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Begin thinking about what you'd like to put in it.

As we come to the Word of God this morning,

we're going to actually jump a little bit ahead in the Gospel of Luke

! From where we were last Sunday.

Last Sunday, we heard about John the Baptizer's moment of doubt.

And Jesus, on that occasion,

actually takes some time to talk to the crowd about John.

Lord willing, we'll come back and look at those words more closely.

Except for one comment, which Luke makes right in the middle of that,

which we will read, which is in verses 29 and 30.

Luke says this, he says,

All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus' words,

acknowledged that God's way was right,

because they had been baptized by John.

But the Pharisees and the experts in the law

rejected God's purpose for themselves.

because they had not been baptized by John.

We've heard about the Pharisees

and the experts in the law already in Luke's Gospel.

They opposed Jesus.

They condemned Jesus.

They condemned Him for attending that banquet at Levi's house.

They condemned Him for allowing the disciples to eat wheat

that was ripe in the fields on the Sabbath day.

They condemned Jesus for healing a man on the Sabbath day.

They accused Jesus of being a glutton and a drunkard.

They said, He's a friend of tax collectors.

He's a friend of sinners.

Well, this morning we're going to see one of Jesus' encounters

with a Pharisee

and, at the same time, a sinner.

We're in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 7, verse 36.

Luke 7:36

When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with Him,

He went to the Pharisee's house

and reclined at the table.

A woman in that town,

who lived a sinful life,

learned that Jesus was eating

at the Pharisee's house.

So she came there

with an alabaster jar

of perfume.

So a Pharisee invites Jesus

to come over to His house for dinner.

And we remember that the Pharisees

were a highly influential

religious

party

among the Jews.

They were especially

influential among the common people.

They were known for their strict adherence

to the Scriptures,

at least on the surface.

And they saw themselves

as an authority

when it came to

understanding

and interpreting

and applying

the Scriptures,

the law of Moses

found in the Scriptures.

And Luke tells us

that a woman

who had lived a sinful life

in that town

caught word

that Jesus had been invited

to this Pharisee's house.

Not only did she hear,

but she comes knocking

on the door

and shows up

to this guy's house

with a jar

of perfume.

Already we know

this is going to be interesting.

We've got a highly

religious man

and we've got

a well-known

sinner

in the same room.

And Jesus

is right

in the middle of this.

And then comes

the awkward part.

this woman

is weeping.

As the woman

stood behind Jesus

at his feet

weeping,

she began

to wet his feet

with her tears.

Then she wiped them

with her hair,

kissed them,

and poured

perfume

on them.

Now it's difficult

to picture this

without a few

cultural details.

The tables

that they ate at

in their culture

were very low

to the ground.

Rather than sitting

at them

in a chair,

they actually

laid on their sides

around the table

with their head

and their hands

near the food

and then their feet

stretched out

behind them

away from the table.

And this is where

it gets really awkward.

not only

is the woman

crying

and why

is she crying

but it seems

that she's hiding

her face

behind her hair

over top

of Jesus' feet

and her tears

are dripping

down

onto Jesus' feet.

And she begins

to wash

Jesus' feet

with her tears

and her hair.

This is very strange.

Not only that

but she kisses

Jesus' feet.

And you're not weird

if you think

that's gross.

Feet are often

dirty and smelly

especially by

dinner time

and especially

in this hot

part of the world

in a society

where everybody

walks everywhere

in sandals.

This is not

a hygienic thing

that she's doing.

And then

on top of all that

she begins

to pour

expensive perfume

on Jesus' feet.

Can you imagine

the Pharisee

sitting there

and watching this?

What might he be thinking?

Well we don't have

to guess

because Luke

tells us

in verse 39

when the Pharisee

who had invited

Jesus

saw this

he said to himself

if this man

were a prophet

he would know

who is touching him

and what kind

of woman

she is

that she is

a sinner.

So what's

the Pharisee

thinking?

He's not

wondering at all

why she's crying.

he thinks

that Jesus

if he's a righteous

and holy man

should not be

allowing this

unclean

and immoral woman

to be touching him.

This Pharisee

is thinking about

how this woman's

sinfulness

and guilt

might rub off

on Jesus

and in the Pharisee's

mind

he's passing judgment

on Jesus.

everybody's

been talking

about whether

he's someone

special

perhaps a prophet

perhaps even

the Messiah

well if he was

a prophet

he would know

that this woman

is dirty

and unclean

a sinner

he would forbid

her from even

touching him.

You can hear

the pride

you can feel

it

in his thoughts.

Jesus answered

him

Simon

I have

something

to tell you.

Tell me

teacher

he said.

Two people

owed money

to a certain

money lender.

One

owed him

500

denarii

and the other

50.

Now

a denarius

was the usual

daily wage

of a day

laborer.

So

one owed

the money

lender

500

days

wages

that's a lot

and the other

owed him

50 days

wages.

Neither of them

had the money

to pay him

back

so he forgave

the debts

of both.

Now

which of them

will love him

more?

Simon replied

I suppose

the one

who had

the bigger

debt

forgiven.

You have

judged

correctly

Jesus

said.

keep going

then

Jesus

turned

toward

the woman

and said

to Simon

do you

see this

woman

I came

into your

house

you did

not give

me any

water

for my

feet

but she

wet my

feet

with her

tears

and wiped

them

with her

hair.

Back then

it was

customary

to do

a foot

washing

before

reclining

at the

table

for a

meal.

You did

not give

me a

kiss

but this

woman

from the

time I

entered

has not

stopped

kissing

my feet.

In

Jewish

culture

a kiss

!

A kiss

on the

cheek

or the

forehead

was a

common

way of

greeting

or showing

hospitality

to a

friend.

And I

think

we'll just

say it

it's somewhat

implied here

but clearly

the kissing

of the

woman

of Jesus

feet

was not

sexual

in nature.

Remember

she's

crying

and she's

kissing

Jesus

feet.

This is

the kind

of thing

we might

expect to

see between

a guilty

criminal

and a

king

sitting on

his throne

as the

criminal

begs

for

mercy.

You

did not

give me

a kiss

but this

woman

from the

time I

entered

has not

stopped

kissing

my feet.

You

did not

put oil

on my

head

but she

has poured

perfume

on my

feet.

Again

this is a

cultural

thing.

It wasn't

expected

always that

hosts

anoint

the head

of their

guests

with oil

but it

was

sometimes

done

to

special

guests

to

honor

them.

And as

we've

been

hearing

from Luke's

gospel

Jesus

is

the

Messiah.

He is

the

anointed

one.

God's

chosen

king.

And so

it would

be very

fitting

for Simon

to show

Jesus

this honor.

He's

dining

with a

king.

The

king.

You

did not

put oil

on my

head

but she

has poured

perfume

on my

feet.

And there's

several

contrasts

here.

The first

is between

the oil

and the

perfume.

The oil

which Simon

could have

used to

anoint

Jesus'

head

was

relatively

common

and

inexpensive

in Israel.

Perfume

on the

other hand

was very

expensive.

And so

that's the

first contrast

between the

oil and

the perfume.

Jesus is

maybe saying

you didn't

even honor

me with a

few drops

of olive

oil.

She has

honored me

with costly

perfume.

And then

there's the

contrast of

body parts

that we

notice here.

Simon,

you wouldn't

grace my

head with

oil but

she has

poured perfume

on my

feet.

Now

ordinarily

nobody would

put an

expensive

perfume

on their

feet.

You would

use a

cheap bar

of soap

on your

feet.

It's

almost like

the woman

is saying

that even

the

lowest

and

dirtiest

part of

you,

Jesus,

is worthy

of the

best that

I have

to give.

Even

your feet

are worthy

of anointing

with this

costly perfume

I've

brought.

The contrast

is so stark,

isn't it?

Here's Simon,

this Pharisee,

sitting there

in his

self-righteous

pride,

disgusted

that Jesus

would allow

himself to

be touched

by this

woman.

And here's

this woman

bawling her

eyes out

and humbling

herself to

the lowest

of lows

before Jesus,

paying him

the highest

of honors,

showing him

the love

that you

would show

to a

king.

How could

it be

that there's

such a

difference in

the way

these two

treat Jesus?

The answer,

I think,

is found in

that little

parable that

Jesus tells,

which we read

in verse 41.

I'll just read

it again

quickly.

Two people

owed money

to a certain

moneylender.

One owed him

500 denarii

and the other

50.

Neither of

them had the

money to pay

him back,

so he forgave

the debts

of both.

Now,

which of

them will

love him

more?

Jesus actually

explains how

the parable

relates down

in verse 47.

He says,

I tell you,

her many

sins have

been forgiven

as her

great love

has shown.

But whoever

has been

forgiven little

loves little.

Then Jesus

said to her,

her sins

are forgiven.

The other

guests began

to say among

themselves,

who is this

who even

forgives

sins?

Jesus said

to the woman,

your faith

has saved

you.

Go

in peace.

God

will

will

be

first of all,

notice

that Jesus

doesn't deny

she's a

sinner.

In fact,

he agrees

with Simon

about her

past.

He says,

I tell you

that her

many sins

have been

forgiven.

She was a

person who

had sinned

much.

And Jesus

didn't deny

that.

He didn't

minimize it.

She really

was a person

with a

past full of

doing things

that in

God's sight

were wrong.

But here's

the massive

difference

between

Simon the

Pharisee

and Jesus.

When Simon

looks at

this woman,

he sees a

despicable

sinner and

nothing more.

When Jesus

looks at

her,

he sees a

woman of

faith who

is right

now repenting

of her

sins.

He sees

that she is

truly sorry.

for the

wrong things

that she

has done.

Jesus

sees a

person who

is right

now acknowledging

her unworthiness

to be in

his presence.

Jesus

sees a

woman who

believes his

good news

that God

will

forgive

those who

come to

the man

God has

sent.

God

and it's

like these

tears of

guilt

and shame,

tears of a

broken heart

over all the

wrongs that

she has

done become

the gift

that she

brings as

she washes

Jesus' feet

with them

and anoints

his feet

with her

best perfume.

in this

moment as

she sees

that Jesus

does not

reject her

or push

her away

or tell

her to

leave as

Simon would

have done,

she knows

that Jesus'

message is

true.

That God's

forgiveness

really has

come to

her in

this moment

and she

pours out

her pure

and thankful

love for

Jesus with

this beautiful

act of

service and

honor.

She knows

that she

is forgiven

by Jesus

and so

she loves

Jesus much

by doing

what she's

doing.

That's what

Jesus is

saying by the

parable is

going on

with her.

But what

does Jesus

point to

Simon?

Well a few

things.

First,

how much

or how

little we

have

sinned

matters

nothing to

whether we

can be

forgiven.

No matter

how many

sins that

we've

committed,

we are

not beyond

God's

mercy and

his ability

to forgive.

This woman

is the proof

of that.

Her sins

are many

and yet

Jesus

says to

her,

looks her

in the eye

and says

to her,

your sins

are forgiven.

second,

the more

we realize

and understand

how much

we have

sinned

against

God,

the deeper

our love

for him

will be

if we

receive his

forgiveness.

I don't

think Jesus

means to

say that

Simon hasn't

sinned that

much and

that he's

a pretty

good guy.

rather,

until we

understand

just how

much we

have sinned

and are

in need

of God's

forgiveness,

we just

will not

love or

appreciate

Jesus as

we ought

to.

Let me

ask you

this question.

Do you

love Jesus?

Do you

treasure

Jesus?

If not,

could it

be that

you are

like

Simon,

thinking

you're

pretty

good,

only in

need of

a little

bit of

forgiveness?

We will

not treasure

Jesus and

the forgiving

love that

he has

until we

humbly

acknowledge how

great is

the debt

that we

owe.

And then

third,

how do we

receive this

forgiveness

from Jesus?

Notice

Jesus parting

words with

the woman.

He says,

your faith

has saved

you.

Go in

peace.

The answer

is simple.

Come to

Jesus Christ

in faith.

Believe

that he

can and

does

forgive.

when we

come to

him in

earnest

repentance

like this

woman did.

This is

the good

news of

Jesus.

We can

have

peace

despite

our

many

sins

in the

past.

Have

you done

that?

Have

you put

your faith

in Jesus?

have

you

experienced

like this

woman did

his

forgiveness?

In

just a

moment

we're

going to

partake

together

of the

Lord's

table.

And we

do this

every

month

to

remember

Jesus

our

Savior.

This

woman

knew

that she

was

utterly

unworthy

and a

sinner.

in

faith

she

saw

that

Jesus

was

truly

worthy

of the

best

and

highest

honor

she

could

give.

She

wept

over

her

sins

and

washed

Jesus'

feet

with

her

tears

and

poured

out

that

perfume

on

his

feet

and

kissed

them.

She

knew

just

how

much

she

had

been

forgiven.

She

was

so

deeply

stirred

with

love

for

the

one

who

had

forgiven

her.

This

woman

really

stands

out,

doesn't

she?

maybe

almost

a little

bit

like

the

centurion

that we

heard about

a couple

weeks ago.

One of

the few

who through

eyes of

faith saw

Jesus as

he really

is

and

herself

as

she really

was before

him.

He

a wonderful

and

merciful

king

and

she

a sinner

in need

of mercy.

As

the story

goes on

we'll see

even more

of how

wonderful

and worthy

and merciful

Jesus is.

He is

truly

the

anointed

one

of

God

and yet

he will

willingly

choose

to

suffer

and

die

on a

cross

to

atone

for

our

many

sins.

Let's

just

fast

forward

to that

moment

a little

bit

and hear

it again.

On the

night

before

Jesus

died

he

reclined

with

his

disciples

around

the

table

to

mark

the

Passover

and

he

took

bread

and

he

broke

it

and

he

gave

it

out

around

the

table

he

said

in that

moment

this

is

my

body

given

for

you

do

this

in

remembrance

of

me

and

he

took

a

cup

and

he

passed

it

around

saying

to

them

drink

from

it

all

of

you

this

is

my

blood

of

the

covenant

which

is

poured

out

for

many

for

the

forgiveness

of

sins

this

was

a

symbolic

thing

that

Jesus

did

and

it

was

all

intended

to

explain

what

would

happen

the

next

day

he

would

be

crucified

on a

Roman

cross

though

innocent

his

body

would

be

broken

and

his

blood

poured

out

he

would

die

and

yet

through

his

death

would

come

the

forgiveness

of

sins

for

many

a

new

restored

relationship

with

God

what

Jesus

said

to

the

woman

your

sins

are

forgiven

would

depend

on

this

act

love

his

death

for

us

on

the

cross

what

a

deal

the

worthy

and

sinless

king

seeing

that

we

do

not

have

the

means

to

pay

the

debt

we

owe

would

pay

the

debt

we

owe

!

himself

he

would

take

the

punishment

we

deserve

for

our

many

sins

on

himself

so

that

we

could

be

forgiven

and

live

in

peace

let's

take

a few

minutes

now

to

reflect

on

this

and

to

pray

silently

once

we've

done

this

for

a few

minutes

the

elders

will

come

and

pass

out

the

elements

if

you

believe

in

Jesus

as

your

savior

and

as

your

king

please

join

with

us

eat

and

drink

with

us

and

celebrate

and

remember

Jesus

with

us

and

if

not

please

just

let

the

elements

pass

you

by

we're

going

to

wait

until

everybody

has

been

served

and

then

we'll

partake

together

in

unison

but

let's

take

a few

minutes

now

to

reflect

and

to

pray

!

how

many

are

your

sins

how

much

have

you

been

forgiven?