Are You A Pharisee Or A Redeemed Sinner?

In the story in Luke 7:36-38, we are told about an amazing story that shows the difference between a religious Pharisee and a redeemed prostitute. “Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisees’ house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume, and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.” Then Luke tells us in verse 39: “The Pharisee who invited Jesus says, “If this man [Jesus] were a prophet he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.” 


Two extremely opposite people. One pompously religious, the other emotionally grateful. The reality is one of these two extremes represent most of us. How do you tell whether you are a religious pharisee or a redeemed sinner? By how you act in the presence of Jesus. The religious Pharisee thinks they are doing Jesus a favor by being in His presence. They act like their attendance at church ought to be recognized as a sacrifice. Anything they do for the kingdom of God ought to be rewarded. The redeemed sinner enters into the presence of Jesus with broken gratitude, humble appreciation, and gracious thanksgiving. The Pharisee comes to church with the mindset "Do something to bless me". The redeemed sinner comes to church with a heart filled with gratitude and worship, ready to bow at the feet of Jesus, weep in His presence, and offer thanks for His grace.

Jesus then told an enlightening story to the Pharisee in verses 40-47: “Simon, I have something to tell you.”  “Tell me, teacher,” he said.  “Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[d] and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said. Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.”


Could it be, that for many Christians, the reason why church is so boring to them is because they have forgotten how much they have been forgiven? Jesus gives us the way to tell whether we are a Pharisee or a redeemed sinner...how do you react to His presence?