The Greater the Sin
the greater the grace
Scripture Reading: Luke 7:36-49
These days it is rare to hear a preacher expose sin in the congregants' lives in an open, direct, confrontational way. While I’m not suggesting that has to be the regular diet of sermons we hear from the pulpit, I am saying we are done a disservice when it is never heard. Let me explain.
Imagine you have just left Walmart and are walking across the parking lot when a kind person comes up to you and says, “You just dropped this,” and hands you a five-dollar bill. I assume you will thank that person and you will be grateful for their honesty. You will be happy to have the money you almost lost.
Now, imagine the same scenario but this time a maniac is driving a large SUV through the parking lot at a high rate of speed and, unbeknownst to you, are coming up behind you and about to run you over. This time, a person puts their own life at risk, runs up on you, and pushes you out of the way of the oncoming vehicle, saving your life. That person is struck by the SUV and is taken to the hospital. You, if you are a normal person, be singing the praises of that person to everyone you can. You will tell your story on Facebook and in TV interviews. You will go by the hospital to check on them. You will name your firstborn after them.
There is a difference in the response you have to these two scenarios because there is a difference in the level of kindness you were shown.
In the story Jesus told the Pharisee in Luke 7, this is the point He makes. The woman loves Him more than the Pharisee because she has been forgiven more. So that we don’t misread what is being said, Jesus is not saying the Pharisee is a pretty good guy with little to forgive. He is saying the woman understands the depth of her sin, and the Pharisee doesn’t. That is why Jesus is rebuking him.
If you want to love Jesus more (and who doesn’t?), some good old-fashioned conviction of sin will help. Now, it can’t and must not stop there. It isn’t enough to know how bad we are. We must move from there to grace. When we see how sinful we are, we can then understand how great Christ’s grace is to us. Then, our love will grow.
The reason we sing “Amazing Grace” without any amazement is that we think we might deserve a parking ticket and it's nice that Jesus writes that off, but we are failing to see that we’ve been given the death penalty and Jesus has gone to the gallows in our place while we have been set free.
