The Sinful Woman
Luke 7:36-50
Objective Sentence: Everyone can experience a change of heart by following the
steps taken by the Sinful Woman on the road she traveled in receiving
forgiveness of sin and new life through faith in God.
Opening Statement: Story of Bible in the trash…
Initial Invitation
#1. Respond to Conviction (Luke 7:37 brought an alabaster flask)
A. Oswald Chambers: Very few of us know anything about conviction of sin. We
know the experience of being disturbed because we have done wrong things. But
conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit blots out every relationship on earth and
makes us aware of only one—Against You God, Against You Only have I sinned
(Psalm 51:4)
1. Conviction is a gift of God’s mercy a warning indicator that is sounding off
before impact (2 Corinthians 7:10)
a. Oswald Chambers: Christ’s death was not something that happened to
Him—something that might have been prevented. His death was the very reason He
came. God forgives sin only because of the death of Christ. Jesus became a curse
for us by divine decree. Our part in realizing the tremendous meaning of His
curse is the conviction of sin. Conviction is given to us as a gift of shame and
repentance; it is the great mercy of God.
b. John Tauler: Those who have never felt anxiety on account of their sins are
in the most dangerous condition of all.
c. Ted Roberts; Pure Desire: One of the devil’s favorite tactics is to let us
acknowledge God’s conviction, to allow us to acknowledge we have a problem. But
nothing ever changes, because we think the conviction itself means we’ve
changed. Instead the acknowledgement is simply the warning indicators being set
off on the instrument panel of our souls just prior to impact.
d. Psalms 51:10-12
c. Zondervan Bible Dictionary: Although the word conviction is never used in the
KJV, both Testaments give many illustrations of the experience. In the NT the
central passage bearing on this theme is John 16:7-11, where Jesus sa7s that
when the Holy Spirit comes “He will reprove the world of sin, and of
righteousness and judgment. Here the word “reprove” means “convince” or “prove
guilty.” The thought is that the Holy Spirit addresses the heart of the guilty
and shows how inadequate ordinary standards of righteousness are. The purpose of
conviction is to lead to godly repentance.
d. Vines: Greek—Elencho: to convict, confute, refute, usually with the
suggestion of putting the convicted person to shame.
#2. Change Direction (Luke 7:37 …sinner…in Pharisees house)
Acts 2:38 Repent—be baptized—receive the Holy Spirit
A. Gordon MacDonald: Repentance is not basically a religious word. It comes from
a culture where people were essentially nomadic and lived in a world with no
maps or street signs. It's easy to get lost walking through the desert. You
become aware that the countryside is strange. You finally say to yourself, I'm
going in the wrong direction. That's the first act of repentance. The second act
of repentance is to go in an alternate direction. It implies that you not only
do this but you admit it to your companions. We all do this whether or not we
realize it.
1. Turn around and go the other way (Acts 3:19)
a. C. S. Lewis; 1898-1963: Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who
needs improvement; he is a rebel who must lay down his arms ... This process of
surrender—this movement full speed astern-is called repentance. Now repentance
is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It
means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training
ourselves into for … years. It means killing part of yourself, undergoing a kind
of death (Galatians 2:20).
b. Acts 2:38 Repent and be baptized…
c. Repentance: A feeling of regret, a changing of the mind, or a turning from
sin to God
d. John 3:3; 1 Peter 1:23; Romans 12:2; Ephesians 4:2-
e. Vines—Greek “Metanoeo”: to change one’s mind or purpose…involving a change
for the better.
f. Benny Hinn: Repentance is the first step toward receiving the anointing, no
matter what the level at which you stand.
g. 2 Corinthians 7:9-10
Middle Invitation
#3. Make Confession (Luke 7:38 stood at his feet…weeping)
A. King Solomon; Proverbs 28:12 He who covers his sins will not prosper, but
whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.
1. Confessed her sin
a. 1 John 1:9
b. Leviticus 26:40-42 (If they confess…I will remember my covenant) Spirit
Filled Life Bible: The theme that God remembers His promise and never goes back
on His word is emphasized in the covenant relationship. The community of the
covenant is never without hope. God is always ready to receive His people in
repentance even after they have failed and abandoned Him.
c. Jeremiah 3:12-13 Confession of sin is a prerequisite for the mercy of God.
d. Psalms 32:1-5 When I kept silent my bones grew old (hard brittle) I
acknowledged my sin
e. Psalm 107: 6, 9, 13, 19-20, 28 They cried out to the Lord in their troubles
and He saved them…
2. Confessed Christ
a. Romans 10:9-10 Spirit Filled Life Bible: Here is the most foundational lesson
in the importance and power of faith’s confession found anywhere in the Bible.
The principle is established at the very beginning of our life in Christ. Just
as salvation (God’s righteous working in our behalf) is appropriated by heart
belief and spoken confession, so His continuing working in our lives is advanced
by the same means. The word “confess” (Greek—homologeo) has the connotation of a
binding public declaration by which a legal relation is contractually
established”.
b. Matthew 10:32-33 Jesus leaves no room for secret discipleship
#4. Express Affection (Luke 7:38 washed, wiped, wept, kissed)
A. Brother Lawrence: We should dedicate ourselves to becoming the most perfect
worshippers of God we can possibly be, as we hope to be through all eternity.
Worship is the expression of our affection to God
1. Gave Gifts
a. David Garcia: You can’t get close to God without giving something very
valuable to Him.
b. Eerdman: Pliny mentions alabaster as the best material for pots or vessels
intended for these precious ointments. It was softer than marble, and easily
scooped into pots or bottles. These costly [oils or creams] unguents and
cosmetics were much used by the wealthy Roman ladies. The precious ointment
poured over the Redeemer’s feet had probably been originally procured for a very
different purpose.box
2. Gave honor, respect and reverence
a. John 4:20-22 God is a Spirit and they that worship Him ….
b. C. S. Lewis: The perfect church service would be one we were almost unaware
of; our attention would have been on God.
c. Thomas Merton: The great thing, and the only thing, is to adore and praise
God.
d. Kelly Sparks: God is not moved or impressed with our worship until our hearts
are moved and impressed by Him.
e. William Temple: To worship to quicken [give life to] the conscience by the
holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth, to purge the imagination by
the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, to devote the will to
the purpose of God.
Closing: You have been guilty of discarding God by throwing your faith in a
garbage can. You have run away from your relationship with God, some of you have
buried your faith in work, activity or recreation, others are so involved in
entertainment that you do have a spiritual life, and some have lost the touch of
God on your life because of sin. The only way to recover your walk with God is
to retrieve it from the place you have discarded it.
Invitation