Luke 7 Devotional

Love That Follows Forgiveness

“Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven, for she has loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.””Luke 7:47 (BSB)

Simon the Pharisee invites Jesus to dinner, but it is a woman known in the town as a sinner who honors him. She weeps at his feet, wipes them with her hair, kisses them, and anoints them with perfume (7:37-38). Simon decides Jesus cannot be a prophet, or he would know what she is (7:39). Jesus does know, and he answers with a story about two debtors who could not repay, one owing ten times more than the other, and both forgiven (7:41-43).

The story explains her tears. Her many sins have been forgiven, and her great love shows it, while the one who has been forgiven little loves little (7:47). Her love does not buy her pardon. It flows from it, and Jesus sends her away with the assurance that her faith has saved her and she may go in peace (7:50). Love for him grows as you see how large your debt was and how fully he has canceled it.

To think about: Do you think of yourself as someone who has been forgiven little or much, and how does that show up in your love for Jesus?