Friend of Sinners (Part 2)
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
Luke 15:2
The Lord Jesus, had a unique way of reaching out and engaging people far away from God. This primarily involved being a friend, even to sinners. Today, we continue on from part 1 yesterday. In the four gospel accounts, we find five occasions (see yesterday July 23 for occasions 1 & 2) when the Lord was chastised by the religious leaders for being the friend of sinners.
Third: In Luke 7:36-50, A sinful woman anoints Jesus with expensive ointment and wipes His feet with her tears and the hair of her head. When Jesus is corrected for letting this “sinner” touch Him, He reminds Simon that those who are forgiven much love much. In the end, Jesus forgives the woman her sin and announces, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace” Luke 7:50).
Fourth: Is the parables of the lost sheep, lost coin, and the lost son in Luke 15. The setting for these parables is found in the first two verses of this chapter. As the tax collectors and sinners “were all drawing near” to Jesus, the Pharisees and scribes complained that Jesus was receiving them to eat with them. The three parables that followed demonstrate how God seeks out the lost (15:3, 8, 20) and how pleased God is when sinners repent (15:7, 10, 21-24).
Five: In Luke 19:1-10, we again have the religious leaders complaining because “He (the Lord) has gone to be the guest of a sinner” (Lk 19:7). Albeit, as a result of the Lord's visit to eat with this man, this sinner called Zacchaeus, repents and is a changed man (19:8), the Jews simply cannot accept that the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost (19:10) and that this notorious tax collector has been saved (19:9).
Now today, whether we are Christians or not, we are all sinners (Romans 3:23). However, the question for each of us is this – Is the Friend of Sinners my Friend too? If your answer is no, or you are not sure. By a simple act of faith, in prayer ask Him to come into your heart and be your friend today – Simple ask Him to save you. If you do that, know that you are saved, start reading the Bible every day, and find a church where the Bible is preached.
Bible Reading
Luke 15:1-24.
Prayer
Father God, thank You for sending the Lord Jesus to be the Friend of Sinner. Help me to point lost sinners to Him today. Amen.
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