Luke 7:42 But since they had nothing with which to repay, he graciously forgave them both. Which of them therefore will love him more? (43) Simon answered and said, I suppose the one whom he graciously forgave the more. And He said to him, You have judged correctly. (50) But He said to the woman, Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.
[Part 2 of 3] When as a young Christian I read this chapter, I thought that the woman's love for the Savior was the cause of the forgiveness of her sins. I thought that He forgave her because she loved Him. This understanding is not correct. In verse 50 the Lord said to the woman that her faith, not her love, had saved her. Furthermore, regarding the two debtors who were forgiven by the moneylender, the Lord asked, "Which of them therefore will love him more?" (v. 42). This indicates clearly that love is the issue of forgiveness. Concerning this, we need to pay attention to the word "therefore" in verse 42. This word proves that love comes after forgiveness instead of preceding it. What, then, is the cause of the forgiveness of sins? From verse 50 we see that the cause is faith. It was the woman's faith that saved her. Her sins were forgiven not because of her love but because of her faith. Therefore, faith comes before forgiveness, and love follows faith. It is very important for us to see that forgiveness comes before love. We should not think that our love is the cause of the forgiveness of our sins. On the contrary, love is the issue, the outcome, of our faith. When we believe in the Lord, our faith becomes the cause of the Lord's forgiveness of our sins. Then as a result of having our sins forgiven, we begin to love the Lord. Hence, love comes out of faith. [Continued tomorrow]
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of Luke, pp. 147-148. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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