Sunday 05/31/26 “He Came Near: Who Is This Man, Jesus” (Luke 7:36-50)

Devotional

Day 1: Weeping at the Feet of the Forgiver

A woman crashes a Pharisee’s dinner, her tears mingling with perfume as she anoints Jesus’ dusty feet. Her unrestrained love flows from a heart shattered by the weight of her sins—and remade by forgiveness. Jesus contrasts her lavish gratitude with Simon’s cold religiosity, revealing that those who grasp the depth of their brokenness love most fiercely. True transformation begins when we stop minimizing our need and kneel, undone, before the One who cancels debts. [23:26]

“Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them.” (Luke 7:38, NLT)

Reflection: Where have you resisted acknowledging the true weight of your brokenness? How might embracing Christ’s forgiveness free you to love Him more recklessly?

Day 2: Simon’s Trap and the Control of Judgment

Religious control disguises itself as discernment. Simon hosts Jesus not to learn, but to test—to trap the Messiah into confirming his biases. He withholds basic hospitality, orchestrates the woman’s arrival, and silently condemns grace for the “unworthy.” Yet Jesus dismantles his games, exposing how judgment corrodes love. Control cannot hide from the One who reads hearts. [31:34]

“The Pharisee who had invited him saw this and said to himself, ‘If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!’” (Luke 7:39, NLT)

Reflection: What subtle judgments or “tests” do you impose on others to maintain a sense of spiritual superiority? How does this hinder your capacity to receive grace?

Day 3: The Mathematics of Mercy: 500 vs. 50 Denarii

Jesus’ parable reduces righteousness to arithmetic: the greater the debt forgiven, the greater the love unleashed. Simon views sin as a minor balance sheet; the woman knows hers is a crushing, unpayable sum. Mercy rewrites the equation—not to minimize failure, but to magnify the relief of grace. Our love for Christ grows in proportion to our awe at what He’s wiped clean. [24:27]

“A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. But neither could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?” (Luke 7:41-42, NLT)

Reflection: Do you relate to God as someone who “owes little” or as a debtor drowning in grace? How might this shape your daily interactions with others?

Day 4: Fully Known, Fully Loved: The Omniscience of Christ

Simon’s hidden thoughts are laid bare; the woman’s shame is met with tenderness. Jesus sees every secret—the scheming, the shame, the self-deception—and loves anyway. His omniscience isn’t a threat to the repentant, but a comfort: we are known to the core and still chosen. No performance is required; only honesty before the One who already knows. [46:20]

“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” (Hebrews 4:13, NIV)

Reflection: What part of your story do you fear might disqualify you from love? How does Christ’s full knowledge of you invite deeper trust?

Day 5: Who Is This Man? The Glorified Christ and Forgiver of Sins

The dinner guests whisper the question that defines eternity: “Who is this man who forgives sins?” Only God claims such authority. The resurrected Christ, blazing with glory, still asks it today. He is not a moral coach but the Sovereign Surgeon who heals sin’s fatal wound. To call Him less than God is to reject the only cure for our terminal condition. [47:37]

“Then Jesus said to the woman, ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ The men at the table said among themselves, ‘Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?’” (Luke 7:48-49, NLT)

Reflection: Is Jesus merely a teacher you respect or the divine Savior you desperately need? How does your answer reshape how you approach Him today?

Sermon Summary

Luke sets the scene with a Pharisee named Simon arranging the time and place, and Jesus walking straight into a room that smells like a setup. Jesus carries the mission of the Father into hostile space, receiving deliberate dishonor from the host and yet refusing to pick up the offense. The text then brings a “certain immoral woman” as the unexpected theologian of the room. Her tears, hair, kisses, and perfume preach repentance and gratitude. Jesus reads Simon’s thoughts and answers with a parable of two debtors. The story locates love on the far side of forgiveness. The one forgiven much loves much. The one forgiven little loves little.

Jesus then turns, not away from the sinner, but toward her. God draws close to sinners like a physician pressing into the plague. The contrast stands sharp. Simon clings to image and control, rejecting God’s purpose by refusing repentance. The woman receives God’s purpose by embracing mercy, and her love spills out like costly fragrance. Jesus names her many sins, then names the greater truth. Her sins have been forgiven. Her faith has saved her. Go in peace.

The room voices the right question. Who is this man who forgives sins? The text itself insists that only God can forgive sins, and Jesus is doing precisely that. Luke aims the heart to see Jesus as the greatest prophet and more. He is God Almighty, aligned with the Father, forgiving sins before the cross and then satisfying justice at the cross. Simon’s trap collapses under omniscience. Nothing is hidden from his sight. Yet omniscience does not crush. It comforts. The Holy One knows every thought and still moves to rescue even a hard heart.

The forgiven woman becomes the living homily for the church. Accurate self-knowledge and accurate Christ-knowledge produce large-hearted love. Small views of sin and small views of Jesus cap love at a trickle. Heaven’s cure for terminal sin is offered in one place only. Either sin is dealt with at the cross or sin is faced forever in hell. Jesus commands a better end. Receive mercy. Love much. Go in shalom. The glorified Christ now reigns, omniscient and omnipotent, calling his people to pray with bold alignment, to steward the “unlimited” of access to his throne, and to carry the cure to every terminal soul they meet.

Key Takeaways

1. Forgiven much, loving much Jesus ties the measure of love to the measure of forgiveness received. Large-hearted devotion grows where grace has met a truthful confession of many sins. The woman becomes the evidence that gratitude is the proper fruit of mercy. Love expands when mercy goes deep. [38:18]
2. Refusing repentance shrinks the heart Luke marks the Pharisees as those who rejected God’s purpose by refusing John’s baptism. Simon’s posture guards image but starves love, mistaking self-righteousness for holiness. A hard heart keeps score, sets traps, and misses the Physician standing in the room. Repentance is the doorway into joy, not the loss of it. [28:59]
3. You cannot trap the omniscient Christ Jesus reads the unspoken calculations at the table and answers with a story that lays every heart bare. Omniscience makes deceit impossible and deliverance available, because nothing hidden remains unhealable in his hands. To be fully known and fully loved breaks the spell of control. Holiness sees everything and still reaches to save. [43:46]
4. Answer the question, Who is Jesus? The table murmurs what every soul must settle. Only God forgives sins, and Jesus forgives sins. Faith receives him as Lord, not consultant, and his word sends the forgiven into peace and a new way of life. Eternity turns on that answer. [47:21]
5. Pray before the glorified Christ today Jesus now reigns, omniscient and omnipotent, and prayer should match that reality. Bold, aligned intercession leans on his sight and strength, stewarding access rather than settling for small expectations. The church asks big because the King is big. Present-tense glory reshapes present-tense prayer. [58:32]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[20:27] - He Came Near and the Question
[21:17] - Simon Says and a Controlling Heart
[22:32] - Meet Simon the Pharisee
[23:03] - Reading Luke 7:36-50
[24:44] - Customary Honors Withheld, Love Poured Out
[25:25] - “Your Sins Are Forgiven”
[26:15] - Nain and the Spreading Report
[27:45] - Pharisees Reject God’s Purpose
[31:54] - A Dinner That Smells Like a Trap
[33:56] - Deliberate Dishonor and Hospitality
[35:31] - The Two Debtors Parable
[37:48] - The Physician Near the Sick
[38:18] - Forgiven Little, Love Little
[43:22] - Nothing Hidden from His Sight
[45:08] - Saul Meets the Blazing Christ
[46:20] - Fully Known and Fully Loved
[47:21] - Who Is This Man?
[49:04] - Greater Than John, Kingdom Elevation
[50:27] - Jesus Is God, Forgiver of Sins
[53:53] - Seeing the Glorified Christ
[55:29] - Pray with Bold Alignment
[56:54] - Testimony of Healing
[59:11] - Public Worship as Public Need
[61:16] - Go in Peace, Leave Sin
[63:26] - Amen and Sending in Shalom

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading
Luke 7:36-50 (ESV)
36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and reclined at table. 37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” 40 And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.” 41 “A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” 44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48 And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50 And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Observation questions

What three specific actions did the woman perform for Jesus that Simon failed to do? How did Jesus contrast her actions with Simon’s?
In the parable of the two debtors, what reason does Jesus give for why one debtor loved the moneylender more than the other?
How did the people at the table react when Jesus told the woman, “Your sins are forgiven”? What question did this raise for them? [25:43]
According to Luke 7:30 (referenced in the sermon), why did the Pharisees reject God’s purpose for them? How does this relate to Simon’s attitude?

Interpretation questions

Why do you think Jesus chose to tell a story about financial debt to explain forgiveness and love? How does this parable challenge Simon’s view of himself and the woman?
The sermon states, “Small views of sin and small views of Jesus cap love at a trickle.” How does the woman’s response to Jesus illustrate a “large-hearted” love, and what might a “trickle” of love look like in contrast? [38:18]
The people ask, “Who is this man who forgives sins?” Why is this question central to understanding Jesus’ identity, and how does the sermon connect it to His divinity? [47:21]
How does Jesus’ omniscience (knowing Simon’s thoughts) both expose hypocrisy and offer hope for transformation?

Application questions

When have you felt like the “woman” (aware of your need for forgiveness) versus “Simon” (focused on others’ flaws or your own self-sufficiency)? What steps could help you move toward her posture of humility?
The sermon says, “Love expands when mercy goes deep.” What practical ways could you intentionally remember and reflect on God’s forgiveness to fuel greater love for Him and others? [38:18]
How might praying to the “glorified, omniscient Christ” (as He is now) change the way you approach Him with your fears, needs, or doubts? What bold request could you bring to Him this week? [55:29]
The woman’s love for Jesus was costly (tears, perfume, vulnerability). What is one tangible way you could express love for Jesus that feels “costly” or sacrificial in your current season?
Simon struggled to see his own need for repentance. Are there areas in your life where you’ve resisted acknowledging sin or avoiding humility? How might you invite Jesus into those spaces?
The sermon emphasizes that “you cannot trap the omniscient Christ.” How does knowing Jesus sees your hidden struggles and still offers forgiveness free you from shame or pretending? [43:46]
Who in your life is “terminal” (needing the cure for sin)? How could you courageously share the hope of forgiveness with them this week? [52:57]

Sermon Clips

25s

“He wants to be close to sinners. He even said it. It's not the healthy who need a doctor, it's the sick. I I came to rescue sinners. I came to save sinners from their sin. I'm a doctor. I go into the plague. I go to where the sickness is and I love people there and I rescue them and change their hearts. Look at her heart has changed. So this woman was forgiven her many sins”

33s

“From the people who see and hear this exchange at that dinner table that day, they say, who is this man? Who is this man who forgives sins? Because everyone around that table would have said, only God can forgive sins. So is it possible Luke is trying to help you see that Jesus is only God. That you'd run to him because only God can forgive sins. Without God, you're stuck in your sins forever.”

35s

“Holy almighty God, maker of heaven and earth comes to earth in his Messiah to Israel and he calls them to repent joyfully. Repent from the brokenness of your world for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Like repent joyfully, heaven has come. Heaven is here. Receive the good news of the gospel that God has come near to you. And so there's good news to be had and the pharisees rejected it. Said we ain't repenting. Ain't no way.”

40s

“Summarize at the end, every person, not just you here today. Thank God you're here. Honestly. Shows a degree of humility right there. You know, you're in public worship like anybody could come in. Anybody could be filming you writing down names. You know what it means when you come to public worship? What it means for me, I am declaring publicly every time I worship God that I am a sinner of such a magnitude that I would need a savior of the magnitude of Jesus to save me.”

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Sunday 05/31/26 “He Came Near: Who Is This Man, Jesus” (Luke 7:36-50) | Pastor Tim Vink