{"id":2820,"date":"2023-03-28T21:20:45","date_gmt":"2023-03-29T01:20:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/?p=2820"},"modified":"2023-03-30T16:48:02","modified_gmt":"2023-03-30T20:48:02","slug":"tale-of-two-debtors-and-an-alabaster-box","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/teachings\/sanctification\/tale-of-two-debtors-and-an-alabaster-box\/","title":{"rendered":"Tale of Two Debtors (and an Alabaster Box)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Tale of Two Debtors (and an Alabaster Box)<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

A Lesson in Sanctification<\/em><\/h5>\n\n\n
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Luke 7:36-48 (CSB)\nThen one of the Pharisees invited Him to eat with him. He entered the Pharisee\u2019s house and reclined at the table.\nAnd a woman in the town who was a sinner found out that Jesus was reclining at the table in the Pharisee\u2019s house. She brought an alabaster jar of perfume\nAnd stood behind Him at His feet, weeping, and began to wash His feet with her tears. She wiped His feet with her hair, kissing them and anointing them with the perfume.\nWhen the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, \u201cThis Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him \u2014 she\u2019s a sinner!\u201d\nJesus replied to him, \u201cSimon, I have something to say to you.\u201d\nHe said, \u201cSay it, Teacher.\u201d<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cA creditor had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Since they could not pay it back, he graciously forgave them both. So, which of them will love him more?\u201d\nSimon answered, \u201cI suppose the one he forgave more.\u201d\n\u201cYou have judged correctly,\u201d He told him. Turning to the woman, He said to Simon, \u201cDo you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she, with her tears, has washed My feet and wiped them with her hair.\nYou gave Me no kiss, but she hasn\u2019t stopped kissing My feet since I came in.\nYou didn\u2019t anoint My head with olive oil, but she has anointed My feet with perfume.\nTherefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that\u2019s why she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.\u201d\nThen He said to her, \u201cYour sins are forgiven.\u201d<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
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Two very different people. A man who invites Jesus to his house for a meal, and a woman who anoints Jesus’ feet with the costly contents of her alabaster box. Jesus’ parable about the two debtors challenges us with us this question. Take a moment to consider what your answer might be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Do we realize just how much we have been forgiven?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
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My First Glance at this Tale<\/h4>\n\n\n
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During the late 1970s, I lived in a missionary training center with a group of about 30 young adults. I worked closely together with one brother around my same age for those first few years. He was incredible at one-on-one street evangelism. His joy and charisma immediately touched others. I remember praying and longing for God to fill me with the passion this brother possessed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Around that same time, while doing my daily Bible reading, I came across Jesus\u2019 Parable of the Two Debtors (Luke 7:36-50). The words Jesus spoke to Simon the Pharisee grabbed my attention:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Luke 7:47 (CSB)
Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that\u2019s why she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
I thought about my friend\u2019s testimony of how God marvelously delivered him from a life of drug addiction, drug dealing, and crazy, sinful living. Suddenly, this thought crossed my mind:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s it! That\u2019s why my friend is so zealous, full of joy, and winning souls!<\/em>
Unlike me, he has been delivered and forgiven of many sins.<\/em>
No wonder he has so much love for Jesus and the joy of salvation.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
I had been raised in a nominal \u201cChristian\u201d family and always tried to be good. At the age of seventeen, I heard the Gospel for the first time. Realizing I was a sinner and that just being good could never save me, I received Jesus as my Lord and Savior, experienced Christ\u2019s forgiveness, the gift of eternal life, and was wonderfully born again. However, somewhere in my mind existed the assumption that my sins were not as many as certain others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Quickly, in the margin of my Bible (as is my habit) next to Luke 7:47, I wrote this prayer:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dear Jesus, some people, like my friend, were forgiven much,<\/em>
which is why they \u201clove much.\u201d<\/em>
I was \u201cforgiven little,\u201d so I \u201clove little.\u201d<\/em>
Therefore, I ask You for special grace to \u201clove much.\u201d Amen.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
I closed my Bible, genuinely expecting to receive an extra portion of grace to love Jesus more and serve Him more passionately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, God heard that prayer and began to answer as He always does \u2013 but in His own unique and always-surprising way!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Soon after, the Holy Spirit began to bring conviction upon so many areas of my life \u2013 uncovering stuff inside me that I never, ever imagined was there. It was like peeling an onion \u2013 each layer revealed another smellier layer of ugly \u201cself-life\u201d and irritated my eyes to tears! What Paul said was true of God\u2019s Word:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romans 7:12-13
So then, the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.
Therefore did that which is good become a cause of death for me? May it never be! Rather it was sin, in order that it might be shown to be sin by effecting my death through that which is good, so that through the commandment SIN WOULD BECOME UTTERLY SINFUL.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Now, I had no doubt that I was a child of God. I knew God loved me. I knew that the Blood of Jesus provided complete cleansing. It is just that sharp, two-edged Sword of the Spirt \u2013 the Word of God \u2013 was peeling back layers and revealing how horribly ugly and \u201cutterly sinful\u201d human nature could be \u2013 and I was seeing it \u2013 not in others, but in me! These verses in Romans now made so much sense to me:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romans 3:10-11
As it is written:
\u201cThere is none righteous, no, not one;
There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.\u201d<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
I had read these verses before, but only from a very shallow perspective. Apparently, I had ignorantly reasoned that my human nature was not entirely as corrupt as certain others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What an error \u2013 and an arrogant one!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
To even think that some are less sinful than others would be to say that the extreme price Jesus paid in His sacrifice on the Cross was not all that necessary for everyone. However, the Scriptures are clear: the horrible price Jesus paid was for each of us \u2013 for ALL mankind because \u201cthere is no difference\u201d\u2013<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romans 3:19-22
Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that EVERY mouth may be stopped, and ALL the world may become guilty before God\u2026
FOR THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE;
For ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Previously, I had erroneously interpreted the Apostle Paul\u2019s conversation in Romans 7 as referring to his experience before coming to Christ. Now I could correctly see that it is about the Holy Spirit dealing with us and revealing just how much needs to be transformed in our life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romans 7:18-24
For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) NOTHING GOOD dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find\u2026
For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.
But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
When I read what Paul wrote Timothy, I quickly identified with him: \u201cChief of sinners! That\u2019s me, too, Paul!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
1 Timothy 1:13-15
Although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.
And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.
This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, OF WHOM I AM CHIEF.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Of course, I knew I had never actually committed any of Paul\u2019s many crimes. However, the Spirit was leading me into all Truth, and He did so by bringing conviction of \u201csin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:7-13). Through God\u2019s Word, the precious Holy Spirit was opening my eyes to see that I am made of the exact same stuff as the worst of sinners. This has been true of all humanity since the fall of Adam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite my so-called \u201cwholesome\u201d upbringing, I was horrified to realize that even after being born again, baptized in water, and baptized in the Holy Spirit, there still existed within me \u2013 \u201cthat is, in my flesh\u201d \u2013 the very same capacity to sin as the worst of sinners! \u201cThere is no difference!\u201d<\/em> And yet, amazingly, there is a New Man \u2013 \u201cChrist in me,\u201d a \u201cnew creation\u201d \u2013 being formed within me. This confession of Paul highlights this paradox:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romans 7:22-23 (NKJV)
For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.
But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Our ministry training kept us busy night and day. No one else knew of the inner struggle I was going through. It was far too personal \u2013 something most would not understand. Some would have told me that it was the devil bringing condemnation. However, it was definitely not condemnation but conviction from the Word that I was experiencing. Others would have told me that my faith in Christ\u2019s finished work was failing and that I simply needed to rest and believe. Yet, as I look back now, I recognize that my faith in Christ was not faltering at all; it was actually growing (howbeit painfully) deeper!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was a very bitter-sweet experience for me. It was bitter conviction by the Holy Spirit in every passage I read in the Word. Yet, it was also precious and sweet times down at the Cross at the feet of Jesus where I experienced the cleansing of the Blood and the Holy Spirit\u2019s comfort always assuring me that I was \u201caccepted in the Beloved\u201d (Eph 1:6).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Without realizing it at that time, evangelizing no longer felt mechanical and academic. Instead, as Isaiah said, it was a wonderful drawing up \u201cwith joy\u2026from the wells of salvation\u201d (Isa 12:3)<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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My Second Glance at this Tale<\/h4>\n\n\n
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A year or so later, I came across Jesus\u2019 Parable of the Two Debtors again. As I discovered the prayer I had written in my Bible\u2019s margin the previous year, a flush of hot shame flooded my face:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow could I have ever written such words, much less pray them out loud to Jesus, my Savior?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
It pained me to realize that I actually thought that I had been forgiven less. How shallow and utterly ungrateful I had been! Ugh!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As it turned out, I had used a pencil in my Bible\u2019s margin, so I wasted no time thoroughly erasing that misguided prayer! Then I wrote in its place:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI have been forgiven of so many sins and a heavy, eternal debt.<\/em>
That\u2019s why I love You so very much!<\/em>
Thank You, Jesus, my sweet Savior, for continuing to open my eyes<\/em>
to the truth of who I am, who You are,<\/em>
and all You have done for me and will do in me! Amen!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since that time, Jesus\u2019 Parable of the Two Debtors has always been deeply personal to me. I see that experience as the birth of an ongoing revelation and ever-deepening respect for the conviction of God\u2019s Word.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For me, it is crystal clear why Jesus told this parable at that dinner table. I wonder if Simon ever did figure it out?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The First Clarification:<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Simon was NOT less of a sinner than this woman of the street. Simon, in his religious pride, did not recognize the MANY SINS and HOW MUCH OF A DEBT for which he needed the Savior\u2019s forgiveness!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Second Clarification:<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
The more and more we allow God to reveal to us the great depth of sin into which Jesus\u2019 forgiveness had to reach down to rescue us, the more and more we will be in love with Jesus! As Jesus told Simon:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2026her many sins have been forgiven; that\u2019s why she loved much\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When we are born again, we receive the Gift of Christ\u2019s Righteousness; we are freely justified (\u201cjust-as-if-I\u2019d never sinned”), and we are given Eternal Life. It is easy to do what the nine out of ten healed lepers did \u2013 going on with their new life and forgetting what they were before meeting Jesus. Only one \u2013 a Samaritan \u2013 had the depth of character to return to thank and worship Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Luke 17:18
Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
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Sanctification \u2013 a Two-Fold, Ongoing Process<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
The Psalmist David understood just how low God\u2019s forgiveness must reach to save us. (He probably saw it more clearly than most of us Christians today!) That revelation is more than enough of a reason to sing forever!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Psalm 40:2-3
He also brought me up out of a HORRIBLE PIT,
Out of the MIRY CLAY,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps.
He has put a new song in my mouth\u2014
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear,
And will trust in the Lord.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Psalm 86:12-13 (KJV)
I will praise Thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart:
And I will glorify Thy Name for evermore.
For great is Thy mercy toward me:
And Thou hast delivered my soul from the LOWEST HELL.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
And David was not afraid to be open with God and allow Him to bring conviction:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Psalm 139:23-24 (KJV)
Search me, O God, and know my heart:
try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if there be any wicked way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Some versions of Christianity erroneously see sanctification as a one-time, instantaneous experience: \u201cWe are already sanctified. We got it all when we believed!\u201d<\/em> They teach it as a gift to just grab and go. Such teaching does not conform to the \u201csound words of Jesus and the doctrine conforming to godliness\u201d (1 Tim 6:3)<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus often told His disciples about denying self by taking up their cross to follow Him. This is definitely not an instantaneous experience!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Matthew 16:24-25 (Mark 8:34-35; Luke 9:23-24)\nThen Jesus said to His disciples, \u201cIf anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25<\/sup> For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
John 12:24-25\nMost assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.\nHe who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Sanctification is not an adornment to wear frivolously, and neither is it something accomplished by following rules and restrictions and doing works that only produce ugly religious pride. Sanctification is part of the full salvation that Jesus purchased on the Cross for us and made available in the New Covenant. Like everything else God does in our lives, sanctification is every bit “by grace through faith, not of works lest anyone should boast” (Eph 2:8-9). It is a deep, life-long work of the Holy Spirit and the Word of Truth in our lives:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 Thessalonians 2:13\nBut we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification<\/strong> by the Spirit and belief in the truth<\/strong>.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
1 Thessalonians 5:23\nNow may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely<\/strong>; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
 Sanctification is a TWO-SIDED PROCESS \u2013 where the Spirit leads us into the Truth of Jesus\u2019 righteous and holy character while, at the same time, leading us into the Truth of how totally \u201cdestitute of the glory of God\u201d (Rom 3:23)<\/em> we are in ourselves. True sanctification is impossible unless the believer is willing for the Spirit to uncover those onion layers of self.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Paul describes this process of sanctification and transformation like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 Corinthians 3:18\nBut we all, with unveiled face<\/strong>, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory<\/strong>, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.<\/pre>\n\n\n
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This verse explains that there first needs to be an \u201cunveiling\u201d<\/strong><\/em> \u2013 an openness to the conviction of the Holy Spirit and His sharp two-edged Sword of the Word. Then, as we continue in that revealing light of the glory of Christ, there is a cleansing by the precious Blood of Jesus (1 John 1:7). That is how the Spirit continues the work of sanctification and transformation from \u201cglory to glory\u201d<\/em><\/strong> into true Christlikeness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For this reason, Christians who are determined to seek God wholeheartedly must never forget the \u201chole of the pit\u201d from which God dug them. Isaiah prophesied excellent advice:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Isaiah 51:1
Listen to Me, you who follow after righteousness,
You who seek the Lord:
Look to the rock from which you were hewn,
And to the HOLE of the PIT from which you were dug.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
From a different perspective, Peter gives this explanation as to why Christians are not flourishing with the fruit of Christ-like qualities which he had listed in the first part of this same chapter:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
2 Peter 1:9
For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and HAS FORGOTTEN that he was cleansed from his old sins.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
So much of Christianity today is focused on blessings, feeling good, and the naming and claiming of promises for health and wealth. But then they get frustrated, discouraged, and embittered when problems arise, and prosperity fails. As Jesus described it in another parable:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mark 4:5-6 (NKJV)
Some [seed] fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had NO DEPTH of earth.
But when the sun was up it was scorched, and BECAUSE IT HAD NO ROOT it withered away.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
The parable is clear: our growth upward into the fullness of Christ must include a proportionate growth downward. The ever-upward flourishing and the ever-deepening roots can only occur by the sanctifying work of the indwelling Spirit of God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is few Christians who ever desire to take time to study the passages in God\u2019s Word which demonstrate how deeply depraved Adam (and all mankind) became and how far down he fell out of God\u2019s Eternal Purpose:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romans 3:23
For all have sinned and fall short [and are destitute] of the glory of God.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
God also tells us:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jeremiah 17:9-10
The heart is more deceitful than all else
And is desperately sick;
Who can understand it?
I, the Lord, search the heart,
I test the mind\u2026<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
On another occasion, Jeremiah, knowing man\u2019s inherent waywardness, makes this prayer, asking for God to correct him:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jeremiah 10:23-24
I know, O Lord, that a man\u2019s way is not in himself,
Nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps.
Correct me, O Lord\u2026<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
All of these Scriptures are integral parts to understand if we want the process of sanctification to take place in our lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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The Tale is About Dimensions<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
Paul wrote to the Ephesians church about knowing the four dimensions of Christ\u2019s love that \u201csurpasses knowledge\u201d (Eph 3:16-18)<\/em>. [Hmmm\u2026 Here is a \u201cselah\u201d moment: How do you know something that surpasses knowledge?]<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Two of those dimensions are \u201cheight\u201d <\/strong><\/em>and \u201cdepth.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
These two dimensions of Christ\u2019s love were demonstrated on the Cross and extend beyond our sight in opposite directions. It would be imbalanced to study one to the exclusion of the other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Many (including myself) love studying all the verses about the \u201cheight\u201d of Christ\u2019s love and how God fully provided for man\u2019s complete sanctification and transformation [Greek: \u201cmetamorphosis\u201d] \u201cfrom glory to glory\u201d<\/em> into Christ\u2019s image (2 Cor 3:18; Rom 8:29) and to seat him as an overcomer upon Jesus\u2019 own throne as His glorious Bride (Rev 3:21). However, such a study would be imbalanced and ashamedly shallow without equally researching the verses throughout God\u2019s Word that reveal the \u201cdepth\u201d of man\u2019s depravity and how deep Jesus had to reach \u2013 how much He had to suffer upon the Cross to pay man\u2019s debt of sin that has no end (i.e., an eternity in hell)!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When we allow God to show us the depth of the pit and miry clay from which we have been dug, our Christianity and relationship with our Savior will undoubtedly transform from a shallow babbling brook into a deeply flowing river of living water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During that bitter-sweet time, I came across John Bunyan\u2019s autobiography, \u201cGrace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners\u201d<\/em> (1666). I could now find it easy to relate to John\u2019s struggles as a Christian. He, too, found himself convicted by the Spirit about who he was (\u201cchief of sinners\u201d). That was the unveiling, cleansing, and sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in his life. \u201cHigher\u201d must be accompanied by \u201clower.\u201d John discovered that his struggle was directly proportional to God\u2019s grace abounding upon him:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romans 5:20
Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound.
But where sin abounded, GRACE ABOUNDED much more.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Later, John Bunyan was imprisoned for preaching the Gospel. It was during those 12 years in a dungeon cell that he wrote: \u201cPilgrim\u2019s Progress\u201d (1678) \u2013 an allegory of our Christian\u2019s journey from when we first received Christ as well as the process of sanctification by the Holy Spirit, the Word, and God\u2019s wonderful dealings in our lives. This book has been translated into over 200 languages and has been printed almost as many times as the Bible itself! That is definitely \u201cGrace Abounding\u201d at work!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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This is a Tale of Love<\/h4>\n\n\n
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The woman knew her sins were many. She demonstrated that by the selfless acts of washing Jesus’ feet with her tears, wiping them with her hair, and kissing them. Then she broke an alabaster box to pour out its costly contents to anoint His feet. “Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that\u2019s why she loved much<\/strong>. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little\u201d (Luke 7:47).<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Song of Songs, we see a beautiful love story. It is filled with wonderful imagery and it is a type and shadow of the love relationship between Jesus and His Bride, the Church. In this book, there is a unique progression \u2013 one which deepens into a more and more selfless love that the Bride experiences for her Beloved Groom:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
   (1) \u201cMy Beloved is mine, and I am His\u201d <\/em>(SS 2:16).\n   (2) \u201cI am my Beloved\u2019s, and He is mine\u201d<\/em> (SS 6:3).\n   (3) \u201cI am my Beloved\u2019s, and His desire is toward me\u201d<\/em> (SS 7:10).<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
The Bride progresses from \u201cIt\u2019s all about me, MY identity,\u201d and \u201cwho I am\u201d to \u201cIt\u2019s all about Him and HIS identity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Obviously, when someone first comes to Christ, it is all about them and their needs \u2013 they need a Savior, forgiveness, healing, blessing, a new identity, etc. Sadly, some Christians never quite grow out of that infant state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Christ will soon return at the Rapture for His Bride \u2013 \u201cthose who are Christ\u2019s at His coming\u201d (1 Cor 15:23)<\/em>. To be part of that glorious Bride, there must be sanctification and growth into full maturity. In Song of Songs, the more the Bride saw that it was all about her Bridegroom, the more beautiful He became to her, and the more her deepening love for Him attracted others:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Song of Songs 5:10,16 \u2013 6:1\n[The Bride]<\/em><\/strong>\nMy beloved is white and ruddy,\nChiefest among ten thousand.\nHis mouth is most sweet,\nYea, he is altogether lovely.\nThis is my beloved,\nAnd this is my friend,\nO daughters of Jerusalem!\n[Daughters of Jerusalem]<\/em><\/strong>\nWhere has your beloved gone,\nO fairest among women?\nWhere has your beloved turned aside,\nThat we may seek him with you?<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Notice how Paul expresses this goal in his \u201cthat I may\u201d list. It certainly does not sound like a \"grab-and-go\" and \"I-got-it-all\" experience. Instead, it is like the lovesick Bride desparately seeking to win and please her Beloved at any cost:<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
Phil 3:7-14\n   \u2026that I may<\/em> win Him\u2026\n   \u2026that I may<\/em> be found in Him..\n   \u2026that I may<\/em> know Him\u2026\n   \u2026if, by any means, I may<\/em> attain to the resurrection from the dead\u2026\n   \u2026that I may<\/em> lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus..\nI press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
There are so many Scriptures that give us glimpses of how much we have been forgiven. Each of those verses unfolds to reveal the extremely high price of our salvation, and the unfathomable love of Christ demonstrated on the Cross. Such an increasing revelation gives quadraphonic sound, technicolor sight, and rich reality to phrases like these:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
   \u201cthe Excellency of the Knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord\u201d (Phil 3:8)<\/em>\n   \u201cthe Unsearchable Riches of Christ\u201d (Eph 3:8)<\/em>\n   \u201cin Whom are hidden all the Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge (Col 2:3)<\/em><\/pre>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Back to the Question<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
So, returning to the Parable of the Two Debtors, here is the real question once again:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Do we realize just how much we have been forgiven?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Do we see ourselves like Simon\u2026 only owing \u201c50 denarii\u201d<\/strong>? Or owing \u201c500 denarii\u201d<\/strong> like this woman from the street?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Or perhaps, it is \u201c10,000 *talents\u201d<\/strong> as in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant (Mat 18:21-30)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
*Consider these conversion numbers:
   1 denarius<\/strong> = 1 day’s work
   1 talent<\/strong> = 6,000 denarii which equal 20 years of wages (6 days\/week)!
   10,000 talents<\/strong> = 60 million denarii which equal 200,000 years of daily wages!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As we allow the Holy Spirit to continue His sanctifying and transforming work in our lives, I believe our answer to this question will sound less and less like a shallow theological statement and more and more like the response of one falling ever deeper in love with their Savior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n
Oh, Lord, I do not know if my heart and mind could ever comprehend the depths of Your love and forgiveness for me. Please open my eyes more and more each day. I will never forget, and I will love You forever!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thank You, Jesus, for sending the Spirit of Truth to lead me into “ALL” Truth…
   \u2026the [ugly]<\/em> Truth of who I really am [apart from Your grace];
   \u2026the [beautiful]<\/em> Truth of who You are [in all Your glory and grace];
   \u2026and the [awesome]<\/em> Truth of all You are doing and will yet do in our lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s all about You, dear Jesus; and I long to know and love You more and more deeply!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Jesus\u2019 Precious Name, Amen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Luke 7:44-47\nTurning to the woman, he said to Simon, \u201cDo you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she, with her tears, has washed my feet and wiped them with her hair.\nYou gave me no kiss, but she hasn\u2019t stopped kissing my feet since I came in.\nYou didn\u2019t anoint my head with olive oil, but she has anointed my feet with perfume.\nTherefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that\u2019s why she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.\u201d<\/pre>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Tale of Two Debtors (and an Alabaster Box) A Lesson in Sanctification Luke 7:36-48 (CSB) Then one of the Pharisees invited Him to eat with …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2833,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[379],"tags":[573,578,581,576,574,579,301,187,575,580,219,241,577],"class_list":["post-2820","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sanctification","tag-alabaster-box","tag-deep-roots","tag-depravity-of-mankind","tag-forgiven-much","tag-forgiveness-of-sins","tag-glory-to-glory-2","tag-nature-of-sin","tag-sanctification","tag-self-life","tag-sound-words-of-jesus-christ","tag-transformation","tag-word-of-truth","tag-work-of-the-holy-spirit"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/Coins-in-Balance_180585772_3000p-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C985&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa8ofw-Ju","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2820","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2820"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2820\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2854,"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2820\/revisions\/2854"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2820"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2820"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slentz.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2820"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}