"MUCH" pt. 3

The crowd is staring in shock and awe. A man in the crowd scratches his head asking, "What have I gotten myself into?" The once quiet discussion with the teacher has turned into a chaotic affair. Some woman is making a fool of herself. She's crying uncontrollably at the feet of Jesus, wiping his feet with her hair. The host, Simon, mutters to himself in disgust, "If he were a prophet, he would know this woman was a sinner." Jesus perceives this and begins to tell a story:

Two men owed the bank money. One owed about what he earns in two months . The other owed about what he earns in a year and a half. Neither man had any money to pay off his debt. So, the bank manager did something unheard of: he forgave the debts.

Then Jesus turned to Simon and asked, "Which one loved the manager more?"

Simon replied, "I suppose the one with the bigger debt."

Simon understands the parable, but he misses the lesson's application.

Jesus then begins to "drop some knowledge" on him. This is what Simon did not do when Jesus crossed his doorstep.

Simon did not:
1. Wash the dust off of his feet or even offer water for him to cleanse his feet.
2. Anoint him with oil.
3. Greet him with a kiss.

Why not? These were all typical middle-eastern greetings. Contrast this with the woman.

The woman did:
1. Wash the dust off his feet with her tears.
2. Anoint him with costly oil.
3. Kiss his feet repeatedly.

What caused the woman's affection to exceed Simon's?

Her great love for him.

In fact, the New King James Version (NKJV) says "she loved MUCH" 1 (emphasis added). She loved much because she recognized that she was forgiven much. Compare that with Simon. His actions and comments show that, at best, he liked Jesus. He wanted to hear what Jesus had to say, but he had no intentions of following him. This woman saw him as her savior; Simon saw him as just another rabbi to critique.

Jesus' message to Simon (and the woman) is clear: You are both debtors, Simon. This woman showed greater love and gratitude because she recognized that she had been forgiven of a great debt.

We all have debt. Like those in the parable, we do not have the means to make a single payment on the debt. The size of our sin is irrelevant. The response is everything.
Does your sin lead you to the feet of Jesus?
Do you recognize your need for a savior?

Forgiveness births love in our hearts. How MUCH that love is depends on how great we recognize our need to be.