Luke 7:42 “Which of the two debtors will love the Creditor more?”

The “He Gets Us” Superbowl ad started more controversy by showing images of people engaged in what the Bible says are sinful activities (homosexuality, abortion, to name two) having their feet washed (by a pastor for the homosexual and a Christian pro-life protester for the girl getting an abortion).

The ad ends with the claim that Jesus washed the feet of sinners. But does this match the biblical Jesus?

Dr. Robert A. J. Gagnon, Professor of New Testament Theology at Houston Baptist University, explains the “He Gets Us” picture of Jesus has it backwards: “It was not Jesus who washed the sinful woman’s feet, but the sinful woman who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and wiped his feet with her hair, out of gratitude for Jesus forgiving her sin-debt as an outcome of her repentance and embrace of the gospel (Luke 7:35-50).”

Dr. Gagnon has more to say about the difference between the biblical Jesus and the Jesus of the ‘He Gets Us’ ad: “Jesus washed His disciples’ feet, not the feet of those who did not follow Him, as a sign both of His washing away their sins by His atoning death and their need to serve one another (John 13:1-17).

We have no evidence that Jesus went around washing the feet of non-followers. He went around proclaiming, ‘The opportune time has been fulfilled and the Kingdom of God has come near: Repent and believe in the gospel’ (Mark 1:15). His ultimate act of service was going to the cross to make amends for the sin of the world, so that those who repented of their sins and believed in Him might have life. Jesus did not get crucified for washing feet.” Can we confirm Dr. Gagnon’s point by examining the story in Luke 7?

In Luke 7:36-38, a woman known in the community as a prostitute, that many later identify as Mary Magdalene, entered Simon the Pharisee’s home because she heard Jesus was having dinner there. Mary begins anointing Jesus’s feet with perfumed oil and washing His feet with her tears.

In Luke 7:39, Simon says to himself, “If this man were a prophet, He would know what sort of woman this is that touches Him, for she is a sinner.” As a Pharisee, Simon considers her “untouchable.” In Jewish culture, people thought you were close to God if you kept the law and avoiding those like Mary who did not.

In Luke 7:40-43, while Mary is fallen at His feet, Jesus tells Simon a story of 2 different debtors to the same creditor. One debtor owed twice as much as the other, but both could not repay him. Yet, the creditor freely forgave them both. Jesus asked Simon a profound question: which debtor loves the creditor more? Simon gives the obvious answer: the one who was forgiven more. Jesus agrees.

Then, in Luke 7:44-47, Jesus connects the story of the 2 debtors and the creditor to the situation unfolding in Simon’s house. The 2 debtors are Simon and Mary the prostitute. The creditor is Jesus, the God-Man.

Luke 7:45 especially explains the difference between Simon (debtor #1) and Mary (debtor #2) in their attitude towards Jesus (the Creditor): “You gave me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.” Jesus gives us a profound truth. How do we all as debtors regard Jesus Christ?

Luke 7:47 is Jesus’s conclusion: “I say to you, Simon, that Mary’s sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.” This is the issue with the “He Gets Us” ad. There is no indication that the homosexual nor the girl getting an abortion want to be forgiven. Are we like Simon – self-righteous in our sin – or Mary – falling at Jesus’s feet as her only hope for forgiveness?

Mary loved Jesus Christ more than herself, and therefore risked everything by entering the home of a Pharisee to surrender herself to Jesus by displaying her love for Him. Simon is the opposite. Unlike Mary, he does not see himself as needing God’s forgiveness. He would never fall at Jesus’s feet, never mind wash them. Thus, Jesus says “He who has little love for Me, their Creditor, is not forgiven for his sin.”

In Luke 7:48-50, Jesus speaks directly to Mary: “Your sins are forgiven. Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.” A prostitute becomes a child of God through the simple act of repentance and faith not in herself but in her Savior – Jesus Christ – the new love of her life.

The latest “He Gets Us” ad is a false gospel. True love for sinners requires telling them the truth, so that they like Mary Magdelene will understand who the biblical Jesus is – the One longing to forgive them.
“The Evidence of Faith’s Substance” _ Article #593