Thursday, July 10, 2014
Luke 7:44-46 "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in. You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil."
WE LOVE HIM BECAUSE HE FIRST LOVED US
This woman, this publicly known sinner, looked down upon by many for her sins, in human eyes owed a lot to God for her sins. She knew, a lot better than did the people around her, how great her sins had been. She was unable to pay and the Lord had forgiven her debt of sin completely. The result was love.
How could she help but love Him who had freely forgiven her great debt of sin? The Holy Spirit had brought her to the realization that she had complete forgiveness in Jesus.
As a result of this forgiveness, she had responded in love. She had come into the house and fallen at Jesus feet. Her tears of joy and relief had fallen on His feet and she wiped at them with the only thing at hand -- her hair. Wanting to show her thanks to her Lord for her forgiveness, she anointed His feet with oil. Not satisfied with thanking God only in her prayers, she had been moved to serve her Lord in this show of thanks.
Now in our English translation of verse forty-seven, Jesus tells Simon "I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much." Jesus here seems to say that her sins were forgiven because she loved much. But in the original language, the phrase "for she loved much" does not mean "because she loved much." Rather it has the meaning "her sins ... are forgiven so that she loved much." Her love was, just as it is for all believers, a result of the forgiveness she received.
As it is written, "We love Him BECAUSE He first loved us" (John 4:19).
