Title: Understanding the Debt of Love (Knowing the Love of Christ)
Scripture: Luke 7:36-50
Today’s Bible story is about a Pharisee named Simon. He invited Jesus to his house.
Then, a woman came and broke an alabaster jar of perfume for Jesus.
The whole house was filled with a sweet fragrance. This perfume was her dowry, her most valuable possession.
In another Gospel, the disciples were very angry at this woman.
They scolded her for wasting such expensive perfume, saying that it could have been sold to help the poor.
The woman was in a difficult situation. No one defended her.
Everyone in town already knew she was a sinner.
But Jesus protected her.
He did not say if she was right or wrong.
Instead, He spoke to Simon, the Pharisee, and to the woman.
This message was for them, but it is also for us.
Jesus compared Simon and the woman.
If we look closely, we can see that this teaching is similar to the parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew.
Verse 37 calls the woman a sinner.
Everyone in town knew about her sins.
On the other hand, Simon was a Pharisee, a man who tried very hard to follow God’s law.
People respected him.
However, Jesus often criticized the Pharisees.
He called them “a brood of vipers” and exposed their hidden sins.
But Simon was different. He was willing to invite Jesus into his house,
even though Jesus had spoken against the Pharisees.
Jesus compared these two people—Simon and the woman—
to teach an important truth about salvation and forgiveness.
1. The Connection Between Forgiveness and Salvation
In the Old Testament, people believed they had to offer sacrifices to be forgiven.
However, Jesus taught that the attitude and heart behind the sacrifice were more important.
This is related to our understanding of sin, salvation, and human nature.
Jesus told the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”
Before that, He said, “Your sins are forgiven.”
The Pharisees and others around them thought to themselves,
“Who is this man who forgives sins?”
How did Luke know what they were thinking?
Perhaps after Jesus ascended, the disciples shared their memories with each other.
Luke gathered these stories and wrote them in the Gospel of Luke.
Through this message, the Gospel was passed down to people like Paul,
who then shared it with the Gentiles, including us.
2. Faith and Love as the Cause of Salvation
The core message of the Gospel is that faith and love lead to salvation.
It is not just about performing religious rituals.
Faith and love must be present.
In verse 47, Jesus says that the woman’s sins were forgiven because she loved much.
Like a tree is known by its fruit, her love was the fruit that showed she was forgiven.
The key question is:
“Does the person recognize their sin and believe in the forgiveness?”
For example, imagine a prisoner receives a pardon letter but refuses to believe it is real.
If he does not believe, he will stay in prison even though he is free.
Faith leads to action.
If a person does not truly believe they are forgiven, they may continue to live in guilt and fear.
This is why it is important to recognize both our debt of sin and the grace of forgiveness.
Some people realize their sins naturally.
Others, no matter how much you tell them, do not understand their debt to God.
As we grow, we start to understand our actions and their consequences.
Our view of society shapes our life decisions.
Do we see society as an enemy, or do we see ourselves as people in debt to others?
The same applies to our relationship with God.
How we see God affects how we see others.
3. Was the Woman’s Act a Waste?
The disciples scolded the woman for wasting expensive perfume.
But who was truly wasting their life?
Was it the woman who recognized her sin and loved Jesus?
Or was it the people who failed to see their own debt to God and did not truly love Him?
Jesus did not just see what happened on the surface.
He understood the deeper reason behind it.
In another Gospel, Jesus even said that the woman was preparing Him for His burial.
He understood her heart and defended her.
4. The Parable of the Two Debtors
Jesus used the parable of the two debtors to explain forgiveness.
Matthew’s Gospel explains this in more detail.
Jesus said, “Her sins are forgiven because she loved much.”
Her love was the natural response to being forgiven.
If someone has been forgiven a huge debt, they will naturally forgive others as well.
But more importantly, Jesus explained why she loved so much.
Verse 42 says that she loved much because she was forgiven much.
Forgiveness is something we receive, not something we earn.
We cannot forgive our own debt. Only the one we owe can forgive it.
We cannot earn salvation by giving offerings, following rules, or doing good works.
5. Lessons from This Story
Being in debt means we owe something to someone.
We are born into a world where we owe many people—
our parents, our community, farmers, workers, soldiers, and ultimately, God.
We are all in deep debt to God.
6. Do Not Judge by the Past
We should not judge people by their past.
When we see someone doing good, we should not condemn them because of their past mistakes.
God does not hold our past against us.
Psalm 103:12 says:
“As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our sins from us.”
If God removes our sins, why should we bring them up again?
We should not judge people based on their appearance or their history.
1 Samuel 16:7 says:
“Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Deuteronomy 16:19 warns us not to judge people unfairly.
7. Recognizing Our Own Debt
We should not just focus on what is visible.
Instead, we should look at the root cause behind things.
If we truly understand our own sin and debt to God,
we will also understand His great love for us.
Simon, the Pharisee, invited Jesus into his home.
But what did he truly do for Jesus?
Did he love as much as the woman did?
To understand love, we must first understand how much we owe.
8. Love is Greater Than Faith
Before salvation, we must understand what makes salvation possible.
Today’s passage mentions faith and love as key elements.
If we had to choose one, love is the greatest.
1 Corinthians 13:2 says:
“If I have faith that can move mountains but have no love, I am nothing.”
Jesus said that the woman was forgiven because she loved much.
If she had no love, she would still be labeled as a sinner.
Love is the foundation of our life.
Love is the root of our faith.
Ephesians 3:17-19 says:
“May you be rooted and established in love and grasp how wide, long, high, and deep is the love of Christ.”
May we understand how much we have been forgiven
so that we may love deeply, just as Christ has loved us.
-Amen-
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