The Sinner Transformed
November 17, 2024
Dr. Bradford Reaves
Crossway Christian Fellowship
Luke 7:36-50
We are continuing today in the last few of our parables. And today's parable is very timely. Today's parable is about the transformed sinner. Now come on when you think about evangelism, or missions, or reaching the lost, what is it do you think that makes the most impact for their transformation. Is that the logical argument? Is it the promise of prosperity? Is it the thought of eternal life? What is it that takes a person from my life as a Sinner to a life that embraces the forgiveness of Jesus Christ?
Obviously, one of the first things that needs to happen, is that the truth needs to be proclaimed. Somewhere, the truth needs to be separated from the lies. Somewhere the person listening needs to come to the realization of the necessity for Jesus to become Lord of their life. We are not asking them to join a club. We are not even asking them to subscribe to a religion. We are asking them to be reborn through the power of Jesus Christ. That is exactly what we are looking at today in this parable. God loves sinners and Jesus came to seek and save the lost.
So now we come to today's parable. And this parable, like every other parable, is encapsulated with context that is necessary to understand what Jesus is saying. There are a lot of people included in this story. Jesus has been called, “the friend of sinners.” (Verse 34). When they were talking about sinners, they are talking about the worst of sinners: prostitutes, tax collectors, drunkards. But the worst kind of Sinner is not any of those things, the worst kind of sinner is the self-righteous, which Paul said he was “the chief of sinners.” (1 Timothy 1:15).
Now before we get into this parable, I want to be clear that this story is not to be confused with another story that has some similarities. The story of the woman anointing Jesus’s head as recorded in Matthew 26, Mark 14, and John 12 are clear differences in the stories, different locations, different hosts, different circumstances, in different times.
36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” 40 And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.” 41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” 44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (Luke 7:36–50)
We don't know where and when this exactly took place other than it was sometime during his Galilean ministry. He was probably in a town or village surrounding the sea, and as was customary, when someone spoke at a synagogue on the Sabbath, the teaching rabbi was invited home for after Sabbath meal. Or he could be attending a banquet of someone of significance, or simply invited over by a curious Pharisee. We don't really know but on the surface it seemed like A very common gathering that this story takes place.
We've learned extensively about who the Pharisees were. They were legalistic, religiously devoted Jews. They were fastidious about keeping the law and every detail, to the point that they completely missed the essence of their relationship with God. Yet, as legalistic and prominent pillars in First Century Israel, they were prideful and self-righteous. This kind of attitude led to many confrontations with Messiah Jesus.
In reality, the Pharisees hated Jesus. They hated him because of his message. They hated him because he preached against their self-righteousness. And they hated him because he focused more on the outcasts of society then whom they thought he should be hanging around. To them, he was defiled and a heretic, but yet many could not resist finding out more about him.
So with all that mounting up against Jesus, a pharisee has him over for dinner while Jesus is in his town. When they had dinner together it was a long, opulent, formal time together. And here is Jesus sitting in this man's house, Jesus knew he was a hypocrite, he knew that this pharisee had evil intentions toward him. Jesus knew everything about this man and yet he goes there. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. And with that, Jesus enters the Pharisees house, and they are reclining around the table eating dinner.
Verse 37 says, “behold” meaning that there was something unusual what happens during the dinner. The shock was that a stranger, a woman who is a sinner, likely a prostitute comes into the home. Everybody knew she didn't belong there. She wasn't invited and she wasn't wanted. We don't know for certain that she was a prostitute, but the term Luke uses has disdain in it. By the way, this is not Mary Magdalene.
Whoever she is, she knows who Jesus is, she knows who she is, and she has a plan. This woman has brought an alabaster vile of perfume. Perfume was used in Jesus’ day as a means to cover up body odor. It was also used as a means of trade, since it was considered valuable. This was not cheap perfume but it was costly. It was in an alabaster container which means that it was quarried out of Egypt.
Verse 38 tells us why she is there. To understand this you have to understand how Jewish men reclined at the tables. The tables would have been in the center of the room and the person would have laid on their side, perhaps in a chase style lounge, with their head close to the table and their feet away from the table. The reason for this was because the feet were dirty and they kept the feet as far away from the food and the festivities as possible. So now a sinful woman slips in and wets his feet with her tears, drying his feet with her hair, and kissing his feet, and anointing his feet with the perfume.
Stop right there. As a Gentile man, the first thought into my mind is, ‘ewe.’ With that kind of close contact with someone else’s feet. As a Jew, this sentiment would have been expanded seven-fold.
Look a little closer at the actions of this woman. She begins to weep. Her heart is flooded with emotions. She lets loose with what Martin Luther called, “heart water.” Out of her eyes burst and emotional dam, so much so that she begins to wet Jesus’s feet with her tears. The Greek word here, brecho, means ‘rain.’ She is wiping his feet with her head. This means she didn't even have a towel. This also means that she had to let her hair down because Jewish women were required to wear their hair up in public. This would be grounds for divorce. However, she was manifesting a selfless, shameless, loving affection. For it also says she was kissing his feet. Kataphileo is an intense word for intense emotional affection.
In reality, this could be a very difficult situation for Jesus. In the first place, she's a known prostitute. Secondly she's shamefully taken down her hair and she is touching them. Not only is she touching him but she's washing her feet with her hair. This is a very serious breach of propriety that could bring a tremendous amount of shame upon Jesus.
That was the sentiment of the Pharisee who was hosting Jesus at the dinner. The disgust and uncomfortableness would have been clearly seen in the pharisee. “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a Sinner” (v 39). Which brings us to the parable. In order to bring clarity, Jesus tells Simon a story.
40 And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.” 41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” (Luke 7:40–42)
That's quite a story isn't it? Can you imagine getting a call from the bank that holds the mortgage to your home? They say, “How much do you owe?” You say, “Well, I can't pay that this month.” They reply “OK, well we'll forgive your mortgage and send the deed to your home.” I'm sure you would remember that. There’s a word Jesus uses here, charizomai, it a business word used for forgiving a debt and it’s a theological word used by Paul. Jesus is describing the magnamity of this woman’s forgiveness and your forgiveness.
There was once a man who was bitten by a dog, which was later discovered to be rabid. The man was rushed to the hospital where tests revealed that he had, in fact, contracted rabies. At the time, medical science had no cure for this disease and so his doctor faced the difficult task of informing him that his condition was incurable and terminal. "Sir, we will do all we can to make you comfortable. But I cannot give you false hope. There is nothing we can really do. My best advice is that you put your affairs in order as soon as possible.” The dying man sank back on his bed in shock, but finally rallied enough strength to ask for a pen and some paper. He then set to work with great energy. An hour later, when the doctor returned, the man was stilling writing vigorously. The doctor commented “I’m glad to see that you’re working on your will.” “This is not my will.” Replied the dying man, “this is a list of the people I’m going to bite before I die.”
Something to keep in mind is that anytime somebody forgives a debt, they themselves incur that debt in full. If I lend you $500 and you tell me you can't pay that back. I say, “I forgive that.” I've now incurred that debt to myself completely. The cost has been transferred to me. That's what we have to understand when we look into the forgiveness of God. When he forgave our sins, it wasn't that just they were just whisked away in the wind. That debt was incurred upon the cross of Jesus Christ for him to pay it.
If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. (Phl 18)
If God wants to love us infinitely and delight us fully and eternally, he must preserve for us the one thing that will satisfy us totally and eternally; namely, the presence and worth of his own glory. He alone is the source of full and lasting pleasure. Therefore, his commitment to uphold and display his glory is not vain, but virtuous. God is the one being for whom self-exaltation is an infinitely loving act. (John Piper)
So he tells Simon the story and then, When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” (v. 42)
“Oh, that's simple. The one whom he forgave more.” You could almost hear a little sarcasm in his voice. Are you kidding me? So Jesus says that's right. Now, in verse 44, it all begins to make sense. He turns to the woman period now we've established the principle here. Great love comes from great forgiveness. “You've said it yourself, right Simon?” The greater the forgiveness, the greater the love. How much more can we say the same about our heavenly father? That's the reality. It was the reality then and it is the reality today in church too.
Sin is costly OK to the center, sin is costly period to forgive the sin, is even more costly to the father. And yet our Father in Heaven does it willingly and freely, no matter the cost. With the lavish love of God realized upon this woman, came lavish worship. No one asked her to do it. She didn't care about the people that were looking at her or judging her. She loved on her Lord with all that she had.
Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. (Luke 7:44–46)
What is the most beautiful sight we can see here in CrossWay Christian Fellowship? Sinners worshiping God. They're not worried about propriety. They are pouring out their heart to the One who forgave them.
Worship is the submission of all our nature to God; the quickening of conscience by His holiness; nourishment of mind by His truth; purifying of imagination by His beauty; opening of the heart to His love; and submission of will to His purpose. All these gathered up in adoration is the greatest expression of which we are capable. (William Temple)
Notice that little statement, “I say to you, her sins which are many have been forgiven.” That's in the perfect tense. It didn't happen there in the home. It's in the past period something happened in the past with continuing effect that brought her to worship Jesus. She had already been forgiven. She came to him because she had been forgiven. Maybe it was the day before, maybe it was some time ago. We don't know that. But since she heard that Jesus was there, she came to worship.
Her guilt was gone. The stain of sin within her was gone. The chains were broken. And the only thing that occupies her heart now is love and gratitude to her savior. So much so, that she couldn't even contain herself when she heard that Jesus was there. Do you want to know how to tell that Jesus is alive in our church? Sinners come to worship Jesus here.
You know foot washing is a tradition that spans throughout the entire Bible. It's also a part of our tradition as a brethren church. It's an act of worship. It reminds us that our sins have been forgiven. Salvation may not be always outwardly evident. But it is available to every single person that is here today.
And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” (Luke 7:50)
In Max Lucado’s book the “Applause of Heaven” reads, Even though by the “book” I’m guilty, by God’s love I get another chance. Even though by the law I’m indicted, by mercy I’m given a fresh start.
“For it is by grace you have been saved … not by works, so that no one can boast.”
No other world religion offers such a message. All others demand the right performance, the right sacrifice, the right chant, the right ritual, the right séance or experience. Theirs is a kingdom of trade-offs and barterdom. You do this, and God will give you that.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Ephesians 2:8–9)
