Sermon Central
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The Jerusalem 500 Series
Contributed by Jerry Shirley on May 23, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: Parable of the 2 Debtors--Good theme for NASCAR or INDY race weekends. One was forgiven 50 denarii and the other 500. Jesus uses this to aid our understanding of sin and forgiveness. Link included to formatted text, audio, and ’Race Style’ PowerPoint Temp
The Jerusalem 500
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/Jerusalem500.html
The Indy 500 was this afternoon [5-27-07], but the biggest race of our life should be the race to the place of forgiveness to be saved! Make no pit stops at good works, baptism, or communion…just trust completely in Jesus’ finished work on Calvary. Don’t go in circles, like Israel making laps around Mt. Sinai. Just go straight to Christ, the starter and finish line of our faith!
It matters not if you’ve done 50 sins or 500…we all must fall in line behind the pace car and get saved the same way…and maybe you’ll have the privilege of being forgiven for more than I have! [if you believe I’m innocent then I’ll bet you’re the type to pay $4.50 for a soda as you watch tonite’s race!]
1. Do you appreciate what Jesus has done for you? Does your service
and devotion to Jesus demonstrate the true extent of your
appreciation?
a. If you are slack in your service, what does that indicate?
b. If you wish you could be more diligent in your service, what
would help to motivate you?
2. Answers to these questions are found in a parable and its setting
that Jesus told on an occasion where He was invited to eat at the
house of a Pharisee - Lk 7:36-50
[As we continue our series on "The Parables Of Jesus", let’s examine
the setting and parable itself that has become to be known as the
parable of "The Two Debtors"...]
I. THE PARABLE AND ITS SETTING
A. THE SETTING...
1. Jesus accepts an invitation to eat at a Pharisee’s house
- Lk 7:36
2. A woman "who was a sinner" (perhaps a prostitute) comes in...
a. She brings an alabaster flask of fragrant oil - Lk 7:37
b. She first stands behind Jesus, weeping - Lk 7:38a
c. She then washes His feet with her tears, and wipes them
with her hair - Lk 7:38b
d. Finally, she kisses His feet and anoints them with the
fragrant oil - Lk 7:38c
3. The host wonders whether Jesus could truly be a prophet, for
if so He would know what kind of woman she was - Lk 7:39
4. Knowing what is in the Pharisee’s heart, Jesus offers to say
something - Lk 7:40
B. THE PARABLE ITSELF...
1. A creditor had two debtors - Lk 7:41
a. One owed five hundred denarii
b. The other owed fifty denarii (a denarius was equivalent to
a day’s wage)
2. The debtors could not repay, yet the creditor forgave them
both - Lk 7:42a
C. JESUS FOLLOWS UP WITH A QUESTION AND APPLICATION...
1. He challenges Simon (the Pharisee) with a question - Lk 7:42b
-43
a. "Which of them (the debtors) will love him (the creditor)
more?"
b. Simon’s response: "I suppose the one whom he forgave more"
1) Does "I suppose" suggest a reluctance to respond on
Simon’s part?
2) Could it be he has already begun to see the point of the
parable?
c. Jesus replies that Simon has properly judged the correct
answer
2. Jesus then makes the contrast between Simon and the woman - Lk
7:44-46
a. Simon gave Him no water for His feet, but she washed them
with her tears and dried them with her hair
b. Simon gave Him no kiss, but she has not ceased to kiss His
feet
c. Simon did not anoint His head with oil, but she anointed
His feet with fragrant oil
-- All of these things Simon should have done as a normal
host, but he did not do it for the most important Guest of
all!
3. Jesus drives the point home - Lk 7:47
a. The first part of this verse is difficult: "...her sins
which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much."
1) Is Jesus saying that her love is the "cause" of her
forgiveness, or the "proof"?
a) Is she forgiven because she loved much? (that’s what
it sounds like)
b) Or is her much love the evidence of the forgiveness
of her many sins?
2) Jesus does say that her "faith" saved her - Lk 7:50
a) That is, her faith was the cause for her being
forgiven
b) And her love may have been a reflection of her faith
(cf. "faith working through love" - Ga 5:6)
b. But the latter part of the verse, and the implication of
the parable itself suggests that her love is the result or
proof of her forgiveness
1) "But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little"
a) Just as one who receives little forgiveness, loves
little...
b) ...so one who receives much forgiveness, loves much!
2) "Her love was the result, and not the cause, of her
forgiveness. Our sins are not forgiven because we love
