Listen, Then, If You Have Ears!

Luke 8:4-8 People kept coming to Jesus from one town after another; and when a great crowd gathered, Jesus told this parable:

"Once there was a man who went out to sow grain.  As he scattered the seed in the field, some of it fell along the path, where it was stepped on, and the birds ate it up.  Some of it fell on rocky ground, and when the plants sprouted, they dried up because the soil had no moisture.  Some of the seed fell among thorn bushes, which grew up with the plants and choked them.  And some seeds fell in good soil; the plants grew and bore grain, one hundred grains each."

And Jesus concluded, "Listen, then, if you have ears!"

Woman Who Accompanied Jesus

Luke 8:1-3 (GNT) Some time later Jesus traveled through towns and villages, preaching the Good News about the Kingdom of God. The twelve disciples went with Him, and so did some women who had been healed of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (who was called Magdalene), from whom seven demons had been driven out; Joanna, whose husband Chuza was an officer in Herod's court; and Susanna, and many other women who used their own resources to help Jesus and his disciples.

Your Sins Are Forgiven...Your Faith Has Saved You; Go In Peace

Luke 7:48-50 (GNT) Then Jesus said to the woman, "Your sins are forgiven."  The others sitting at the table began to say to themselves,"Who is this, who even forgives sins?"  But Jesus said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

Whoever Has Been Forgiven Little Shows Only A Little Love

Luke 7:44-47  Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman?  I came into your home, and you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and dried them with her hair.  You did not welcome Me with a kiss, but she has not stopped kissing My feet since I came.  You  provided no olive oil for My head, but she has covered My feet with perfume.  I tell you, then, the great love she has shown proves that her many sins have been forgiven.  But whoever has been forgiven little shows only a little love." 

The One Who Was Forgiven More

Luke 7:40-43 (GNT) Jesus spoke up and said to him, "Simon, I have something to tell you." "Yes, Teacher," he said, tell me."  "There were two men who owed money to a moneylender," Jesus began, "One owed him five hundred silver coins, and the other one fifty.  Neither of them could pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both.  Which one, then, will love him more?"  "I suppose," answered Simon, "that it would be the one who was forgiven more."  "You are right," said Jesus. 

Jesus At the Home of Simon the Pharisee

Luke 7:36-39 A Pharisee invited Jesus to have dinner with him, and Jesus went to his house and sat down to eat. In that town was a woman who lived a sinful life.  She heard that Jesus was eating in the Pharisee's house, so she brought an alabaster jar full of perfume and stood behind Jesus, by His feet, crying and wetting His feet with her tears.  Then she dried His feet with her hair, kissed Them, and poured the perfume on Them.  When the Pharisee saw this, he said to himself, "If this Man really were a prophet, He would know who this woman is who is touching Him; He would know what kind of sinful life she lives!"

Portrayed in the Jesus film...

God's Wisdom Is Shown To Be True By All Who Accept It

Luke 7:29-35 {GNT} All the people heard Him; they and especially the tax collectors were the ones who had obeyed God's righteous demands and had been baptized by John.  But the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law rejected God's purpose for themselves and refused to be baptized by John.  Jesus continued, "Now to what can I compare the people of this day? What are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace.  One group shouts to the other, 'We played wedding music for you, but you wouldn't dance! We sang funeral songs, but you wouldn't cry!'  John the Baptist came, and he fasted and drank no wine, and you said, "He has a demon in him!'  The Son of Man came, and He ate and drank, and you said, 'Look at this man!  He is a glutton and winedrinker, a friend of tax collectors and other outcasts!'  God's wisdom, however, is shown to be true by all who accept it."