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3rd Sunday after Pentecost, 2007
Luke 7:36-8:3
Rev. Brian L. Kachelmeier
In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
Well, today is Father’s Day. On this day, we celebrate the gift of fathers. No doubt, you will probably celebrate this day by eating a special meal either at lunch time or supper time. Maybe, you’ll go out to a restaurant or head back home. No doubt, you’ll probably gather around a table to eat and enjoy time with dads and husbands. At this meal you’ll honor and love your fathers and husbands which is right to do.
Now before we do that, we are first gathered around this table to be in the presence of our Lord Jesus who comes to us in His Word and Sacrament. We gather at this table, this altar, to hear Him speak to us and then we speak to Him in prayer.
In today’s gospel text, we hear of others who also had gathered around a table with Jesus to hear Him speak. One of the Pharisees had invited Jesus over to eat with him. He wanted to be with Jesus. He was intrigued by the teaching of Jesus. Just maybe at this meal, he could find out if Jesus were truly a prophet of God. Now there was also another person who gathered around that table to be with Jesus. This other person was a woman of the city who was known to be a sinner.
Simon the Pharisee noticed that the woman was a sinner and wondered why Jesus even allow her to be near Him. Simon begins to conclude that Jesus couldn’t be a prophet because he should realize that she is a sinner. He wondered, “How could a righteous man associate with the unrighteous?” In this life, there are only two types of people, either you are righteous or you are unrighteous.
Now here we are this day, gathered around the Lord’s Table. Why are you here? Are you wondering why there are some people here? You know, the ones who do the things you don’t do. Do you wonder in your mind, if pastor only knew what type of a person so-and-so really is…?
In life, there are only two types of people either you are a repentant sinner on an unrepentant sinner. You are one or the other. Either you are a believer or an unbeliever, penitent or impenitent. Either you are led by the Spirit or live in the flesh. Either you are blessed or cursed. There are only two paths: the narrow road that leads to life and salvation or the wide road that leads to death and damnation. Either you have been set free or you are a slave to sin.
To be a slave to sin is to let sin rule over you. Either a person is in a state of grace or ruled by sin. When sin rules over you, those hidden sins in your heart become manifest in your life. To be ruled by sin is to be persistently over powered by it for a period of time. Sin becomes you master. It is a tyrant and ruthless dictator.
In our Old Testament text, we hear of King David who had been ruled by sin for about an entire year. He was living in an unrepentant state apart from faith in God. He was a slave to sin. To be caught in slavery means that you have been ensnared and entangled into sin and you are unable to save yourself. The only problem is that slaves to sin are also blind to their condition.
To be a slave to sin is like being a goldfish caught in a net in an aquarium. As long as the net is under the water, the fish may think that it is free. It still appears to be free in the water. However, when that net is pulled up out of the water, it then learns that it is caught and it cannot help itself. Once it is taken completely out of the water, there is no turning back. It is too late.
Sin is like that net. It sneaks up on you and overtakes you. David didn’t even realize that he was caught in the net of sin. David didn’t even realize that he was ruled by sin. It wasn’t until the prophet Nathan came to David to speak God’s Word to him that he realized his condition. It was the Holy Spirit who was working through the words of Nathan to open David’s eyes to his condition. At this point David declares, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Then Nathan speaks the absolution to him assuring him, “The Lord also has put away your sin. You shall not die.” David was awakened to his need and trusted in the Lord to deliver him.
Are you here because you doubt who Jesus is or because you believe that He is your Savior? Are you here because you need forgiveness? As soon as one becomes overtaken by sin, he no longer sees a need for forgiveness, he no longer sees a need to be saved, he no longer sees Jesus as his Savior, and he no longer believes. The Scriptures say, “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin” Romans 14:23 (ESV). “And without faith it is impossible to please him” (Hebrews 11:6 ESV).
In our passage, we hear of Simon the Pharisee and the woman of the city. One appears to be pious on the outside while the other appears to be sinful. They both seem to be doing good things, one inviting Jesus for dinner and the other wiping His feet. The difference is not that one could be labeled “synogoaged” and the other “unsynagouged”. Rather, the difference in the two is faith. One looks to Jesus trusting in His mercy and listens to His Words. The other looks at Jesus associating with sinners. Without faith it is impossible to please God. It is the woman of the city, the sinner, who has the faith. Jesus declares to her, “Woman, your faith has saved you.” She is declared to be righteous.
The woman was not wondering if Jesus were possibly a prophet. No, she came because she believed that He was the Savior of the world who forgives sin. She recognized her need and trusted that Jesus would provide for her. The Pharisee did not recognize his need for forgiveness. He was not seeking forgiveness from Jesus.
The woman’s faith was made manifest in her actions. Jesus compares her actions to those of the Pharisee by the pointing out the great love that she had. The one who was forgiven much loved much. Her love in and of itself did not make Jesus her Savior. No, it was the fact the Jesus is her Savior that she loved much. In Jesus, there is forgiveness and she believed this to be true. From faith love naturally flows.
The Word of the Lord is given to us in order to create and strengthen faith. Through faith we are justified, declared righteous in God’s sight. Apart from faith we try to justify ourselves, but remain in our own unrighteousness. The impulses of a believing heart change from a desire to sin to a desire to do the will of the Lord. The believer still lives here in this life with the desires of the flesh, but the believer is not ruled by them. The believer belongs to Christ and lives in Him.
As baptized believers we can say with Paul in today’s Epistle, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:19-20 ESV). By faith we live in this flesh, but we do not let the flesh rule over us. We belong to Christ. He is our Lord.
As Jesus was present for the sake of the sinful woman, He is present here for you this day. As Jesus declares the sins of the woman to be forgiven, He declares to you that your sins are forgiven. As Jesus sends the woman off in peace, He sends you off in peace. Your faith has saved you because your faith is in Christ.
With these words of today’s gospel text upon my lips, the Holy Spirit delivers what they declare into your hearts. “Your faith has saved you.” As you hear my words, you hear the voice of Jesus saying, “You are forgiven.” As you hear the Words of Jesus, you hear the Words of your Heavenly Father. Knowing that with these Words your faith is strengthened and that your sins are forgiven, you can go in peace. You have peace with you Heavenly Father.
For this reason, at the end of the Divine Service I send you off with the Lord’s blessing by speaking the Lord’s benediction to you. I send you off in peace. These are the words that Aaron the High Priest would speak to the people of God at the end of the Divine Service in the Old Testament times as the people gather around another table, the altar in the tabernacle. With these words you hear the words of the Triune God, “The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord look upon you with favor and give you peace” (Numbers 6:24-26).
In this life, there are only two types of people, either you are righteous or you are unrighteous. It is the righteous who shall live by faith. Amen.
