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Atlantis ‹the domain of the Stingray›
That our ultimate picture of success is a crucified Messiah means any conversation about success will be incompatible with a "bigger is better" mentality
‹Tim Suttle›
Atlantis: the domain of the Stingray
13Jun
2010
Sun
20:22
author: Stingray
category: Sermons
comments: 0
trackbacks: 0

Third Sunday after Pentecost

Luke 7:36--8:3

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
There was a certain creditor who had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both.

Jesus then asks Simon the Pharisee a question: "Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?" Simon responded: "I suppose the one whom he forgave more."

It makes sense, logically. We can bring that into modern terms. Two people bought houses, securing mortgages from the same institution. The first person secures a loan that is ten times greater than the second person. The economy takes a nose-dive, and both people fall on hard times, financially, so that neither are able to repay their loans. The mortgage broker, though, is merciful and gracious and forgives the loans—that is, it completely erases both people's debts (as if that would ever happen in today's day and age)—they now owe nothing, and both get to keep their houses! So, which do you suppose will be more grateful? Which of the two do you suppose will love the broker more? The obvious answer is the one who had the larger debt erased. It's the one Simon the Pharisee answered.

"You have rightly judged," Jesus replies.

We need a bit of background, however, to understand why Jesus tells such a simple parable. To begin with, we must not forget that this Simon is a Pharisee; therefore, he comes at every situation as a Pharisee would, even his own curiosities.

Jesus just healed a centurion's servants and raised a widow's dead son back to life. He spoke to some of John the Baptists disciples, confirming that He was the Coming One, pointing to what He has done as the proof. He tells the crowd a sermon regarding John the Baptist and Himself. Then, Simon the Pharisee invites Him over for dinner.

Simon is curious, so He has in mind to test Jesus. This Jesus associates Himself with the lowest of the low, people even Simon himself would not dare go near. So, Simon doesn't afford Jesus even the base niceties of being a guest: water to wash one's feet, a kiss of greeting, or the oil of anointing, all signs of honoring a guest. In his mind, He's better than Jesus, more worthy of honor than He is; there's no way he's going to stoop down in order to honor this Man who associates with tax collectors and sinners.

And that's another important point to make. Jesus associates with tax collectors and sinners. He does more than merely be in their presence; He instructs them, cares for them, forgives them...gives them the hope and life they earnestly desire yet cannot obtain for themselves. That's what it means for Jesus to associate with these people.

And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.

In walks one the likes of whom with which Jesus associates. She weeps for joy and thanks, washing His feet with her tears. Then, in an unheard of act for that time and place, she lets down her hair and drys His feet with it. In a worshipful act of love, she kisses the feet—"How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, who bring glad tidings of good things!" (Romans 10:15b) To show that He is one to be honored, she anoints His feet with oil. She acts in a worshipful way—never leaving His feet, being in a prostrate position—yet also as one who has received a great blessing.

So, Jesus tells the parable. Two men with vastly unequal debts have those debts erased. Who will love the creditor more? The one who had the greater debt forgiven, of course.

Then [Jesus] turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil."

The sinful woman shows a love and trust of Jesus that Simon the Pharisee never did. The two are on opposite ends of the pole with regard to how they view and receive Jesus. The woman cannot help but show love for Him; Simon sees no need to love Him. That's why Jesus continued, "Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little."

That last little sentence helps put it all into perspective: "But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little." In the parable, the man who had the smaller debt would most likely not be as loving and grateful to the creditor as the man who had the larger debt. He would, perhaps, show some gratitude, but would not have nearly as much as the other man.

Let's put it this way. Two men are indebted to a third. Their debts are about equal. One of them thinks he works his debt down not only with prompt payments, but also with a charming personality, strict adherence to the creditor's guidelines and rules, and an overbearing enforcement of those guidelines and rules on the other debtor. In fact, he believes that he has made up for all of his debt to the creditor. The creditor is patient and merciful; he forgives the debt of both men. Of course, the first man had no need for this forgiveness, in his estimation. However, the second man saw no way out from under the weight of his debt. He tries and tries to make payments, but he knows they will never be enough to pay off his debt. So, when the patient and merciful creditor forgives his debt, he is overjoyed and eternally thankful, and loves him very much.

The first debtor had little, if any, debt, in his mind. In his estimation, he has done so much to alleviate his debt, that the creditor's forgiveness amounted to nothing to him. In fact, he might be angry with the creditor for forgiving the debts, since now the second man has gotten away free without having to do anything; it's not fair. The second man has done nothing to deserve the creditor's grace and mercy, how dare the creditor put him on equal footing with the first debtor without a second thought. He might go so far as to outright reject the creditor's grace and mercy—he has no need for it, after all. He has little to no love for the creditor.

I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this:

  • That first debtor is like Simon the Pharisee. He sees absolutely no need for forgiveness. He considers himself worthy on account of his own deeds and actions. He would very likely be the one who would go into the temple and pray, "God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this [sinner]. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess." (Luke 18:11b-12)
  • The second debtor is like the sinful woman. She sees her need for forgiveness and is overjoyed to receive it. She cries tears of joy and repentance. She acts as one eternally grateful for having been forgiven. She could very likely be one who would go into the temple (if she could) and pray, "God, be merciful to me a sinner!" (Luke 18:13b)

Verily I say to you that her sins have been forgiven. That's why she loves much. Her sins, esteemed to be very great, have been forgiven. Today's Gospel indicates that Jesus had encountered this woman once before and forgave her; He does, after all, associate with people like her. Furthermore, the text does not allow us to read into it that she was forgiven for washing, kissing, and anointing Jesus' feet. The love she shows and the works borne out of love are a result of her having been forgiven. Like in Jesus' short parable, the man with the greater debt forgiven is the one who will, in turn, love the forgiving creditor. It's a love that, out of eternal gratitude, seeks to receive more forgiveness, to be in the gracious and merciful presence of God the Son, and receive from Him the blessings He has to give. Jesus also explains that love follows forgiveness.

But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.

And, as if to punch the point home, Jesus turns to the woman and says to her, once more, "Your sins are forgiven." This is part and parcel, too, of the forgiven life—it is a life that constantly and always sees its need for forgiveness. The debt of sin is always too great to bear...too great to repay. The wages of sin—the payment due for sin—is death, after all.

And that should be a great comfort to all of us. The wages of sin—the payment due for sin—is death, and Jesus died once for all! He has paid for the debt of our sin in our place. He has redeemed us...all of us! Whether it is believed or not, whether it is received or not, whether it is thought to be needed or not, Jesus death was just and due payment for the sins of the world—the whole world.

So, here's the truth we learn from today's Gospel lesson: we will have a greater love and esteem for those things we think we need. The need for forgiveness is a holy desire brought about by the grace of God—it is repentance. And, so, in God-given repentance, we have a great love and esteem for forgiveness. By these is prayed, "God, be merciful to me a sinner!"

Likewise, we learn from today's Gospel lesson that there is no love or esteem for those things we think we do not need. If there is no perceived need for forgiveness, there is no desire to receive it, no love for it...no repentance. By these could be prayed (though not likely) a prayer of shallow thanks: "God, I thank You that I am not like other men. I abstain from harmful things and I give to charities."

This holy desire for forgiveness—this God-given repentance—compels us to gather where God says He gives repentance, where God says He is present "for you" (not "merely" present). And, so, we are gathered—called, gathered, and enlightened—with the whole Christian Church on earth, where we are kept with Jesus Christ in the one true faith, and in which all believers' sins are daily and richly forgiven (cf. Small Catechism, Creed, Third Article).

Do not be in doubt, everyone has a need for this, and so we are here to receive it. Tears of repentance and love and joy could very well be flowing from our eyes for the great compassion, love, grace, and mercy that we have been shown. God is here for us for our forgiveness. God chooses to dwell among us in the person of His Son as His Word is spoken into our ears, wherein the Spirit works to give us what it says, and as His Body and Blood are given to us hidden in bread and wine, "given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins." "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends" (John 15:13); Jesus the Christ has laid down His life for us—gave His life to us—that we may be where He now is: what great love!

Now, I'm preaching to the choir, I know, for we are all here. Yet, there are others who choose not to come or choose not to come often (only as often as they please). How many empty seats do we have? How many are there on the books that have not been here since I've been here (or longer)? Here is a word of warning to those, but also to all of us, I would say, for we are all prone to chase after our own desires and perceived needs and neglect that which we truly need: Jesus says, "[W]here your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21) If there is no love and holy desire for the forgiveness God gives, it is a demonstration that forgiveness is not needed, or so it is believed. It is an indication of Pharisee-like self-righteousness which prays those prayers of shallow thanks, if anything. Oh, to proclaim it to those who refuse to come and receive what God gives, and have them actually hear it.

But, I say it is also a warning to those of us sitting here. Certainly there were times and will be times again where the love of self and selfish gains will supersede the love and holy desire for the forgiveness God gives, even for those of us gathered here today. Where there is little or no love for the things of God, the love of other things creeps in so that they are given greater esteem and honor than God and His things.

So if one has a late night on Saturday, for whatever reason, the love of self and self-righteousness finds a way to justify sleeping in on Sunday and missing the gathering of the saints. Or there might be some sort of activity planned at the same time as the Divine Service—when God comes to serve His people—from something such as a sporting event to some annual extravaganza, and the love of self and self-righteousness finds a way to justify missing the Divine service "just this once." There are myriad excuses that could be had for loving something more than or other than what God gives for our good and forgiveness, from the grand excuses that appear quite legitimate to the simple yet brutally honest, "I just didn't feel like it," and every one of them is a demonstration that one believes that forgiveness is not needed.

I don't think I can stress this enough, because the more we see the weight of the debt of our sin, the more we crave the forgiveness God gives. Therefore, God gives the Law. The chief purpose of the Law is to show us that we cannot measure up to God's standard—to show us our sin and that we need forgiveness. We need to hear the Law often and in full strength, otherwise we will all too easily come away believing that we do not need forgiveness or not as much as the next guy. "I would not have known sin except through the law." (Romans 7:7b) The Law is meant to condemn and kill you—the Old Adam in you.

By the Law, then, we see our sin and need for forgiveness, and cry out to God for that forgiveness: "God, be merciful to me a sinner!" Therefore, God gives the Gospel. The Gospel shows us the Savior and proclaims to us that we have been forgiven...that we are forgiven. What great good news this is: crushed by the Law, God picks us up out of death and brings us into life in His Son, who died that we may live!

But remember this, also. In Jesus' parable, both men had their debts forgiven. The creditor has done the work to forgive both men's debts. Christ has done the work to forgive all—everyone—the debt of their sins. Whether it is joyfully received in love or rejected out of spite, Christ died once for all—for all of you sitting here and even for those who refuse to come or chose to come infrequently—for all who love the Lord's salvation (cf. Psalm 40:16; 70:4) and those who don't, those who love the Lord's habitation (cf. Psalm 26:8) and those who don't.

Verily, this is the good news to you: like the sinful woman in today's Gospel, like the man in the parable with a great debt, you have been forgiven much, Christ was crucified to pay the debt for your sin. In fact, He has died for the sin of thanklessness and lovelessness. It was once put to me some way like this: "Christ has suffered on the cross for man's lack of love toward God to the point that He suffered His Father's lack of love due us for our sins." So, if Christ has suffered His Father's lack of love due us, there is no lovelessness of the Father for us. All that is left, now, is the love that the Father has for us in His Son, a love that shows the Father Christ's righteousness in us, a love that proclaims this Gospel truth to you: you are forgiven for all of your sins.

Your faith has saved you.

Your God-given faith has saved you—it has received God's salvation for you. You are saved by grace through faith.

Go in peace.
In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.


audio recorded on my digital recorder and converted to mp3
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