In the name of Jesus, whose love for us is indeed boundless, dear fellow redeemed,
A couple weeks ago we talked about a faith that Jesus himself called great, the faith of the centurion who believed Jesus could heal his servant even if he wasn’t present to do so. That kind of faith realizes what a wonderful thing our Savior has done for us and for our salvation. And with that in mind, there’s no way to keep that kind of faith dormant – it will be living and active, displaying in our lives the joy that lives in our hearts. That’s the kind of faith we have before us this morning. Let’s see how:
“Saving Faith Reacts to Grace”
I. It’s active
II. It’s thankful
III. It’s trusting
You won’t find Jesus turning down many dinner invitations while he was here on this earth, but it wasn’t because he liked to eat. In most cases, he would be found dining with “sinners” and others who were looked down upon by society with the intent of reaching out to them with the gospel. But this time it was different. Notice who extends the invitation on this occasion (v 36), “Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.” The Pharisees weren’t big fans of Jesus. They put a great deal of emphasis on the outward observance of the law, even adding a number of their own laws to those God had given to Israel. We’re not told why this Pharisee (later called Simon) invited Jesus into his home that day, but we might get a hint from the previous chapter of Luke’s Gospel (Lk 6:7), “The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely.” They wanted to find a way to discredit him, to destroy his reputation among the people. Whether or not this was the reason behind the dinner invitation of this Pharisee, by his acceptance we see Jesus’ loving concern for all people, even for those who may have wanted to do him harm.
Word got out that Jesus was in town, and someone not on the guest list made an appearance (vv 37,38), “When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him 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.” We’re not told who this woman was and what type of sinful life she had lived, but the people of the town knew. She was a local woman with a bad reputation. And what a scene she made! According to the custom of that time Jesus and the others were “reclining” on a couch while eating instead of sitting on chairs as we do. Then, out of the blue, here comes this woman. She picked a spot behind Jesus and began to cry her eyes out, letting her tears fall upon Jesus’ feet, and then wiping his feet with her hair. Not only that, but she kissed his feet (over and over again, as the Greek verb shows us), and then poured out this precious perfume which she had brought with her on Jesus’ feet. What was going on here? What was this all about?
Jesus knew. Notice that he didn’t object. He didn’t try to stop her. He didn’t move at all. Quietly he accepts everything this woman does, for he knew that it was her offering of love and gratitude. He knew that the tears she shed were tears of repentance. He could see that the actions of this sinful, uninvited guest were done as a result of her faith. This woman saw in Jesus her Savior from sin, and the faith in her heart spilled forth in these actions of love. Hers was an active faith!
A couple of weeks ago my son came across a snake in our backyard, almost stepping on it as he did so. He knew it wasn’t just a stick, and he knew it wasn’t dead, because it was moving. Movement indicates life. An active snake is a living snake. So it is with our faith. An active faith is a living faith. The opposite is just as true (Jas 2:17), “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” Certainly our actions do not save us, but they do serve as proof that ours is a saving faith. Saving faith reacts to God’s grace. Ask yourself, “Is my faith active?” Do we just talk a good game, or do others see that we back up what we say by living a God-pleasing life? Do we allow our faith to lie dormant, or do we give it a regular workout with church attendance and daily Bible reading? Calling ourselves a “believer” isn’t enough. Living our faith is what assures us that ours is also a saving faith.
The sinful woman’s actions for Jesus were not done to earn his favor. She already knew that because of him, because of his grace, her sins were forgiven. Her actions were proof of her saving faith, because they proved that she was thankful.
Simon the Pharisee wasn’t happy at all by this turn of events. Surprisingly, he was more upset with Jesus than with the woman who had crashed his dinner party (v 39), “When the Pharisee who had invited him 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.’” The Pharisee’s judgment of Jesus is pretty harsh. If he really was something special, he should’ve known what kind of undesirable person this woman was and he should have gotten rid of her. This man believed that God loved and accepted the good people like himself and his friends and rejected and condemned the wicked people like this woman. But Jesus shows this man how hypocritical his unspoken judgment really is.
Not a word had been spoken up to this point. All eyes were on Jesus. What would he do? How would he react? Jesus’ response is directed to his host, to Simon the Pharisee (vv 40-43), “Jesus answered him, ‘Simon, I have something to tell you.’ ‘Tell me, teacher,’ he said. ‘Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?’ Simon replied, ‘I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.’ ‘You have judged correctly,’ Jesus said.” Jesus tells the story of two debtors. They each owed the same man some money. One owed ten times what the other owed, but neither of them could come up with the money needed to pay off their debt. And yet both their debts were canceled. The point of Jesus’ story? Even if this woman had been “more” of a sinner than Simon, they both had a debt which neither of them could pay. Big or small, none of us is able to pay off our debt of sin. James tells us (Jas 2:10), “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.” Sin is like a deadly virus. Whether you’re just a little sick or a lot, you still have the virus. Both the woman and Simon the Pharisee were sinners. The woman knew it. Simon did not.
Jesus pointed out this difference between the two (vv 44-47), “Then he 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. 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. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven — for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.’” Simon offered no water for Jesus’ feet, failed to greet him with a kiss, and brought no oil for his head. Instead of water the woman gave him her tears; instead of a towel, she offered him her hair; instead of a kiss of friendship, she showered his feet with kisses of respect and devotion; instead of ordinary oil for his head, she poured out a far more costly perfume on his feet. This woman loved Jesus more because she knew just how much she had been forgiven. Simon’s love was lacking because he didn’t think he really needed forgiveness. Thinking he had little need for Jesus, he had little love for his Lord. The sinful woman was well aware of her great debt, and so her thankfulness for her Savior and for his forgiveness was very much on display.
Don’t misunderstand Jesus’ words, “her many sins have been forgiven — for she loved much.” Her love wasn’t the cause of her forgiveness. It was the result. If we said that it rained last night because the ground is wet, that doesn’t mean that the ground being wet was the cause of the rain. It’s the result, the proof that it rained last night. In the same way, as Jesus pointed out in the parable, the woman’s actions were acts of love and thanksgiving for the forgiveness she had already received. Another translation of this verse makes this point clear (NEB), “Her great love proves that her many sins have been forgiven.” God’s forgiveness comes first. As Scripture proclaims (Ro 5:8) “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” The fact remains (1 Jn 4:19), “We love because he first loved us.” Our acts of love are just proof that our sins are forgiven. A saving faith is thankful for the Lord’s forgiveness.
The apostle Paul once wrote (1 Ti 1:15), “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners — of whom I am the worst.” If we sing (CW 385:1), “Chief of sinners though I be” and truly feel that way, then we truly realize the debt which God has forgiven. Then our faith will be a thankful faith. The more we realize the enormity of our debt, the more we’ll love our Savior and appreciate his forgiveness. But the more we minimize our debt, the less we’ll love our Savior and the less we’ll appreciate what he has done. That’s why it’s so important for us as a church to preach not only the gospel, but also the law. We need to be reminded of our sinfulness, to realize how lost we are on our own, so we can be led like David to proclaim (2 Sa 12:13), “I have sinned against the LORD.” Then we can show the genuineness of our repentance by forsaking our sin and living a life that shows how thankful we are to have a Savior who died to wipe those sins from our record. Yes, like the sinful woman, we’ve been forgiven much. Acknowledging the magnitude of our forgiven debt will help us love our Lord all the more with a faith that is thankful.
Saving faith is active and thankful. It’s also faith which takes Jesus at his Word. Saving faith reacts to God’s grace by believing and taking to heart the wonderful news that our sins are truly forgiven.
The woman who anointed Jesus had that kind of faith (vv 48-50), “Then Jesus said to her, ‘Your 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.’” A more exact translation of the Greek would be “Your sins have been forgiven.” The act of forgiveness had already been accomplished. Forgiveness was hers as a free gift. Jesus’ words were meant to make her all the more aware of this wonderful fact. As the Son of God, he had all the authority he needed to make this pronouncement. In Hebrews it says (9:22), “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” But Jesus did shed his blood for us, giving up his life on the cross, so there is forgiveness! This woman had saving faith, faith which had accepted Jesus as her Savior from sin. Her salvation was an accomplished fact. She could “go in peace,” not with peace being a goal for her to shoot for, but with peace as a reality, a possession which was already hers. As Paul reminds us (Ro 5:1), “Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” When we trust that our sins are truly forgiven, our heart is at rest. The devil can no longer accuse us. We are at peace.
Is your faith a trusting faith? Do you take Jesus at his word? Do you believe your sins are forgiven, that it’s a done deal? A trusting faith believes Jesus’ words, “It is finished.” We don’t have to earn God’s favor, hoping that he “might” forgive us. It’s already done! What a difference that makes for our lives! What a difference that makes in the message we share with others! The guilt is gone! The debt’s been paid! Our faith tells us so! By faith we trust our Lord! We know that our salvation is complete!
So, do you have a saving faith, a faith that reacts to God’s grace? Take the test. Is your faith active, thankful, trusting? While living in this world we’ll never score a perfect “100” when it comes to our faith, but our faith will grow the more time we spend with our Lord and with his Word. Then we’ll be truly blessed, for each day we can hear Jesus speak to us the comforting words, “Your sins are forgiven. . . . Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Amen