RUSHWAVE: Establishing Believers in the Christian Faith

from The Judgment God Desires to Withhold

Chapter 1: The Benefit of Knowing our Own Depravity

Understanding the heights of God’s love requires knowing the depths of our guilt and condemnation.

The Bible records an encounter between Jesus, an immoral woman (a “sinner”), and a highly educated, religious teacher (a Pharisee named Simon).

Now one of the Pharisees [Simon] was requesting Him [Jesus] to dine with him, and He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. And there was a woman in the city who was a sinner; and when she learned that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume, and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears, and kept wiping them with the hair of her head, and kissing His feet and anointing them with the perfume. Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner.” Luke 7:36-39

It is beneficial to contrast these two individuals and their interaction with Jesus. For in them we see a stark difference in attitude — something Jesus Himself will use to relate an important truth.

The immoral woman had a great love, appreciation and affection for Jesus. She not only sought Jesus out with the intent to anoint Him with perfume. When she found him, she could not hold back her expressions of gratitude. Her weeping was heartfelt and sincere, her kisses of His feet were tender and affectionate, and her anointing Him with perfume and wiping His feet with her hair was loving and gentle. And she could not stop doing these things; she just stayed there, continuing to weep and anoint Him. It was as if she could not leave him. This was indeed a very touching and moving scene.

In contrast to the woman, the religious leader (who no doubt knew her immoral reputation) was repulsed by her affectionate displays. In fact, he viewed Jesus allowing Himself to be touched by her a reason to question Jesus’ divine credentials. “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is.”

Sometimes the most outwardly religious are inwardly the most blind.

Jesus, the great Teacher He was, took the opportunity to instruct Simon the Pharisee by telling a story.

And Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he replied, “Say it, Teacher.” “A moneylender had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they were unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?” Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have judged correctly.” Luke 7:40-43

This is a very simple but profound story. A denarii was a form of currency in Jesus’ day, but any form of currency would make the point: there are two debtors, and one owes the moneylender ten times as much as the other.

Jesus allows Simon to arrive at the teachable moment himself. He asks him “So which of them will love him more?” Simon answers “the one whom he forgave more.” Jesus then confirms Simon’s judgment: “You have judged correctly.”

Now it was time for the great Teacher to drive home the lesson.

Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume. For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” Luke 7:44–47

In Jesus’ response He contrasts the treatment He received from Simon with that of the immoral woman. The things Simon failed to do were likely common courtesies in that culture to visiting guests. Jesus said “you gave Me no water for My feet” — something that would allow one to remove the dirt accumulated while traveling the dusty roads. “You gave me no kiss … You did not anoint my head with oil.” Simon’s actions stood in stark contrast to the woman who had wet Jesus’ feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, and anointed Him with oil and perfume.

So what is the lesson? It is as Jesus points out: “he who is forgiven little, loves little.” If a person is forgiven a large debt, they will have a greater love, affection and gratitude towards the one who forgave them than another who was forgiven a smaller debt. This is a simple but profound truth.

The sinful woman had an overwhelming sense of her own lostness. She knew there was nothing to commend herself to God. She knew she was worthy of judgment. She not only knew she was a sinner; she knew she was a really bad sinner.

Yet this immoral woman also knew God through Christ had forgiven her, and for this she was deeply thankful. She was keenly aware of all the wrongdoing she had done. Perhaps she was even mindful of the marriages damaged by her immoral acts. But in proportion to her own sense of guilt and lostness, in that same proportion being forgiven birthed a deep love and affection. And to the extent she perceived herself as being condemned and worthy of punishment, to that same extent having her debt canceled caused her heart to overflow with gratitude and appreciation.

It may seem counterintuitive, but the woman’s inner sense of being loved by God and her capacity to love God was directly related to her understanding the depths of her own wickedness.

This book series Good News in John 3:16 is about God’s message of hope to the world as conveyed in one verse:

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16

This verse can be broken down into six parts which correspond to six core teachings of the Christian Faith. And each core teaching corresponds to a word or words in the verse. In this book The Judgment God Desires to Withhold, we focus on the word “perish,” which corresponds to the biblical doctrine of hell. As such, it relates to God’s judgment, condemnation, and punishment of sinners in the afterlife. “For God so loved the world … that whoever believes in Him shall not perish.”

As just shown in the historical account of the woman and Simon the Pharisee, Jesus taught the deeper one’s sense of moral debt and sinfulness, the greater his inner sense of being loved and capacity to love God upon being forgiven. So rather than a study of the biblical doctrine of hell and God’s judgment being viewed as something negative or merely academic, it should be considered something very positive and practical. For when we understand just how wicked, sinful, and vile we all are; when we grasp just how deserving of judgment, condemnation and punishment we all are; it is then we are in a position to grasp more fully the grace, mercy and love of God conveyed in John 3:16.

Contrary to how you may see yourself, your sins have resulted in your owing God an unpayable debt. The degree to which you perceive yourself as guilty, lost and sinful is the same degree to which you will sense God’s love for you upon being forgiven. And to that same degree you will also love God, and be appreciative and thankful.

from The Judgment God Desires to Withhold

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