He Can Rewrite Your Life Story

As we conclude our look at the Pharisee and the Prostitute in Luke 7, listen to the wonderful words of Jesus to the the woman in verse 50: “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” This woman enters the room experiencing scorn, rejection, and ridicule. When she entered the room, the future of her life story looked much like the previous chapters...abuse, brokenness, and loneliness.

But an amazing thing happens during the minutes she spends in the Pharisees house as she kneels at the feet of Jesus. Jesus re-wrote the ending to her story... “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” She may have entered the room in humiliation; she is leaving in peace. She entered the room broken and lost; she is leaving saved.

Hebrews 12:2 encourages us: “Fix your eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith.” When we look at the story of our lives, Jesus is the Author. And when He has the editorial rights to our lives, He is a master at re-writing the script of our lives. Just look at a few examples in the Gospels:

John 5 tells about a man who had been lame for over 30 years. Everyone knows how his story will end. He will die an invalid, begging for a meager existence to survive. Men who are lame for three decades don't start walking...unless the Author of our faith shows up! One command from the Author and this man's life story was rewritten for ever!

Luke 7 also tells the story of a funeral procession where a widow had lost her son. Everyone knows where this story is headed. The final chapter of funeral processions end up in graveyards...unless the Author of our faith shows up! Jesus touches the casket, and the boy comes back to life. The mother and the son's life story was completely rewritten!

Remember the thief on the cross. He has committed a crime worthy of death. He is paraded through Jerusalem as a horrible criminal. He is nailed to a cross. This story will end in shame and humiliation...unless the Author of our faith shows up! One promise of eternal life and the thief's story is rewritten for eternity.

As we conclude this week's study of the Gospel, the Good News is this...Jesus wants to rewrite the story of your life. Whether broken relationships, financial turmoil, physical infirmity, or spiritual gloom, the Author is ready to take pen in hand and rewrite the script of your life! Will you let him?

Your Reaction Reveals Your Attitude

Yesterday, we looked at the attitudinal difference between the Pharisee and the prostitute. Today, we are going to look at the Pharisee's reaction to the entrance of the woman into the story in contrast to Jesus' reaction.

The Pharisee is self-rightous, condemning the woman.  But Jesus immediately begins to defend the woman. Luke 7:39 says, “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.”

The Pharisee reduced the woman's entire life to one label...a sinner. There is no attempt to try to see why the woman had become a prostitute. He completely avoids her sexual scars and relational pains. When Jesus looked at her, He saw a little girl that probably dreamed of being a princess when she grew up. He saw a young teenager nervously going out on her first date. He saw the abuse she had experienced, the hurts she had endured, and the scorn she had been shown. Sure Jesus could see who she was, but more importantly, He saw what she could become.

As the Pharisee condemned the woman, Jesus immediately turned to her defense. For the first time in a a long time, the woman a male who was defending her, and more importantly, someone who valued her.

Yesterday we looked at the difference between a religious Pharisee and a redeemed sinner. Today let's look at the difference between a religious Pharisee and Jesus.  People steeped in religion are always writing people off...Jesus is always writing people in. Pharisees focus on the past. Jesus focuses on the future.

This Pharisee said, “A prophet would know what kind of woman she is.” He was wrong! A prophet wouldn’t just know what kind of woman she is. A prophet would know what kind of woman she could become!

Regardless of our past, regardless of our failures, Jesus always focuses on what we can become! That's the gospel!

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?

A Heavenly Re-Write

Hebrews 10:17 says, “Their sins and lawless acts, I will remember no more.”  God doesn’t just forgive our sins, unlike us, He forgets them. He destroys the evidence against us.

The essence of our faith is this: God is in the editing business and He wants complete editorial control of our lives. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, God, in essence, does a video edit of our lives. He removes all the sins, the mess-ups, the poor choices. And if you give editorial control to Him, there is no telling what kind of story He can write through you. He wants to rewrite the script of your life.

Luke 7 tells an amazing story about forgiveness that we are going to focus on this week. Luke 7:36-38 says, “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.”

Mark Batterson makes a couple of amusing points about this story. First of all, I guarantee this woman wasn’t on the invitation list. She crashed this party. Secondly, this was a really awkward moment? You’ve got your straight-laced, religious, church-going Pharisees. Then you throw in a prostitute who starts crying and kissing Jesus’ feet and breaking perfume bottles.

I have a feeling this was a totally lame party before this woman showed up. The words Pharisee party is an oxymoron if there ever was one! Kind of like jumbo shrimp, found missing, Microsoft Works (spoken like a true Apple guy), or handsome pastor. Pharisees didn’t know how to have fun. They didn’t believe in fun. They probably had laws against laughter. How fun can a party at a Pharisee’s house be?

An into this lame party, walks this redeemed former prostitute. That’ll spice things up. And things go from boring to awkward in two seconds. She starts crying and kissing his feet. She breaks open a bottle of perfume that scents the entire house. What a scenario!

Why is she there? Jesus redeemed and restored her life. He re-wrote her story. She no longer was destined to live a life of sexual abuse and relational nightmares. He edited her past and re-scripted her future. And people who have had their life-story re-written are extremely grateful. In fact, do you know how you can tell the difference between religious pharisees and redeemed prostitutes? By how they act in the presence of Jesus. But more on that tomorrow!

Atonement, Forgiveness, And Us

Leviticus 16:29-31 states: "This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work—whether native-born or an alien living among you-because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the LORD, you will be clean from all your sins. It is a sabbath of rest, and you must deny yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance." The Day of Atonement was a Sabbath of rest, but it wasn’t just any Sabbath. It was the Sabbath of Sabbaths. It is a shadow of the move that would occur from religion to Christianity through Jesus. Religion is what you can do for God, Christianity is about what God has done for you. Because of what God has done for us through the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, we are cleansed. He is our day of atonement...perpetually. Our sins are forgiven, not because of anything we have done, but because the sacrifice has been made and the scapegoat has carried our sins into the wilderness, never to be remembered again!

And don't miss the last part of those verses. The day of atonement was a day of rest, and not only for the need to atone for our own sins. Now we have the ability to deny ourselves. When our own natural desires are pushing us to be fulfilled illegitimately (which is the root source of sin), we are not longer dependent upon our resources to control them (we can't do it anyway). We can now put our efforts to rest...we have His righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). His righteousness, His atonement, now empowers us!

Verse 34 concludes: "This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: Atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelites." And it was done, as the LORD commanded Moses." Because of this one day a year, their sins were atoned (amends have been made) for the entire year. That is a great deal. But Jesus took it so much further. He was sacrificed once and for all, for all sin, for all of us, for all time. Our sins have been made right, they have been forgiven, and they have been released into the desert of God's grace. Now that's good news! That's the Gospel!