Love Much

Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven---for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.

Luke 7:47

Luke 7 tells the story of a woman whose sins were great, but her love fo Jesus was greater. The greatest love this woman had was for her Savior. And it showed. She was controversial in her love for Jesus. At the home of Simon the Pharisee, she interrupted a social dinner with two prominent men to weep at the feet of Jesus, wash His feet with her expensive ointment (earned no doubt from the activities of prostitution, according to the text), and dry them with her hair. This certainly raised the eyebrows of Jesus’ self-righteous host.

Jesus tells the story of the two debtors. One owed much, the other a little, and when their boss chose to relieve the debt of them both, it was the greater debtor who was most grateful. This was what was going on with this woman. She is going to be forgiven much by Jesus (Luke 7:48) and her grateful appreciation and worship was unashamedly, even outrageously unrestrained.

Jesus saw her wild praise and love as an act of faith (Luke 7:50) and remarked on its outcome toward her salvation. It was not slavish devotion to the added requirements of legalistic religion that saved her. She had probably broken more commandments than anyone else in the room. It was her worship of her savior, her sacrificial repentance, and her unrestrained love that showed her faith in Jesus. She knew He was in town. She found out where He was eating. She made the scene out of sheer faith, repentance, and love for the Lord. And that was evidence of her saving faith in Christ.

For those who want to say that faith is a private matter, I look to this unnamed woman. She gave Jesus her uninhibited devotion. She was not ashamed to be controversially repentant. And she did so as a public matter. All knew her a sinner. All would know her as that wild repentant woman! She lowered herself to serve the One Who came to serve. And her sins were forgiven, her faith had saved her, and Jesus gave her a peace no other earthly attempt at love had ever given her. 

Technorati Tags: Luke,Jesus,Repentance,Faith,Forgiveness

Responsibility: the down side

If anyone sins, doing any of the things that by the LORD's commandments ought not to be done, though he did not know it, then realizes his guilt, he shall bear his iniquity.

Leviticus 5:17

Perhaps one of the reasons the book of Leviticus suffers from a lack of reading is that it constantly reminds us of the down side of being human. It shows us the tremendous drag on holiness that sin can be. We see just how much we are unable to live as God intended for us to live. Verses such as this one tend to bring us down. Any sin, even one that is initially unintentional leaves us bearing guilt before God and responsible before Him for our sin that separates us from Him.

But there is an up side to this down side. It is the realistic understanding that as sinners we are in NEED of God to do something for and with us. We have to deal with sin in our hearts with practical understanding. Sin drives us to an awareness of the greatness of God and when He offers forgiveness, we marvel at the wideness and depth of His mercy and sustaining grace.

We live in sin and with the consequences of sin every day. We cannot get away from it. It is the water in which we swim. It is the air which fills our lungs. Sin is environmental. But God is bigger. In Leviticus there were always clear instructions for the sacrifice. God always had a way to deal with the down side. So for every moment where we are sinned against, we see He grace. For every moment where we blow it, there is an offer for mercy and forgiveness. For every disobedience, God is ready to receive our repentance and obedience. There is responsibility before Him. We are responsible for accepting our offense. We are responsible for coming to Him. And God brings grace.

In this way, even in the worst of our human experiences and actions, God is glorified. We find our life changed for the better. We find forgiveness. It is all what He has totally provided. We just accepted and followed. God gets the glory in His grace. Amen!

Technorati Tags: Leviticus,Sin,Forgiveness,Responsibility

forgiven

And the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which he has committed, and he shall be forgiven.
Leviticus 4:35b

You cannot escape the fact that holiness is a major theme of the book of Leviticus. The entire sacrificial system was set up by God to create a means of fellowship and a way for sin to be dealt with in Israel. God is holy. We are not. Something has to happen to provide a means to relationship with Him. Chapters 4 and the first half of chapter 5 describe the details for what is called the “sin offering”. The conditions for this sacrifice had to do with the nature of the sin. It was “unintentional” – a natural outworking of human fallen depravity. Sometimes we just sin because we are sinners. It is what we do. We are naturally skilled at it. But that sin puts us at odds with a holy God.

The second condition for offering the sin offering was that the individual becomes aware of his or her guilt in the unintentional sin. Either the offended party makes them aware, or they eventually see the disastrous results of personal depravity for what they are. The guilt checks them from really moving forward with God. They need forgiveness.

Another interesting observation was that societal status changed the requirements for this sin offering. At the top of the list was the unintentional sin of a high priest. There the sacrificial animal was an expensive bull. But there were different requirements for the nation as a whole, or for individuals who had sinned unintentionally. Lesser expenses were involved by the type of livestock offered. There were also different requirements based on the type of unintentional sin. The point was that God was not harsh and unrelenting, but understanding in the way He dealt with people who by nature sin so much they don’t always know they did it. God’s grace covers the “oops” factor.

For me, as I read this, the important thing that keeps coming out in every detailed episode of the type of sin and accompanying sacrifice was that GOD FORGAVE THE REPENTANT HEART. These simple five words are profound: “…and he shall be forgiven”. God will completely forgive. He offers a way back. He reaches out to the one who will return. He knows we are dust. He forgives. He provides a way for relationship with us despite our very natures. That is love that abounds to sinners. And that love is here in the harsh little book of Leviticus. Even as the blood of the sacrificed animal drips from the altar in each episode, the love of God forgives the sinner. How much more do I know this in Christ, Who gave Himself for me so that I might be a forgiven sinner as well? The phrase “…and he shall be forgiven” applies to my heart as well. It is the promise that truly brings me peace, perspective, and joy. It comforts and strengthens my heart… daily.

Technorati Tags: Leviticus,Holiness,Sacrifice,Forgiveness

a mockery

And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself, and come down from the cross!" So also the chief priests with the scribes mocked him to one another, saying, "He saved others; he cannot save himself.”

Mark 15:29-31

When I read the crucifixion accounts, this is the part of the story that tears at me the most. Human nature resorts to cruel treatment of others as a matter of course. But to have the very Son of God treated with such contempt. scorn, and mockery is the ultimate human insult to God.

I am by nature a selfish person. And when that meets my sarcastic sense of humor, watch out. I can say some pretty mean stuff. I suppose that is why reading this part of the story impacts me. Outside the grace of God, I would probably react similarly. I am a wicked man in need of the salvation that Jesus brings at the cross. In a sense, many objectors to the Christian faith do the same kind of mocking today. Jesus is mocked by secularists, the faith is maligned as anemic and a psychological crutch by the intellectual guardians of our humanist culture. The mocking continues at every level when Christians themselves are maligned for the sake of the gospel.

The real power of the gospel accounts of Jesus’ death is that Jesus was taking upon Himself the guilt of the very mockery that was happening to Him at the moment. He was dying for the sarcastic ridicule heaped upon Him. He was suffering in order to offer forgiveness for the very acts they were doing as He way dying. No wonder we call it “amazing grace”! This is why He could graciously pray, “Father, forgive them…”

Technorati Tags: Mark,Forgiveness,Salvation

Patience & Forgiveness

Then Peter came up and said to him, "Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven."
Matthew 18:21-22

Jesus sets a high standard of forgiveness for His followers. I know that with me, He exhibits the kind of patient forgiveness described here. I sin daily in some way. That means in just a little under a year and a half, I have used up my 490 shots at forgiveness! I need grace from God. And that is what I get when I come to Him for forgiveness in confession and repentance.

Matthew 18 is all about both patience and forgiveness. The chapter begins (Matthew 18:1-6) with the disciples arguing over what makes a person "great" in the kingdom. And Jesus teaches them that simple childlike faith and humility lay the foundation for greatness, because they are required to receive Him and His kingdom. Then there are warnings about temptations to sin and that patient discipline is required to fight off temptation (Matthew 18:7-9). This is followed by the parable of the lost sheep in Matthew 18:10-14. From there, Jesus gives firm direction on how to handle personal affronts from those who will sin against us (Matthew 18:15-20). After Peter's question, Jesus tells the lengthy parable of the unforgiving servant, showing the dangers of impatient unforgiveness (Matthew 18:23-35).

I know that patient forgiveness is not only what I need from Christ, but also what I need to practice with others. Jesus makes it clear that if I don't get that, I may not really be ready to receive all the grace I can right here and now. In the parable of the unforgiving servant, the inability to forgive a fellow servant resulted in a judgment on THAT action. It is important to realize that the master did not punish him for old debts exclusively, but for the way in which he violently chose not to forgive those who owed him money. Jesus warned us that God feels similarly about our forgiveness hypocrisy.

Technorati Tags: Jesus,Patience,Forgiveness