Forgiven

Forgiven

The Woman Who Anointed Jesus’ Feet

Read: Luke 7:40-50

This is going to be one special anniversary dinner. She smiled as she marinated the beef tips. She’d made his favorite cheesecake and picked up the bread he liked so much. Hard to believe that just over a year ago, it had looked as if their marriage was over. How could I have been so selfish and stupid? she wondered. Although she hadn’t expected him to stay after what she’d done, he had agreed to counseling. It had been a long, hard road, but she would never forget the day that he held her hand, looked in her eyes, and said, “I forgive you.”

The immoral woman in Luke 7 also knew how it felt to be forgiven. Everyone looked down on her—especially the religious leaders. She hadn’t expected this new Rabbi to be any different, but he was. Through his teaching, she heard about God’s forgiveness and mercy. At the sight of Jesus, her tears started flowing and she couldn’t hold them back. Lavishing kisses on his feet and anointing them with costly perfume seemed like nothing compared to what he had given her. She was grateful for the opportunity to express her love.

Jesus praised the woman’s behavior but scolded his self-righteous host, who had not even offered him the common courtesies usually extended to guests. Many of us are like Simon—we regard ourselves as moral people who love God. But we can’t have a deep love for God until we understand the depth of our sin and how it hurts him. Once we see how much God has forgiven us and how little we deserve it, no expression of love for him seems lavish enough.

God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins.

Colossians 2:13