In Luke 7:29-30 (NIV) Luke makes a startling, paradoxical observation.He says, "All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been baptized by John. But the Pharisees and experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves because they had not been baptized by John."
Tax collectors were despised in Jewish culture.
Tax collectors were deeply despised in Jewish culture. They were wealthy. They were greedy. They were notoriously corrupt. Not only did they collect taxes at a sizable profit to themselves, but they were particularly unmerciful.
Remember the first time you got a paycheck and saw how much money the government collected? Federal taxes. State taxes. Social Security taxes. And then there was thesix to seven percentsales tax on everything you bought. Along withproperty taxesand estate taxes. We viscerally react to all these taxes, but imagine if you could put a human face to the whole system of taxation.
Imagine if you knew the name and address of the person responsible for collecting your taxes. Imagine ifhe lived next door to you and came by your house every so often to visit. What would you say to him? How would you feel about him? Imagine if every timehe came around,he found some new way to tax or extort money from you? And that with every increase,he uppedhis standard of living?
Tax collectors were merciless. They arbitrarily assigned taxes, penalties, and fees for their selfish gain. Yet strangely, they were among the first people to acknowledge that God’s way was right. They were among the first people to repent of their sins, seek God’s forgiveness, and make things right with those they wronged.
In Luke 19:8 (NIV) a tax collector named Zacchaeus meets Jesus and vows, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount."
The Pharisees were highly esteemed in Jewish culture.
In contrast to the tax collectors, there were the Pharisees and experts in the law. They were greatly esteemed in Jewish culture because of their righteousness and knowledge of mosaic law. Every day they sifted God’s word, studying every dot and title, every period, exclamation point, and asterisk; every nuance of what God’s will required. The Pharisees and experts in the law had a clearer picture of God’s holy standard than anyone in all Jewish culture.
The law teaches us that we all sin and continually fall short of the glory of God. The law saysthat our righteousness is like filthy rags when compared to God’s pure, holy nature. The law saysthat there is no one righteous, not even one.The law condemns every single one of us! Yet the message of the Old Testament is that God is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and abounding in love. He relents from sending calamity. He is merciful, though we are undeserving of mercy.
The Pharisees and experts in the law, because of their intimacy with God, should have been the first to see their need for God’s mercy! They should have been the first people lining up at the baptistry, renouncing their sins, receiving the forgiveness of God, and sharing that forgiveness with others.
But it isn’t the Pharisees and experts who are the first to get the message of Christ. It's the unmerciful tax collectors! The tax collectors acknowledge that God’s way is right and are baptized. The Pharisees and experts rejected God’s purpose by refusing to be baptized.
The place of baptism.
A lot of people don’t think baptism is important, but I can tell you that Jesus does. Baptism is your acknowledgement that God’s way is right. It is your personal choice that cannot be made by anyone else on your behalf. In baptism, the tax collectors humbled themselves before God. Baptism is a humbling experience. They went down into the waters crying out to God for forgiveness. And they came out of those waters willing to give to the poor, to settle accounts with those they had cheated, and to make their relationships right.
But the Pharisees and experts saw no need to be cleansed. They thought that they didn’t need to be baptized. They didn’t need to be washed with God’s forgiveness from head to toe. They’d been circumcised at birth. They were religious. They grew up in the synagogue. They knew the scriptures. They were good people. The Pharisees and experts dismissed baptism and in so doing, rejected God’s purpose.
One of God's purposes for our lives is to forgive our sins.
When Jesus speaks to us in his word, he draws a line in the sand for us. We have a choice. We can either acknowledge that God’s way is right and be baptizedor we can reject God’s purpose for our lives and refuse baptism. One of God’s purposes is to forgive our sins. Acts 2:38 (NIV) says, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."
Another of God's purposes in our lives is that we would forgive others.
But God’s other purpose is that we would be forgiving of others. In Luke 6:27-31 (NIV) Jesus says, "But I tell you who hear me: love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them to do you."
In Luke 7:32-36 (NIV) Jesus continues, "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full.But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful just as your Father is merciful."
When we choose Christ’s baptism we accept God’s cleansing forgiveness, but we alsoacceptthe responsibility of being forgiving and merciful to others. We receive forgiveness and we share forgiveness. We receive mercy and we show mercy. This is the essence of being a follower of Jesus Christ.
One of my favorite movies is "Les Miserables". The movie is about a man named Jean Valjean, a heartless convict who is transformed by a single act of mercy after being caught stealing from a bishop. (Note to reader- a video clip from Les Miserables was played to the congregation.) Like Jean Valjean, we should have an overwhelming sense of being forgiven by God. But also like Jean Valjean, we should have this overwhelming sense that our lives have been purchased by Christ’s forgiveness, and that we owe a debt of love to others.
In Luke 7:36-38, Jesus perks the interest of a Pharisee, who invites him over for dinner. The story that unfolds reveals why religious people, and I’d say most Christians, don’t love. Our first problem is that we don’t understand our own need for forgiveness
Understanding our need for forgiveness.
Luke 7:36-39 (NIV) says, "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. 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,and 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. When the Pharisee who had 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—that she is a sinner.' "
All of us should pay really close to attention to what is happening in this story. It was customary for Pharisees to invite guest teachers into their homes for dinner. It was a way of honoring teachers, and was frequently an occasion for moral instruction. But here comes this sinful woman. There is very little question about her lifestyle. Perfume was a tool of tool of her trade, with which she seduced men into sin. Her uncovered head pointed to the fact that she was unmarried and promiscuous.
So we have a seemingly righteous Pharisee who has invited Jesus into his home to parse the finer points of God’s moral law. And we have a morally loose woman who has dishonored God, dishonored her own body, and broken about every moral command that exists. The Pharisee wished to distinguish himself morally from the sinful woman. "Doesn’t Jesussee who is touching him?" But the sinful woman has given up on appearances, and throws herself upon the mercy of Jesus, wetting his feet with tears and perfume.
Self righteousness comes out of spiritual blindness.
Sometimes those who claim the greatest intimacy with God are the least aware of their own need for God’s mercy and grace. Instead of daily claiming and rejoicing in God’s forgiveness and freely confessing, "I am a sinner," religious people judge and say "She is a sinner." Sometimes it is easier to throw stones and crusade against the great evil that lays beyond than it is to come to terms with our own need for God’s mercy and grace.
Self-righteousness is one of the greatest evils because it proceeds out of spiritual blindness. The most righteous person in the world cannot even begin to distinguish himself before a holy God. The sinful woman was a step ahead of the Pharisee because at least she understood her dire circumstances and need for mercy.
Why don’t Christians love?They don’t understand their debt before God. We're not broken overour own sin. We point out other people’s sins instead of repenting of our own sins. We maintain appearances instead of throwing ourselves upon God’s mercy.
Receiving Christ's forgiveness.
Our second problem is that we don’t receive Christ’s forgiveness. Luke 7:40-47 (NIV) says, "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 five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?'Simon replied, 'I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.' 'You have 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. You did not give me a kiss, but this 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.'
In Luke7 all these sinful people were going out to John and being baptized. Because of their debt before God, they felt compelled to respond. Baptism is our response to God’s invitation of forgiveness. The woman, overwhelmed by her sinful life and debt before God, fell before Jesus, worshiping. The Pharisee was unmoved.
Many religious people never come to terms with their debt before God.
It is amazing to me how religious people can spend their whole lives in church, but never come to terms with their utter debt before God. It is equally amazing to me how religious people can hear invitation after invitation to receive Christ’s forgiveness, but never flex a single spiritual muscle in response.
It is not enough for us to mentally agree with Jesus. Jesus did not come over to dinner to discuss the finer nuances of the law and morality. He is looking for a response, for a humble acknowledgement of our sin, and for us to reach and embrace his forgiveness. Romans6 speaks of how we die to sin and bury the old self in the waters of baptism. Baptism isn’t beneath any of us. It is the pledge of a good conscience before God. It is an act of submission to the authority of Christ’s name.
Part of being a disciple is responding to whatever call Christ is making on our lives. If he is calling you to repent, then repent. If he calling you to dedicate yourself in baptism, than be baptized. If he is calling you to deeper obedience, than surrender to the power of his Holy Spirit. If he is calling you to heartfelt worship, throw yourself before him in humble adoration. But don’t remain unmoved.
Sharing Christ's forgiveness.
Our third problem is that we don’t share Christ’s forgiveness. Luke 7:47-50 (NIV) says, "'Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven— for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.' Then Jesus said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.' The other guests 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.' "
There is a correlation between being forgiven much and loving much. In Colossians 3:13 (NIV) the apostle Paul says, "Forgive as the Lord forgave you." I think sharing that Christ’s forgiveness is one the hardest things God asks us to do. "Our enemies don’t deserve it",we complain.But then, we didn’t deserve it either. "Our enemies might not appreciate it",we complain.But then we haven’t fully appreciated Christ’s forgiveness either. "I cannot afford to forgive becauseit will cost me too much", we complain. But Christ paid the ultimate price to forgive us.
Forgiving others meansloving our enemies, doing good to those who hate us, blessing those who curse us, praying for those who mistreat us, turning the other cheek, giving to those who steal, and letting go of our losses.Forgiving othersforces us to come to terms with how much Christ forgave us.
Why don’t we love as we should? Because we have not understood our need for Christ’s forgiveness. We have not received Christ’s forgiveness. We have not shared Christ’s forgiveness.
Entering into Christ's forgiveness.
now we come to our time of communion. The cup represents Christ’s shed blood. The bread represents his broken body. Together, the cup and bread symbolize the forgiveness that Christ has poured out for the sins of the world. Do you know Christ’s forgiveness? Have you received it? Will you share it?