Law and gospel are the foundation of how we understand our relationship to God.  The law condemns us because on our own there is no way we can ever live up to God’s standard.  Before the law we are always guilty.  If the law could save, if the law could give life there would be no need for the cross.  The law cannot save and so every time we look into the law we are found wanting, guilty before a holy God and deserving of death.  The gospel is the message of grace; undeserved favor with God that he purchased for us through the precious blood of our lord and savior Jesus Christ.

To minimize either side is to run into trouble and will cause us to misunderstand the relation we have with God.  To down play the law is to fail to understand the seriousness of our sin.  We are not confused or misguided; we are willful in our disobedience to the decrees of God.  We have set ourselves on the throne of our own hearts and have declared ourselves rulers of our own destiny.  We have said with our actions that we know best.  This attitude is one of death and separation from our creator.  The law is our school master that points out to us our faults and points us in the direction of the savior Jesus.

The law leaves us with no hope but the gospel on the other hand is filled with hope.  What the gospel does is announce to us the grace of God; that if we have faith in Jesus, if we appropriate the price he paid for our sins we can be restored to a relationship with Jesus.  We don’t earn it.  All we can do is accept it as a free gift from God.

As people we tend to respond to our understanding of things.  We are drawn to people who are nice to us and repelled by people who do us harm.  Things that please us elicit from us a loving and kind response.  We react against things that harm us and we tend to avoid things that we perceive as having little or no effect upon us.  In many ways our responses spring from our emotions far more than from an intellectual assent.  People who have an emotional encounter with Jesus are usually much more involved in ministry than those who only intellectually ascent to the proper doctrines and beliefs.  Consider the churches that are growing and those in decline.

We meet Jesus today in the home of a Pharisee.  Pharisees were committed church people.  They were strongly committed to their belief system and they were rigid in seeking to keep the laws passed down to them in the scriptures.  Many of them were viewed by others and by themselves as holy and righteous.  Consider the story of the Pharisee and the publican who went up to the temple to pray.  The Pharisee thanked God that he was not like other men and then proceeded to list all the things he did that he was sure made him holy.  The publican bowed his head and simply asked God for forgiveness.  Jesus said it was the publican who went away justified.  When we think that we are pretty good people we tend to act in proud and arrogant ways.  There was little room for grace and the gospel in the Pharisees life, while the publican counted on it for it was his only hope.

Jesus is at the house of a Pharisee where he was invited for dinner.  While he was reclining at the table and women came in and began to anoint his feet with expensive oil, to wet his feet with her tears and dry them with her hair.  Jesus quietly accepted the adoration.  The Pharisee seeing what was taking place began to question within himself if Jesus was truly a prophet sent from God.  He raises the question because in his view a prophet would have known the character of the woman even by her dress, and would not have allowed her to touch him.  The logic is simple.  Good people are holy.  Holy people are better than others and therefore they remain apart from sinners.  Holy people do not let sinners touch them.  Therefore if Jesus was truly a holy man he would pull away from this woman because if she touches him he would become defiled and would no longer be holy.  Bad company ruins good character.

Simon doesn’t say a word but Jesus knows his heart and the questions he has and so begins the conversation.  Jesus tells the story of two debtors; one owed the moneylender five hundred denarii and the other owed fifty.  Neither could pay the debt so the moneylender decides to forgive the debt.  You can tell this is a story.  What moneylender forgives debt?  Nevertheless the debt is forgiven and the two men walk away with clean slates.

Jesus asks Simon a simple question, “Simon, who loved more?”  He asks and emotional question.  Who has the kindest regards for the moneylender, the one who was forgiven much or little?   This is a no brainier for Simon; the one who is forgiven much loves much in return.

Jesus tells him he was right on.  The Holy Spirit has a way of catching us off guard.  Nathan caught David of guard when he told the story of the man with a flock who wanted to entertain his guest and so took the lone sheep of his neighbor’s instead of one of his own.  David was outraged until he realized that by taken Bathsheba he was as guilty as the man in the story.

Simon you are right.  The one forgiven much loves much.  Now back to your concern.  This woman who you are so concerned about because she might defile whoever she touches is well aware of her own condition.  You are missing the point.  What has happened is that she, aware of her sin, has found favor with God and has received forgiveness and the evidence is what you see happening before you.  She has been forgiven much and so she loves much.

Simon, you have been a good man all of your life.  You pay your tithes, go to synagogue regularly, yearly go up to the temple, and you are well versed in the scriptures because of your much study.  I came here and you showed me minimal respect.  You didn’t give me water to wash my feet, no oil to cover the smell of the road, in fact you showed my no kindness.  Why would you?  You do not see yourself as having to receive forgiveness because in your own eyes you are a pretty good person.

Much forgiveness much love.  Little forgiveness little love.  Let’s get personal, where do you stand this morning?

I said earlier that if we lean one way or the other our perspective is off.  I would venture to say that most of us are closer to Simon than to the woman.  Most of us here today would argue that we are not and never have been really bad.  Sure we have done some things but we are not like other women especially that one at Jesus’ feet. 

Simon’s problem is that he read the scriptures but he failed to apply them to himself.  He took the blessings and applied them to himself and applied the warnings to those around him.  “I thank God that I am not like other men.”  Since he compared himself favorably to others he sought to remain distant from them lest he become contaminated.  Jesus was sure of him self and so was never threatened by the company he kept.  Simon on the other hand held his status at the expense of others.  If he could remain separate then everyone around him would see that he was not one of those people.

Jesus was accused of many things; a drunk and a glutton.  He spent no time defending himself because the accusations were not true.  Simon defended himself because the position he held and the view he had of himself was incorrect and false.

We are all like the women.  We are all sinners in constant need of a savior.  We have all been forgiven much.  When we hold ourselves up to the standard of the law we are found wanting.  Our picture is not a pretty one.  I am not asking you to share all your grime secrets but the truth of the matter is that if our hearts were exposed for the entire world to see none of us could hold our heads up.  We would be overcome with shame.

The woman recognized her sinfulness and was open to the forgiveness offered by Jesus and the gospel.  Simon was self deluded and therefore had little place for Jesus. 

Do you come to church to show off you spirituality as Simon did?  To pray the prayer that thanks God for how good you are and how much better you are than the rest of the people here?  Or do you come to church because where else can you go, Jesus holds the words of eternal life?

How you answer these questions will be reflected in how you live your life for Jesus.  Your involvement in the spreading of the kingdom of God will be in direct proportion to how you perceive your forgiveness.  Much forgiveness much love.