Call To Worship December 3 2017
Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Luke
J.C. Ryle Luke 7:40-50
We see in this passage that men may show some outward respect to Christ, and yet remain unconverted. The Pharisee before us is a case in point. He showed our Lord Jesus Christ more respect than many did. He even “desired Him that He would eat with him.” Yet all this time he was profoundly ignorant of the nature of Christ’s Gospel. His proud heart secretly revolted at the sight of a poor contrite sinner being allowed to wash our Lord’s feet. And even the hospitality he showed appears to have been cold and [miserly]…It is quite possible to have a decent form of religion, and yet to know nothing of the Gospel of Christ — to treat Christianity with respect, and yet to be utterly blind about its cardinal doctrines — to behave with great correctness and propriety at Church, and yet to hate justification by faith, and salvation by grace, with a deadly hatred. Do we really feel affection toward the Lord Jesus?…Are we willing to enter heaven side by side with the chief of sinners, and to owe all our hopes to free grace?
We see, lastly, in this passage, that a sense of having our sins forgiven is the mainspring and life-blood of love to Christ. This, beyond doubt, was the lesson which our Lord wished Simon the Pharisee to learn, when He told him the story of the two debtors. “One owed his creditor five hundred pence, and the other fifty.” Both had “nothing to pay,” and both were forgiven freely. And then came the searching question — “Which of them will love him most?” Here was the true explanation, our Lord told Simon, of the deep love which the penitent woman before Him had displayed….Her love was the effect of her forgiveness — not the cause — the consequence of her forgiveness, not the condition, the result of her forgiveness, not the reason — the fruit of her forgiveness, not the root. Would the Pharisee know why this woman showed so much love? It was because she felt much forgiven. Would he know why he himself had shown his guest so little love? It was because he felt under no obligation — had no consciousness of having obtained forgiveness — had no sense of debt to Christ….Forever let the mighty principle laid down by our Lord in this passage, abide in our memories, and sink down into our hearts. It is one of the great corner-stones of the whole Gospel.