You ask those questions. You are saved to love Jesus. But I want to do more! We always want to do more.
We just need to do the less and do it well. Not that there's less in loving Jesus. You get young people. They want to go serve.
They want to go on a mission field. They want to do this. They want to do that. That's great.
Young people, you should want to do that. But do you sit at the feet of Jesus? I would never send anybody to the mission field that hadn't shown a pattern and a habit of sitting at the feet of Jesus. That's just bottom line, basic what sinners saved by grace do.
They love Jesus. You're not doing that, you really shouldn't try to do other stuff. Notice the pattern as well that is graciously reproduced in all of the elect. True believers like this woman are going to hear the gospel, they're going to believe the gospel, they are going to be justified freely by His grace, and the manifestation of that will be Love, love for Jesus, love for others as well.
True believers are granted faith, which is the alone instrument of justification, but they need to remember in the language of our confession of faith, that faith is not alone in the person justified, but is ever accompanied with all other saving graces, and is no dead faith, but worketh by love. Beautiful, isn't it? We're not saved by love, we're saved by grace through faith, but the manifestation of that is love. It worketh through love.
Ryle, again, makes this observation, and this is beautiful because I think that, you know, as I sort of live and move and have my being here among the people of God in Chilliwack, not all the people of God, but my close affinities here. I think people want to be holy, unless everybody's just lying. No, I don't want to be holy. I'm just a wretch, and I want to continue.
There's an internal logic there that's refreshing. But for the most part, everybody wants to do what's right. You're a blood-bot. You've been conquered by sovereign grace.
The desire is to be a good husband, to be a good father, be a good worker, be a good churchman. That's legit. We should want those things. Women saved by grace want to be good wives, good mothers, all that stuff.
If you're a worker, I want to do my job to the glory of God. Listen to what Ryle says. He says, there will never be more done for Christ till there is more hearty love to Christ himself. The fear of punishment, the desire of reward, the sense of duty are all useful arguments in their way to persuade men to holiness, but they are 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. Beautiful. Very beautiful. And then true believers ought to appreciate the movement in this passage.
The woman was a sinner, just like the 1 Corinthians 6, 9 to 11, and such were some of you. You see, brethren, by the grace of God, what identified us before or what characterized us before, what was descriptive of us before is dealt with. You know, today they're modifying Christian with a whole host of other sorts of things. I'm a this Christian, I'm a that Christian, I'm a this Christian, and sometimes sins.
I'm a murdering Christian. I'm an adulterating Christian. I'm a homosexual Christian. No, if we're Christians, we have been forgiven of those things.
We are saved by His grace. And the thing that describes us now, the things that characterizes us now, the thing that is the orientation of us now, is that we're washed in the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And in that we can rejoice. And if you're not a believer here this morning, I would just like to direct you to this passage as a great invitation to you to come to the Savior.
Because if a woman who was a harlot finds forgiveness with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, That indicates there is in fact forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared. Never let your sinfulness keep you away from the Savior. He came for that particular reason. Newton was right.
I am a great sinner, but he is a great Savior. Come to him in faith, hear those blessed words, your sins are forgiven, and know the peace that does surpass all understanding. even that right relationship with God through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Well, let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Our Father, we thank you for this, your word. We thank you for the consistent testimony of all of scripture concerning the way of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, our Lord. We ask God that you would help us as your people to respond to you with love, with adoration, with worship, with devotion. And for unbelievers here, we pray that by grace they would look to Jesus Christ in faith.
We know, God, that you are able to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto you through Jesus Christ, your Son. And may this be clearly communicated, and may the Holy Spirit apply it to hearts. And we pray this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Well, let's close by singing the doxology. It's Roman numeral 16 in your Trinity hymnal. If you're not familiar, if you are familiar, please stand, and we'll sing the doxology, a praise unto our great triune God. ♪ Praise the Lord ♪ ♪ Praise Him, all creatures, if we know ♪ ♪ Praise Him, our God in every nose ♪ ♪ Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ♪ The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.
Father, go with us now. Help us to enjoy the Sabbath. May we find our rest in you. May we delight ourselves in the Lord Jesus Christ.
And may you bring us together tonight that we may worship you in spirit and in truth and give us a love and a fondness for the house of God and the day of God. And we pray through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. You may close for a brief time, or be seated for a brief time.