Love God

Introduction

In the story of Les Mis, Jean Valjean was a convict. He was a sinner.

Being a poor boy growing up in early 19th century France, he never had much to eat and was often hungry. So, when he saw some bread in a bakery window he broke the glass and took what he wanted.

Valjean was later caught by the police and sentenced to 19 years in prison.

After this, he was released on parole but could not find a place to stay or food to eat. While sleeping on a bench, he was encouraged by a woman to knock on the priest’s door to see if he could help him.

The priest graciously let Valjean enter his home and share a meal with his wife. Even though the priest knew Valjean was a convict, he loved him, provided for his needs, and gave him a bed. Valjean vowed to the priest he would become a “new man.”

Yet, in the middle of the night, Valjean knew he would not be able to make to his parole officer in the next city without money. . . so he stole the priests silverware.

When confronted by the priest in the middle of the night, Valjean hit the priest and ran away with his silver.

The next day, the police came to the priest’s house with Valjean in handcuffs. The officers reported that Valjean claimed the silverware was not stolen but the priest gave them to Valjean.

After hearing this, the priest responded, “yes, its true, but I am so upset at you Jean Valjean, why did you not take the candlesticks that I offered you as well? They are easily worth 3,000 franks!”

At the testimony of the priest, the officers released Valjean. . . and he stood in shock at the forgiveness the priest had given him.

Valjean asked the priest why he did this. . . and the priest responded. . .

“you promised to be a new man. . . Jean Valjean, you no longer belong to evil. With this silver, I’ve bought your soul. I’ve ransomed you away from fear and hatred and given you back to God.”

Valjean was in awe of the great forgiveness the priest had shown him. He knew he was a great sinner and did not deserve the priest’s grace and forgiveness, yet he was shown abundant mercy.

In response, Jean Valjean lived the rest of his life loving and serving others and constantly forgiving those who hated him and wronged him.

Valjean loved much because he knew how much he had been forgiven.

FCF: We often struggle to love God like we should because I think we forget what we have been forgiven from.

Key Point: The depth of our love for God flows from the depth of the knowledge of our sin and the beauty of God’s grace/gospel.

Today, In Luke 7:36-50, we are going to observe the lives of two people. A woman who knew the depth of her sin, and a Pharisee who didn’t. . . A sinner, who loved much. . . and a “righteous man” who loved little. . . and the question we must ask of ourselves is. . . which person are we?

Luke 7:36–39 “36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39 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.””

Our text this morning teaches us that those who love God exhibit three characteristics. . .

1. Know Him

First, those who love God know him.

I love my wife. . . she is about 5’0 and has gorgeous blonde hair and the most beautiful blue eyes. She is very outgoing and could talk to a brick wall. One thing I love about her is that she always lets me win when we play games. . . she is not very competitive. . . one sports she cannot stand is pickleball.

Now, most of you who know Ashley, know that the person I just described is not my wife!

Ashley is 5’10, she has dark brown hair and beautiful brown eyes, she is quiet. . . unless you know her, and she is a little competitive when it comes to sports and games. . .

Now, it would be hard to say that I love my wife, if I was not able to describe her to you accurately or tell you anything else about her.

In the same way, I wonder how much we truly love God if we don’t know much about him and can’t describe him to others?

The woman in our story leaves no doubt that she knew Jesus.

She had heard about Jesus and knew that he offered repentance to tax collectors and sinners like herself.

Luke 7:34 “34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’”

She knew who Jesus was, knew he could help her, and she wanted to be with him.

As a result, knowing Jesus helped her to see the depth of her sin.

Luke describes her as “a sinner.”

Her specific sin is not disclosed, but most scholars say it was sexual sin.

However, there is no textual evidence for this accusation.

Looking at the context of where Luke places this story around Jesus accepting tax collectors and sinners, the woman’s sinful lifestyle may be related to the Roman tax system.

If so, it would make her sinfulness even more heinous for the Roman tax system permeated and poisoned Jewish society more than prostitution.

Regardless of her sin, this woman holds the label as “a sinner” and she was an outcast in society.

Yet, despite her sin, she did not let that stop her from coming to Jesus, because, even though her sins were many, she knew Jesus’ character, she knew he was gracious, she knew he was a friend of sinners.

Her knowledge of Jesus and the knowledge of her sin led her to express tears of repentance and joy at the amazement that Jesus forgave her many sins.

verse 38 says she stood behind his feet “weeping,” and these tears did not stop, but continually poured over Jesus’ feet as she wiped his feet with her hair.

Contrast Simon who did not truly know Jesus.

v. 39: “If this man were a prophet. . .”

Simon doubts that Jesus is a prophet, because if he was, would’ve known this woman’s past and that she was undefiled.

For Simon, no true prophet of God would allow oneself to become defiled by a touch from a sinner.

Yet, in v. 40-42, Jesus proves he is prophet by perceiving Simon’s thoughts in his heart and teaching him through a parable.

Simon did not know Jesus, yet by perceiving Simon’s heart, Jesus knew Simon.

Application

How well do we know God?

If someone were to ask you to take five minutes and write down everything you knew about your spouse, your favorite sports team, band, food, video game, movie. . . how many words could you come up with?

Now, what if we were to do the same thing with God. How much could you tell someone about God, his nature, his attributes, his commands, his works, his concerns, his ways?

Who do we know well? Who or what is discipling us?

Is it the Word or the world?

Scripture or Social Media?

Sports or the Savior?

Fox News or the Founder of the Universe?

Youtube or Yahweh?

Jesus said in Luke 6:45 that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.

What dominates our conversations? What are we passionate to share with others in our speech? Does the person of Jesus captivate our hearts?

If other things captivate our hearts more than Christ, they are idols that we must remove from our hearts through repentance.

This morning, let us ask God in faith to give us eyes to see his beauty and glory afresh and anew through His Word and His Works.

It is by opening up the Scriptures each day, we can grow in our knowledge of God by seeing his character, conduct, and concerns.

God speaks to us through the Scriptures by the Holy Spirit.

Through the Spirit, we can know and understand the mind of God when we read his word (1 Corinthians 2:6-16).

As we spend time daily in His Word, we will better be able to see his beauty and glory in His works in creation.

So, first, those who love God know him. Second, those who love God Sacrifice for Him.

2. Sacrifice for Him

Most of you are familiar with the movie Chariots of Fire, that tells the story of Eric Liddell.

Liddell won gold in the 400 meters in the 1924 olympics. Yet after graduating the next year, in the prime of his career, he left his life of athletic fame and success to be a missionary in China.

As great as olympic glory was, it paled in comparison to the glory of helping the Chinese know Jesus.

Eric Liddell did not believe serving Christ was a sacrifice because Jesus was his treasure. . . and it was the same for the woman in our story.

The woman sacrificed her most prized possession for Jesus. Luke tells us in verse 37 that she brought an Alabaster jar of ointment to anoint Jesus.

Alabaster was a soft stone used to carry costly perfume.

Normally, perfume was given at special events in a person’s life, such as civic feasts or purifying the priest or the tabernacle.

Perfume was extremely costly in Jesus’ day and it would have been very precious to the owner.

The most precious perfume was made of a perennial herb called nard. and Mark’s account tells us it was nard that the woman brought to Jesus.

Therefore, this nard would have cost about a year’s salary per pound (300 denarii).

This perfume was precious to the woman and possibly could amount to her entire inheritance. . . yet, she freely poured it out on the feet of Jesus and anointed him.

She did this because she knew Jesus was the treasure. . . he was worth it.

Contrast Simon who was not willing to give Jesus any type of gift.

Simon did not sacrifice anything for Jesus. . . but he also did not even do things that were kind gestures in his day. . . like anointing one’s guest with oil after a long journey to one’s home.

Application

What have we sacrificed for God?

Do we sacrifice our time, talents, and treasures for Christ?

If its not for Jesus, who or what is it for?

We will always make sacrifices for the things and the people we love.

Do we see him as the treasure?

Philippians 3:8 “8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ”

Those who love God, know him, sacrifice for him, and lastly, serve him.

3. Serve Him

Luke tells us that the woman continually served Jesus.

There are eight verbs in verses 37-38 that describe the woman’s actions toward Jesus. . . she learned where Jesus was, brought a jar of ointment, stood behind him, wept and washed his feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, then kissed them and anointed them with perfume.

The woman demonstrated remarkable determination and devotion to serve Jesus.

She was willing to do the most lowest task of washing Jesus’ feet. . . she even kissed them!

Only Gentile slaves would wash the feet of others. . . No Jew would do this type of service.

A woman who let down her hair was shameful in Jesus’ day. . . Yet, the woman sacrificed her pride and humbled herself.

Notice the word “feet” repeated three times in verse 38 to symbolize the woman’s humility and humiliation.

Yet, She did not care what people thought of her. . . because she no longer cared about the people around her. . . she only cared about Jesus.

Out of love, she was willing to identify herself with Jesus by honoring him and serving him.

Out of love, she humbly submitted herself to Jesus in obedience, because Jesus was her king.

Contrast with Simon who did not give Jesus water or kiss his feet.

Only one verb describes Simon in verse 39. . . he merely invited Jesus over. . . but when Jesus finally arrived, Simon was unwilling to serve Jesus because he wanted to keep his distance.

He gave no kiss of welcome because he was not sure if he could associate himself with Jesus yet and he didn’t want his friends to know he was too friendly with Jesus.

Simon cared more about his reputation as a religious elite before people rather than about Jesus.

Application

Do we serve the Lord?

Are we willing to do the “lowest tasks” in serving our King?

Jesus says in John 14:15 that those who love him will obey him.

Part of loving God means that we will also love people who are made in his image.

How are serving those around us at Westwood?

Spouses?

Siblings?

Co-workers?

Response

In our story this morning, the woman loved Jesus and Simon didn’t.

Why? What was the difference? What made the woman want to know Christ more, sacrifice, and serve him?

Lets look now at verse 41. . .

Luke 7:41–50 “41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. (A denarii was a day’s wage, so 500 denarii would be two years’ wage and 50 denarii would be two months wage)

42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.”

(As I read the next two verses, notice the contrast Jesus makes between what the Woman did and what Simon did not do). . . 44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. (Jesus says in rich irony that the sinful woman who “crashed the party turned out to be the gracious host and acknowledged God. . . while Simon the Pharisee rejected the counsel of God).

47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Jesus says the reason the woman loved much. . . the reason why she wanted to be in Jesus’ presence, sacrifice all she had, and serve him with her entire being. . . is because she knew how much she had been forgiven.

Before this encounter, the woman had experienced the love and forgiveness of Christ, maybe through the baptism of John that is mentioned in Luke 7:29 before our story.

Therefore, James Edwards says, “her love for Jesus was the result of her forgiveness, not the cause of it. It is Jesus-not the woman’s love-who is the source of her forgiveness.”

In verse 48, Jesus affirms her forgiveness in front of everyone so that they will know that he has the power and authority to forgive sins because He is Yahweh. . . this woman’s faith in Jesus has saved her, and she is free to go in peace!

As we think about the two characters in our story, this morning, . . which character are we? Are we like the woman, who knows her sin, knows how much she has been forgiven from and expresses great love for Jesus? . . . Or, are we like Simon, who does not see his sin or need for forgiveness and loves little?

It seems difficult to say that we love God if we do not know or have a desire to know him, we never sacrifice for him, and we never do anything to serve him.

Yet, the solution to our lack of love is not trying harder, but rather it is by experiencing the mercy and grace God has shown us through Jesus.

“The only way to make people holy is to teach and preach free and full forgiveness through Jesus Christ. . . Peace with God is the only root that will bear the fruit of holiness. Forgiveness must go before sanctification.” -JC Ryle

We love because he first loved us

1 John 4:10 “10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

Thus, there are three ways that we must respond in faith to God’s word this morning so that we can grow and express our love for him. . .

First. . . We must be captivated, in awe, and transformed by his love in the gospel.

Romans 5:6–8 “6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Second, we must see the depth of our wickedness to behold the beauty of God’s grace.

Write out your sins and remember what Christ has died for.

On the cross, Jesus took our. . .

lies, hate, envy, gossip, lusting, hypocrisy, selfishness, drunkenness, empty religion, prayerlesness, deceitfulness, cowardliness, bitterness, gluttony, self-pity, apathy, bigotry, racism, doubt, greed and pride.

Third, we must know that by placing our faith in Christ, Jesus has the power and authority to declare that all of our sins have been forgiven.

Like this woman, even the worst of sinners can be forgiven in Jesus.

Isaiah 1:18–20 “18 “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; 20 but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be eaten by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.””

So, by experiencing the love of Christ, seeing our sin, and beholding the power Jesus has to forgive our sins, we will be propelled forward in faith to love God and grow in our knowledge, service, and sacrifices for him.

“There never will be more done for Christ till there is more heart love to Christ Himself. The fear of punishment, the desire of reward, the sense of duty, are all useful arguments in their way to persuade people to holiness. But they are all weak and powerless until someone loves Christ. . . Feeling is the secret of doing. The heart must be engaged for Christ or the hands will soon hang down. The affections must be enlisted into His service or our obedience will soon stand still. It will always be the loving worker who will do most in the Lord’s vineyard.” -JC Ryle

It has been my goal and prayer to show you the immeasurable love of God in Christ this morning. . . so, with Fredrick Lehman, we can say together. . .

“Could we with ink the ocean fill,

and were the skies of parchment made;

were every stalk on earth a quill,

And every man a scribe by trade;

To write the love of God above

Would drain the ocean dry;

Nor could the scroll contain the whole,

Though stretched from sky to sky.”