(Why the gospel of Christ moves so slow today)

Luke 7:36-50 is an amazing demonstration of the gospel of God’s extravagant grace in action. In this passage, Jesus demonstrates why He is the Master Teacher. His teaching always includes a demonstration of what He is teaching.

Prior to this passage, Jesus was talking about John the Baptist as the greatest prophet born of woman. And yet, in saying this, Jesus went on to make a strange concluding statement, “yet even the least in the kingdom of God is greater than he”. I have to say that in over 47 years of listening to preaching, sermons, messages, and podcasts, when in person or online, I have NEVER heard ANY preacher or teacher explicate or expound this strange truth that “even the least in the kingdom of God” is greater than John the Baptist.

Like you (perhaps) I never understood this truth until I came to a revelation of the gospel of the grace of God’s justification and validation of sinners through Christ alone. Mind you, I had been in and out of churches in Malaysia and a faithful attender, as well as a server of God from the time I was age 16. I am now 61.

As I understood the gospel that was recovered through the Reformation in Europe towards the end of the “dark ages”, and the ensuing early Renaissance and subsequent “Enlightenment”, I realized that indeed it is through grace alone, by faith alone, in Christ alone, through the Scriptures alone, that one is made right with God, to His glory alone. The five “solas” make perfect sense!

I then began to connect the gospel of grace and its recovery, with life in the Spirit, the giving of the Holy Spirit, the kingdom of God, and life abundant. They are a combo. Very hard to experience God without recognizing this amazing package of salvation that God grants to all who calls upon the name of Jesus Christ in humility and contrition.

And grace repeatedly amazes! Grace upon grace reveals the heart of Jesus unfathomable love for His fallen brothers and sisters of the fallen Adamic race. And the glorious gospel of God in Christ is that not only are our rebelliousness against God forgiven, God does the incomprehensible by accepting Christ as His representative for us, and our representative to God. God was in Christ reconciling the world back to Himself (2 Cor 5:19).

Yet the remnants of sin in the flesh of the follower of Christ still manifests its pride in manifold ways. Especially in those who think and believe that they’ve “got it”, or “got Him”! Religious types are so easy to call out. I should know. I am often in their ranks. Every time I think I’ve got a handle on God, it tends to show off in some sort of religious “show-off-ness” that is either condenscending, or patronizing, or “I-know-it-all” attitude veering towards pride and arrogance.

In this passage, the main actors are of course Jesus, Simon the Pharisee, and the “woman” who to Simon is a “sinner”. A quick synopsis is due. As mentioned above, Jesus had been talking about the greatness of John the Baptist, and yet that greatness was still lower than the “least in the kingdom”. And the clearest explanation is that John had yet to experience being “born again” of the water and the Spirit, which only Jesus would grant upon His death, resurrection, and ascension to the Father’s right hand for the Spirit to be poured out upon all who would put their faith and trust in Him. A new birth through union with Christ would put that person who is regenerated into the kingdom of God immediately.

This truth is captured in Jesus’ dialogue with Nicodemus in John’s gospel, chapter 3. You could say that Nicodemus was in a similar position as John the Baptist pre-Pentecost. Outside the kingdom. He eventually comes to faith in Christ with the evidence that he is bold enough to accompany Joseph of Arimathea and approach Pilate to give Jesus a proper burial on the eve of the high Sabbath that year.

Such is the amazing grace of God that the “least” of all who comes to Christ receives the Spirit who is the Guarantee of God’s promised salvation to all who believes in His Christ, the Messiah and Savior of the world. This salvation is not limited to the forgiveness of sins only. God comes to this humble and contrite believer with all of who He is. This truth is captured so well by Martin Luther. Tuomo Mannermaa, the Finnish theologian behind the New Finnish Interpretation of Luther’s thoughts and convictions of union with Christ, participation in Christ, or theosis puts it well in the following full quotation:

“The believer, having on the basis of God’s agape-love a share in Christ, also partakes of the properties of God’s being. Expressed differently, the believer partakes of the “names” of God, Luther says (the following quote is from Luther’s works):

… and we are so filled “with all sorts of God’s abundance,” which is in the Hebrew manner as much as saying that we are filled in all ways in which He makes full, and, full of God we are showered with all gifts and grace and filled with His Spirit, so that it makes us courageous and illuminated by His light, and His life lives in us, His beautitudes makes us blessed, His love awakens love in us. In short, that everything He is and can do be in us fully and affect vigorously so that we become completely divine, not having a piece or even a few pieces of God, but all abundance.” (WA 17 I, 438, 14-28)

Luther’s words are so difficult to grasp in its expansiveness of description of God’s amazing grace given to us in Christ. This truth shreds the anemic version of the gospel that is preached to us whether in its over-realized or under-realized eschatological slants.

Which is why this passage in Luke about the woman who washes Jesus feet with her tears, and anoints His head and feet with costly perfume, and proceeds to kiss His feet is so extravagant in its demonstration of love and devotion to the Master.

Jesus speaks of her acts of love towards Him in contrast with the cold religion that offers Him hospitality without heart. And it continues in our time with the religious denominations and local congregations. I can imagine how our scandalized our present leaders and congregations would be if this happened. No wonder the gospel cannot move as Jesus would want it to move presently.

We simply have no categories of experience for such a lavish and extravagant display of love and devotion to Jesus. It would probably be frowned upon with dismay by the likes of John Macarthur, and those of his ilk. Maybe even John Piper may pipe in a word or two about being “inappropriate” (tongue-in-cheek).

So interesting that this woman is recorded by Luke under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit as not asking Jesus for forgiveness for “her sins, which are many” (v 47). Jesus own commentary on her actions? “She loved much, therefore I say to you, her sins are forgiven”.

Not so for many “gospel-centered, Christ-centered” believers today. They will make much of how they have been hurt by others and will then defend their rights to feel that hurt, and how every other person around them must provide empathy, and that those who hurt them must first need to seek forgiveness from them before they can be healed of their hurt. In the meantime, these believers are justified in their hurts, and remain nursing their hurt without granting forgiveness to those who hurt them. What a convoluted gospel these “believers” believe in!

What good news! What amazing grace Jesus brings to every heart that hears Him. Like the Centurion in the earlier passage who “heard about Jesus”, no doubt this woman heard about the compassion of the mighty prophet who raised up the widow of Nain’s son. Such compassion from Jesus was made much of. And that compassion drew this “sinner” into a Pharisee’s house. How scandalous! Yet, the grace of the Savior drew her into a mighty confrontation with religiousity. She would not be deterred. She had had enough of her sinful lifestyle. She wanted in to the kingdom of Compassion and Love.

And Jesus called her in.

He calls anyone who is so consumed by their awareness that they have blown it. Jesus is near to anyone who recognizes that they have simply lost it in life. They feel they have failed everyone, including themselves. There’s no way out. They have hit rock bottom. And in God’s amazing gospel grace, that’s the best place to be. Because He knew. He knows you. And from that bottom place, He bids us, and calls us, and whispers to us, “Look up, child”, I was waiting for you all along. Come, your sins, though many, are forgiven. I give you heaven itself, in Christ My Son. Be united with Him by the grace and faith I give you in Him”