LUKE 7:24-50
INTRODUCTION:
How many times have we missed the obvious because we had tunnel vision? This message today will focus on us asking God to help us see things through His eyes.
I. JESUS DISRUPTS THE PHARISEES OPPOSITION
A. Jesus vindicates John the Baptist, His cousin.
1. Jesus begins by asking them, “What did you think you were going to see out there in the wilderness? Someone clothed in delicate apparel?”
2. He’s not a King, He’s a Prophet!, In fact, He’s much more than a Prophet…
3. Explain V28 - Those who are living with the benefits of the Kingdom are in a much better position than those who could only prophesy about it…
B. Jesus offered Himself to the same generation and they rejected Him
1. John the Baptist came in the wilderness eating locust and wild honey. He neither ate bread or drank wine and they (the Pharisees) said he was demon possessed.
2. Jesus came eating and drinking with publicans and sinners and they (the Pharisees) said He was a gluttonous man and a winebibber.
C. Jesus Challenges the Pharisees - No matter what Jesus offered them as proof, the Pharisees were not going to accept it. They carried a contentious spirit.
1. He told them they were like children sitting in the marketplace throwing a temper tantrum because they didn’t get their own way.
a) That spirit is still loose in God’s Church today.
b) Always be cautious of those who switch loyalties when they don’t get their own way.
D. V35 - “…wisdom is justified of all her children.”
1. God is calling us to lives of Godly love, holiness and spiritual devotion.
2. He asks us to not be involved in things that do not promote Jesus.
a) The Jews had to choose Jesus or the Law
b) We choose Jesus or works (legalism)
II. THE WOMAN WHO WASHED JESUS FEET WITH HERE TEARS AND ANOINTED THEM - LUKE 7:36-50
A. V36 - Jesus went to the Pharisee’s house to eat.
1. Why? Jesus always makes Himself available to the lost.
2. Jesus never shied away from the hard cases.
B. The Pharisee saw the woman as nothing more than a sinner but Jesus saw her as a candidate for salvation.
1. V41,42 - Jesus was a great story teller.
2. V44-46 - May God help us see others through His eyes!
3. V47 - Jesus forgave the woman and sent her on her way saying, “Thy faith hath saved thee; go in peace.”
• Just a Question - Why was this lady known to the Pharisee as a sinner? Could she have suffered from domestic violence in the past and found herself in compromising situations? - Possibly even with this Pharisee…
CLOSING CHALLENGE:
• Let’s love our world on behalf of Jesus
• Let’s always be mindful of the imminent return of the Lord
• Let’s cleanse our minds and purify our hearts and live holy unto the Lord
