A BROKEN VASE AND A SAVING GRACE

Luke 7:35-49

John 12:17 says, “The Law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”  The good news of the Gospel is that we’re not saved by perfectly keeping all of God’s commandments.  We are saved by completely trusting in the grace of God.  Once we understand that truth, we can receive his forgiveness and walk in joyful, confident obedience.  And for the next few weeks, we’re going to examine how Jesus responded to several people who desperately needed his grace and his truth. 

The first is a sinful woman who came to Jesus for forgiveness. The biblical explanation of her story is found in Luke the 7th chapter.  Verse 36 begins, “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.”  Now keep in mind, in that day when a special teacher was invited into somebody’s home, they kept the front door open so that anybody could walk in off the street and listen in to the conversation.  The visitor was supposed to keep quiet, but they were free to come in and observe.  And, it was a tribute to the host if other people came in and hovered around.  That meant he had somebody important at his house.

Verse 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.”  Now, don’t confuse this woman with Mary the sister of Lazarus who later performs a very similar act.  The two deeds have a great deal in common, but they are different instances. 

Verse 38 reads, “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.”  Now, we don’t know a great deal about his woman. We know she was  a sinful woman.  Most students of the Bible think she was a prostitute.  But she could have had some other character flaw or been involved in some other addiction. But whatever it was, everybody in the community knew about it.  She had a bad reputation.  But she was also a seeking woman. Jesus was in the town, eating at the home of Simon and she went to the place where Jesus was. 

You know, I’ve found that people who are trapped in some type of appalling behavior really want to do better.  They want to be set free.  Deep down, they want to go straight. And they promise themselves, “I’m going to do better some day.  When my children come, I don’t want them to be exposed to this lifestyle.  I’m a better person than this.  Really.”  And this woman knew that Jesus called people to a higher, better lifestyle.  And deep down in her soul, she wanted that.  So she was attracted to Jesus.

And we know that she was a repentant woman.  There’s an old Turkish proverb that says, “No matter how far you’ve gone down the wrong road, turn back.” And this woman was a long way down the wrong road, but she wanted to turn back.  And that day as she stood in the presence of Jesus, the contrast between his purity and her sin just overcame her to the point that she began to weep tears of repentance.  Now, you know there are some people who can cry crocodile tears.  I mean, tears just gush out of their eyes and rolled own their cheeks and drip to the floor.  If you’ve got kids in your home, you’ve seen that happen at one time or another.  This woman’s tears dripped on Jesus’ feet.  Now, keep in mind in that day they reclined at the table and Jesus’ feet would be behind him.  And when her tears dropped on Jesus' feet, this woman instinctively tried to undo her blunder by drying his feet with her long hair. But in that day it was considered immodest for a woman to appear in public with her hair let down. But this woman was so impulsive and so expressive that when her tears wet Jesus’ feet, she attempted to dry them with her hair, and then she spontaneously kissed Jesus’ feet and poured perfume on them.  And I love the way Jesus so warmly, and graciously responds to this woman.  He commended her and said of her, “She loves a great deal.  She’s done a generous deed. She knows how to express praise.” 

But Simon, the Pharisee was embarrassed by it all.  Verse 39 reads, “When the Pharisee who 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.  She’s a sinner.’”  Now keep in mind that when a man took a vow to be a Pharisee, he promised to obey the letter of the Law.  He was devoted to earning God’s favor not just by keeping the 10 Commandments, but all of the Old Testament. And although the Pharisees were good moral people on the outside, inside they had a problem with attitude.  Jesus said they were full of dead men’s bones.  They were like whitewashed tombs. They were self-reliant, arrogant and judgmental.  Six times in Matthew 23 Jesus said the Pharisees were hypocrites. Someone said, “God prefers a loving sinner to a loveless saint.”  Simon was kind of a loveless saint who had a condescending attitude towards this woman of the street.  And he mumbled, “If Jesus really were a man of God, he wouldn't let this kind of a woman touch him.  He’d run her off in a moment.”

But Jesus was so full of grace and truth, even to Simon.  Look at verse 40, “Jesus answered him, ‘Simon I have something to tell you.’

‘Tell me, Teacher,’ he said.

‘Two men owed money to a certain moneylender.  One owed him 500 denarii and the other 50.  Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he cancelled the debts of both.  Now, which of them will love him more?’

You see, Jesus not only knew what kind of woman this woman was, he knew what kind of person Simon was.  He knew what Simon was thinking. The Bible says “Jesus knew what was in the heart of man.”  And he knew that the woman was guilty of sins  of the flesh, but Simon was guilty of sins of the spirit. And he knew that both of these people were spiritually bankrupt.  Neither of them could pay the debt of their sin.  And the difference wasn’t in the amount of the sin, but in the awareness of their sin.  Did you get that?  The difference wasn’t in the amount of their sin, but in the awareness of their sin.  So, Jesus asked, “Which would love the most?” 

And in verse 43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.”

“You’ve judged correctly Jesus said.  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.”  William Barclay pointed out that in that day a gracious host would always express hospitality with three acts of kindness.  Today we shake somebody’s hand, we’d take their coat, and offer them a glass of water to iced tea.  But in that day the host would first give them the kiss of peace, a mark of respect. And then, since the roads were dusty and they simply wore sandals, there would always be a basin of water where they could wash their feet. And then there would be a pinch of perfume dropped on the guest’s head as an act of warmth.  But Simon had done none of these things towards Jesus. A maybe he had kind of a patronizing attitude towards Jesus, that Jesus should have considered himself fortunate to be in such an important home. Or maybe Simon had invited some of his Pharisee friends there to try to trap Jesus.  But Jesus was so full of grace, he didn’t storm out of the house because of this rude treatment.  He didn’t sit in the corner and sulk because he wasn’t being treated as someone important.  He reclined at the table and ate and said nothing. But when Simon displayed disgust for the sinful woman, and questions the authenticity of Jesus, the Lord responded with truth and grace.  “You didn’t wash my feet, Simon. This woman did.”

Verse 45, “You did not give me a kiss, but his woman from the time I entered has not stopped kissing my feet.  You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet.  Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven – for she loved much.  But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”  Have you noticed that the people who come for a sordid background and come to know the grace of the Lord and forgiveness are often more appreciative of God’s grace and more expressive of their love than some of us who have known the blessing of growing up in the church and have not experienced the depth of their sin? 

Verse 48, “Then Jesus said to her, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ 

The other guest began to say among themselves, ‘Who is this who even forgives sins?’  Jesus said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.’”

You see, Simon saw a prostitute who was a nuisance.  But Jesus saw a person who had a need. And he was so full of grace that he met that need.  Don’t you just love Jesus' grace? 

II. APPLICATIONS

Now the means by which this woman received forgiveness from Jesus has some practical applications for all of us when we’re convicted of sin.

I think the first thing we need to do is come to the place where Jesus is.  This woman could have felt very out of place in the home of a very self-righteous Pharisee.  Or, people could have told her, “You don't belong in the presence of Jesus.”  But she went to where he was anyway.  When you know that you have sinned, go to the place where you will most likely meet Jesus Christ; he is a friend of sinners.  Now, instinctively that’s not what you want to do.  You don’t want to go to church.  You don’t want to hear Christian music on the radio.  You don't want to read the Bible.  You don’t even want to be around Christian people. But it’s kind of like taking medicine when you’re sick.  It may not be something you want to do, but it’s what’s needed. And that’s the first step toward healing; go to wherever Jesus is.  In fact, Jesus invites you to come when you sin.  In Matthew 28 he said, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I’ll give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Let me tell you, Satan’s burden is heavy.  Jesus’ burden is light.

Also, once you come to Jesus Christ, allow yourself to be overwhelmed by his incredible love. This woman was overcome by the fact that Jesus cared for her even though she was sinful.  Sometimes when we blow it big time, we wonder if God really does love us, or if God just wants to cast us out from his presence.  But Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrates his love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  You want to know how much God loves you?  Look at the cross.  When Jesus died on that cross, since he’s God in the flesh, he could look down into the future.  He could see the day you were born.  He could see the day that you will die.  He knew the accumulative factor of all of your sins, and he said, “I will go to the cross and die for all of your sins.”

I heard the testimony of a man who said that when he was a little boy he broke his wrist and his dad rushed him to the hospital.  All the way there he was saying, “But, daddy.  It hurts so bad. Daddy, it’s hurts so much.”  And the father said, “I know it hurts son.  And if I could take it for you, I would.”  He said, “I never fully understood what my dad was saying until I became a father and one day we were raking leaves and burning them in my backyard.  And my son stumbled and fell into a pile of burning leaves and he burned the palm of his hand.  I rushed him to the hospital.  Along the way he kept crying and saying, “Daddy, it hurts so much.  It hurts so much.”  And I found myself saying, “I know son. If I could take it for you, I would.”  Then he said, “I remembered my dad saying that to me when I was a boy, and I began to realize how much my dad loved me.” 

You want to know how much the Lord loves you, even though you’ve blown it?  “God demonstrates his love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  He absorbed on the cross, all of our brokenness, all of our burns, as though he went to hell for us so that we could be free.  I’ll tell you something, if that thought alone doesn’t overwhelm you, then you’ve got a hard heart!  Be overwhelmed with God’s love for you.  The apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians the 3rd chapter, “I wish that you could grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. And to know this love that surpasses knowledge that you may be filled to the measure of the fullness of God.” 

A third key to forgiveness that we should learn from this woman is to genuinely repent of sin. This woman was sincerely sorry for what she had done. And if she had been a prostitute, perfume was one of the tools of her trade, and she poured it all out on the feet of Jesus as if to say, “I’m not going to be needing this any more.”  I think repentance is often the missing ingredient in Christian teaching today.  You’ll often hear teachers say, “God loves you just as you are.  You can come to God just as you are.  We’re all God's children.  The church is a hospital for sinners not a hotel for saints.”  And all of those things are true.  But Jesus also said, “If you don’t repent, you will perish.” 

Now, repentance always involves three words.  The first is conviction.  I am convicted that I am wrong.  I am not the victim of my heredity or my environment.  I have made a wrong choice.  The second word is contrition.  I am contrite in heart; I’m sorry that I blew it.  Not that I got caught, but I’m sorry that I made the wrong choice.  I’ve hurt God and hurt people by my actions. and the third word is change.  I will go the other direction.  No matter how far down the wrong road I’ve gone, I’m going to turn around.  2 Corinthians 7:10 reads, “Godly sorry brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret.  But worldly sorrow brings death.”  In other words, it’s not enough to say, “I was wrong”.  God wants us to say, “I was wrong, and I’m going to change.”  Peter Marshall once prayed before the United States Senate, “Lord we thank you that we can come to you just as we are. But remind us, Lord, that we dare not leave as we came.” 

Another thing we ought to learn from this woman is that God wants you to trust in his amazing grace.  Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven, your faith has saved you.”  He didn’t say, “Your penance has saved you”  He didn’t say, “Go out and do 400 hours of community service and then you’ll be saved.”  Forgiveness was granted to her instantly by the grace of Jesus because she put her faith in him.  Acts 15:11 says, “We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that we are saved.”  Dennis the Menace once said to his friend Joey, “Mrs. Wilson give s you a cookie because she’s nice, not because you’re nice.”  You know what?  God grants his grace to us, not because we are good, but because he’s good.  Ephesians 2:8,9 says, “It is by grace that you have been saved through faith. This is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.  Not by works so that no one can boast.”  God promises, “If you’ll put your faith in me, I will grant you forgiveness and I’ll give you the gift of eternal life.”  And he wants us to believe his word.  He wants us to trust in his amazing grace.

Now some of you have some sins in your past that you’ve asked God to forgive you of, and you know what?  God promises that he will.  The Bible says, “If you confess your sin, I’ll be faithful and just to forgive you and to cleanse you of all unrighteousness.” And yet we come back and remember that sin and we ask God to forgive us again. And we remember it again and we ask God to forgive us again.  Has it ever dawned on you that, number one, it may not be the Holy Spirit convicting you of that sin?  It may be Satan. And number two, you may be wearying the heart of God by your constant self-indictment.  You’re challenging his integrity.  He promised that he would forgive.  Believe in his amazing grace.  The next time you remember that sin of the past that plagues you so badly, instead of asking God to forgive you again, why don’t you say, “God, I just thank  you for your grace.  I am so thankful, Lord, that you buried that sin in the deepest sea and you don’t even fish in that area.  Lord., I thank you that even though I blew it like that, you saved me through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross.  I love you, Lord.”

One final thing I think we should learn from this woman and that is we should learn to live victoriously.  Live as though you are a forgiven person.  Jesus said to this woman, “Now you go in peace.”  He didn’t want her to be tormented by her past any more.  He wanted her to know that she was forgiven.  I doubt if she lived a perfect life from that time on, but she was moving in the right direction.  And the Lord wanted her to live at peace. 

Now let me add a word of caution before we sing our invitation hymn today; God’s grace should not be exploited.  This woman was to go in peace but she was not to go back to her former profession.  Some people can exploit grace to the point that they say, “Oh, yeah, I know its wrong, but I’m going to do it anyway because God’s in the business of forgiveness.  That’s his job.  His grace will forgive me.”  But Romans 6:1 tells us not to have that attitude.  “What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning that grace may increase?  By no means!  We died to sin.  How can we live in it any longer.  Don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death.  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too should live a new life.” And it goes on to say, “We’ve been crucified with Christ, so that the body of sin should be done away with and we should no longer be slaves to sin.”  You see, God doesn’t expect you to be a perfect Christian, but he does expect you to be a sincere and growing Christian.  But he wants you to go in peace.  He wants you to live as though you’re forgiven.  He doesn't want you to crawl out of church.  He wants you to be a testimony to the world that we believe in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. And though we are imperfect, we are saved by his grace.  I John 5:134 says, “I write the things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” 

If you don’t know you have eternal life . . . you can.  If you’ve never confessed your faith in Jesus Christ . . . you should.  And if you’re wondering if God would accept you after all you’ve done . . . he will.  Respond to his amazing grace as we stand and as we sing . . .