He Who Is Forgiven Much Loves Much – by Ashwin Poojary

We see in the Book of John 20 about the story of Jesus’ Resurrection: John 20:1-18:-  Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.”  So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb.  The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first;  and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in.  And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there,  and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself.  So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed.  For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead.  So the disciples went away again to their own homes.

  But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb;  and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying.  And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”  When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus.  Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”  Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher).  Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”  Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her.

Here we see, that when Jesus’ body needed to be embalmed for burial, the first person who came to see Him was Mary Magdalene. She came to know that Jesus’ body was not there in the tomb, and she went and informed the disciples that His body was not there. The other disciples, namely Peter and John came and saw the empty tomb, but they did not stay there, but went home. However, we see that Mary Magdalene did not go home, but was really bothered about Jesus’ body, and was crying. Why do you think that she was so concerned?

We find the answer in the book of Luke 7:36-49:-  Now one of the Pharisees was requesting Him to dine with him, and He entered the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.  And there was a woman in the city who was a sinner; and when she learned that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house, she brought an alabaster vial of perfume,  and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears, and kept wiping them with the hair of her head, and kissing His feet and anointing them with the perfume. Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is who is touching Him, that she is a sinner.”
Parable of Two Debtors
40 And Jesus answered him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he replied, “Say it, Teacher.”  “A moneylender had two debtors: one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. When they were unable to repay, he graciously forgave them both. So which of them will love him more?”  Simon answered and said, “I suppose the one whom he forgave more.” And He said to him, “You have judged correctly.” 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.  You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet.  You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume.  For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.”  Then He said to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.”  Those who were reclining at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this man who even forgives sins?” And He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

I think that this woman was definitely Mary Magdalene. Here we see that because Mary was forgiven much, she loved Jesus much. In Jesus’ day in Israel and in that age, women were treated as second class citizens in society, and on top of that, Mary Magdalene was a prostitute from whom Jesus had casted out seven demons out. I presume she was one of the worst sinners who had been forgiven among Jesus’ disciples. But I belive she loved Jesus the most among them and so she was really destitute that she did not see Jesus, even though at that time, He was supposedly dead and no one knew that He would be resurrected. But she loved Jesus so much that she wanted to get Him at any cost.

As we also read in the book of Luke 18:9-14:-  And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt:  “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’  But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’  I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Here the tax collector meant that he was the only sinner compared to everyone else on earth, as he said,‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’. Thats the attitude which we need to have when we come before God. We need to stop judging others and judge only ourselves, and think that we are the only sinner in God’s eyes as compared with others. Do you know what will happen when we do that? John 20: 16-17:- Jesus said to her, “Mary!” Jesus chose to reveal Himself first above everyone else to a woman who had been a demon-possesed sinner, and He called her name the first among all of His disciples. What an honour! And we also see that Jesus trusted her so much that He was even ready to talk to her before He ascended to the Father, to whom He had to present Himself as the Redeemer of mankind. She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher).  Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”

So, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us come before Jesus as the only sinner compared to everyone else, and He will call us by name in our hearts and give us His grace and the hidden manna of life, His very eternal life, the anointing and revelation of His word. Amen.

About Ashwin Poojary

I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, I want to follow His example and the example of every godly man in the Bible and endure in love till the end.

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