Miracle of Faith, Pt. 7: "The Economics of Forgiveness"

THE ECONOMICS OF FORGIVENESS (LUKE 7:36-50)
Every Saturday, a man goes into his barber shop. So this one Saturday he told his barber that he was going to Rome. The barber asked what flight he was going to take. The man responded “A-1.” The barber yelled, “A-1!? Are you crazy?! That plane's food is horrible! And, you'll never get a wink of sleep 'cause the engines are so noisy!”

After a moment of silence, the barber politely asked, “What hotel are you staying at?” The man replied “The Grand Hotel.” The barber again yelled, “Why are you going there?! The place is infested with roaches and the mattresses are as hard as a rock!” Then after another moment of silence, the man said, “Oh, and guess what I'm going to do!?” “What?” asked the barber. The man said, “I'm going to see the pope!” The barber literally screamed, “You'll never get to see the pope!! No one ever gets to see the pope up close!”

Two weeks later the man came back and said that the plane and the hotel were great. The barber was astonished. The barber asked if the man got to see the pope up close. The man stretched his arms about 2 feet apart and said, “I got to see the pope and I was this far away and he talked to me personally.” “No way,” said the barber. “What did he say to you?” “Where'd you get the dumb haircut?” the man replied.

In Luke 7, an uninvited sinner entered the house of Simon the Pharisee, who roundly criticized her appearance and her actions. Simon the Pharisee was uneasy with her presence, embarrassed by the commotion, irritated, annoyed and mortified with her actions. In truth, behind the negative attitude, shallow thinking and harsh words was a self-righteous, self-centered and self-sufficient Pharisee.

Is life a dead end for sinners? Why did God in Christ forgive the worst sinners’ sins, receive them into his presence and give them a new life? What did Jesus see in repentant sinners that a man like Simon did not?

Jesus Came for Those Stricken in Heart, Not Those Stiff in Neck
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. 37 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, 38 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. (Lk 7:36-38)

A man dreamed he was going to church with an angel as his guide. He saw people at a worship service singing hymns and songs of praise to God. Though he strained to hear the lyrics of the song but none came out their mouths of the congregants. The musicians were playing their instruments, but no music sounded. Even the prayers were muffled too.

The man asked the angel why he could not hear the musical instruments, the singing, the preaching or the prayers. The angel explained, “What you are hearing in the service is the God heard it, for God only hear what comes from the heart, not what comes from the lips alone.”

The man then heard a child on the last row praying the Lord's Prayer. Excitedly, the man said, “I hear a prayer, I hear a prayer, but how can it be? The prayer seems to come from a child who hardly knows her right hand from her left hand.” The angel spoke, “You are hearing the only part of the service that God hears. He hears this little child's prayer because she means what she says and puts her heart and soul in it.” (Adapted, Adult Bible Study Teacher, SBC, 10/31/93)

The woman wept for her sins. She was the only person in the Bible who cried from the bottom of her heart, from the depths of her being, from head to toe for her sins. She did not cry because people labeled her a sinner or that Jesus was blamed for her presence and that she was unwelcome, insulted and misunderstood. It didn't matter to her who were there – the Pharisee, the disciples or other men. She cried for and was stricken by her sins - its onslaught, venom and ruthlessness. Her tears trickled steadily, evenly, unpleasantly, uncontrollably and unattractively down her face.

The woman considered herself unfit to stand before Jesus, to anoint His head, to speak to Him. So she stood meekly behind him, held her breath and poured perfume on his feet. She felt condemned not before Her Savior, but in her own eyes, by her own past and before the men. Her dismay with sin had changed to disgust and despair. No one needed to convince her of the heaviness and the consequences of sin, her responsibility for her conduct and the need for accountability. She cried non-stop, back and forth, wailing and howling.

The word used to describe her tears in Greek is consistently associated in the gospels with tears of betrayal and bereavement, such as Peter's bitter tears of distress when he broke down after he had denied the Lord Jesus Christ three times (Matt 26:75, Mark 14:72-15:1, Luke 22:62); when Mary lamented in tears for her dead brother Lazarus (John 11:33) and for the crucified Jesus (John 20:11); and when the crowd was reduced to tears for Jairus' daughter (Mark 5:38, Luke 8:52). The weeping woman did not betray any friend or neighbor and she did not experience the loss of anyone close to her, yet she felt to her pain a lump in her throat, a sting to her conscience and a knife to her heart, feeling like a traitor and a loser at the same time – one who had lost her innocence, dignity and future.

Regret, remorse and repentance are different. Regret is knowledge of wrongdoings in your head and remorse is experiencing the grief in your heart, but repentance is nailing your confession to the cross. As the Puritans said, “Repentance is a total, radical transformation of a person.”

Jesus Came for Those Sensitive in Heart, Not Those Self-righteous About Sin
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." 40 Jesus answered him, "Simon, I have something to tell you." "Tell me, teacher," he said. 41 "Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 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?" 43 Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said. 44 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. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven-for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." (Lk. 7:39-47)

St. John of the Cross (1542-1591) said, “A Christian should always remember that the value of his good works is not based on their number and excellence, but on the love of God which prompts him to do these things.”

About 500 years ago, Brother Lawrence, an ordinary layman dedicated his life to serve as a cook in a monastery with great enthusiasm and little fuss, but with much admiration. His secret had since been told for many centuries in a little booklet titled “The Practice of the Presence of God.” Brother Lawrence told others the simple secret behind his uncharacteristic affection and fondness for his work which was hardly considered glamorous or exciting. He said: “I turn my little omelet in the pan for the love of God. And when I can do nothing else, it is enough to have picked up a straw for the love of God.”

It's been said, “Obligation can pour a glass of milk, but quite often love will add a little chocolate.” Someone said, “The world is full of two kinds of people, the givers and the takers. The takers eat well – but givers sleep well.” (Quotable Quotations 155)

The woman was not there to ask for a favor or a word from Jesus, neither did she ask for Jesus to notice her, hear her or even touch her. She was there to express her love, gratitude and appreciation to the One who came in love, gave His everything and died for sinners. No one at the dinner table or in the dinner party understood the depth of the riches of Jesus’ love for sinners clearer than her.

In his parable, Jesus likened her grasp of the full meaning of salvation to the first man in the parable who owed five hundred denarii or five hundred days' wages, which is a little over a year and seven months' salary - minus 56 Sabbath days or 56 weeks for that year and seven months. 17 months’ pay is a lot of money, valuable down payment for a house, capital for a business venture and the annual budget for a small church.

The woman knew in her heart and mind that she owed Jesus a lot. She could not return His love for her to the same degree or in kind, but she could repay it in big and small ways. She did not just moisten Jesus' feet; she soaked, splashed, showered, drizzled, rained and poured on Him. Her action in Greek (“wet” v 44) was the same word for the fire and sulfur that rained enough on Sodom to destroy it (Luke 17:29), the heavy rain that poured in response to Elijah's prayer after three years and six months of drought (James 5:18, 1 Ki 18:45) and the rain that fell on the righteous and the unrighteous (Matt 5:45).

Not only did the woman continuously shed tears on His feet, she completely dried it with her hair. The word “wiped” in Greek is similar to Jesus' actions in John 13:5, where after washing the disciples' feet, Jesus dried them with the towel. The towel in this instance was her hair! What love! How lowly! What trouble and how messy! During those days, people walked wearing sandals on unpaved roads. She did not have a towel, yet she dried Jesus' soiled, weary, bristled feet with her hair.

What kind of perfume, and how much she brought and the fragrance they make can be figured out from another woman's anointing of Jesus. According to John 12’s Greek text, Mary used the same expensive type of perfume, pouring a pint of pure nard (John 12:3) that was worth a year's wages, according to NIV (John 12:5), on Jesus’ feet (John 11:2) and head (Mark 14:3). If a year's wages were spent to wet both Jesus’ hair and feet, then anointing just his feet would require half a year’s wages – enough to buy a car, pay for a year's college tuition or a enjoy an overseas vacation for a family of four!

Jesus' love for the rich young ruler (Mk 10:21), the disciples (John 13:1), the apostle John (John 13:22-23) and the siblings Martha, Mary and Lazarus (John 11:5) is well documented in the Bible, but this woman is the only person and stranger in the Bible to love Jesus voluntarily, unconditionally and unashamedly. Even the only confession of love for the Lord in the Gospels - from Peter's mouth - had to be dragged out (John 21:15). Note, too, that of the other seven instances of faith Jesus attested to in the Gospels (Luke 5:17-26, Luke 7:1-10, Mark 5:25-34, Matt 15:21-28, Mark 10:46-52, Luke 7:36-50, Luke 17:11-19), she was the only one who did not come to Jesus for physical healing.

Jesus Came for Those Sincere in Heart, Not Stubborn of Heart
47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven-for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little." 48 Then Jesus said to her, "Your sins are forgiven." 49 The other guests began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?" 50 Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace." (Lk 7:47-50)

On one occasion when the church prayer meeting was at a new visitor’s home, the host prepared a lot of refreshments for those attending, including cakes, drinks - sparkling apple cider, Chinese tea, red bean soup and lots of fruit – avocado, persimmons and cantaloupes.

Before too long, the conversation turned to fruit trees. My wife had always wanted to plant three things – winter melons for soup, tomatoes for meals and lemon tree for drinks. She mentioned her desire to plant a lemon tree because we used to have a lemon tree in our previous house. Her favorite drink is anything with lemon – coke with lemon, tea with lemon and even water with lemon!

The lady of the house darted to her refrigerator and brought out a bag of lemons for her, saying, “Take it home.” Doris protested, “No, no, I can't use that much. Save some for yourself.” The lady host replied, “No. no, you take all of them home. I seldom use it. Besides, I have a whole tree out there in my yard!”

Finally, the woman believed that Jesus was presently, perfectly and prosperously able to forgive her sins.

God's forgiveness of sins is a free gift richly supplied to all who ask. The essence of God's forgiveness in Christ, proclaimed in verse 48, is explicitly linked to the understanding of the Greek word charizomai for forgive or “canceled” in verses 42 and 43 of the NIV. Charizomai is derived from the familiar word charis or gift. So God in Christ not only had canceled our sins, He had graciously, freely, liberally forgiven us.

The woman was the first man with the bigger debt in Jesus' parable who understood, believed and claimed the prosperity of God's forgiveness. Like the first man in the parable, she could not repay what she owed because she had nothing to pay for the debt she owed (v 42), neither could she pay the principal or the interest accrued. The KJV translated “neither of them had the money to pay him back” (v 42). No savings men or women had, no loan from friends and no future inheritance in store could settle the huge debt that was due. The same is true of the ransom from death Jesus paid for sin and sinners on the cross. We had no means to pay Him and no motivation to ask Him, but He freely gave His life without a murmur.

The prosperity of God's forgiveness is like the words of a song that goes like this:
“He paid a debt He did not owe,
I owed a debt I could not pay,
I needed Someone to wash my sins away,
And now I sing a brand new song,
“Amazing grace” all day long,
Christ Jesus paid a debt that I could never pay.”

Conclusion: Whether you are a millionaire, whether you win a million, whether you inherit millions or not do not really matter to Him. The questions that matter are: Do you know the riches of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 8:9)? Are you rich towards Him (Lk 12:21)? Are you rich in faith (James 2:5)? We are all the poorer in life without Christ and but we have all the riches in life in Christ! Do you know and have you accepted the riches of God’s love, His forgiveness and transformation offered to you in Christ?