Luke 7:39 (ESV)
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.”
A woman of ill repute washed
Jesus’ feet with her tears and anointed them with ointment. The Pharisee
concluded that there was only one possible explanation as to why Jesus allowed
this. Jesus could not be a prophet of God. If he was a prophet, he would know
what kind of woman this was and would never let her touch him. The Pharisee
couldn’t even imagine the truth.
Jesus was not just a prophet but
the very Son of God who not only knew what type of woman this was but welcomed
her graciously. The story that follows makes it clear that the Pharisee’s
self-righteousness kept him from understanding forgiveness, while Jesus
declared the woman forgiven. In the story Jesus told, two debtors had their
debts forgiven. In the mind of the Pharisee, he had no sin needing to be
forgiven but the woman’s sin was unforgiveable.
The better we understand the
depth of our own sin, the more we appreciate the grace of God. The more we
understand the grace of God the more gracious we are with others. An
unforgiving heart may indicate either that we fail to see our own sin, or that
we fail to understand the power of the blood of Christ to cover any sin. In
this passage the woman of ill repute goes away forgiven while the Pharisee is
entrenched even more in his self-righteousness. Every day we have a choice to
make. Will we embrace self-righteousness or will we rest in the forgiveness of
God. The choice we make affects our attitudes toward others as well as toward
God.
Comments
Post a Comment