The great love of God. To whom whose sins, which are many, are forgiven, for they loved much, but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little...
Key verse: like 7:41-43 "there was a certain creditor which had two debtors. The one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty. And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most? Simon answered and said, I suppose that he to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, thou hast rightly judged.
Romans 1:14 I am debtor both to the Greeks and to the Barbarians, both to the wise and to the unwise.
Challenge: we can judge the kind of debtor we are. By the kind of love we express to our Lord. And the kind of church that we would be able to produce will be determined by the measure of our indebtedness or how to value our salvation. Freedom from financial Debt doesn't relieve Christian from accountabilities. If we neglect so great salvation. Rev 20:14 "and they were judged every man according to their works"
Introduction:
If our goal is to be one of God's great lovers, they we must have a deep knowledge about the " debtor's love" as well as understanding the differences between efficiency and effectiveness. True success can achieve like Paul. I've made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. In Eph 2:10, for we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. We are dealing with the handiwork of God's masterpiece, a living soul. A great lover of God, a brand new name not a piece of junk! Think about it.
In all aspect of our Christian life, true and good success can attain only if we are sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. In this pandemic crisis, many are paralyzed and confused to do what is right or wrong. Let's now start to differentiate the two terms below and with it's own application.
A. Efficiency and effectiveness
1. Efficiency - it is the ability to accomplish something with the least amount of wasted time, money, and effort or competency in performance.
2. Effectiveness - it is defined as the degree to which something is successful in producing a desired result, success.
3. The application - To illustrate the differences among the two measures as stated below.
A) at war - armed drones have blinded many military and political minds with their ruthless or no mercy efficiency. But efficiency and effectiveness in war are not the same thing.
A-1) Military ethical standard - Efficiency in killing will not translate into effectiveness in war unless the ethics are right.
A-2) a war crimes. A weapon that does not meet ethical standards is unlikely to make positive contribution to forcing your enemy to accept your will. Therefore armed drones are nothing more than instruments or murder.
B) on the job. While efficiency and effectiveness may be synonymous in some contexts, they are not when it comes to business. To get the most you can be in your company, you should know how to achieve both effectiveness and efficiency. To do that, you will have to understand what makes them different and which you should prefer.
B-1) attendance. Punctuality means not only without Late or absent but you know how to use the time without horse playing nor killing time.
B-2) Performance. A quality of our works will depend on how we love and thankful to our work.
B-3) relationship - the good quality of communication process will produce positive and active attitude towards the company and all the people that we are working.
C) the house of God. The year of pandemic makes many both leaders and members crippled or paralyzed. Families are efficiently love each member but not effective to be a great lover of God.
C-1) family and marriage. Families are efficiency attending church Sunday worship but failed to attend Sunday school to be effective in their family and marriage.
C-2) Ministry. Leaders and members are efficient doing a dynamic career but ineffective building a dynamic relationship to God.
II. We are all debtors. All of us who have financial accountabilities, no doubt, whether you are a saint or a sinner. All of us who cannot pay are in debt, and whether it's in terms of money or sin. A sinner or one who commits sin, is a debtor and we can't pay, but the Lord Jesus fully paid us by shedding His precious blood at the cross of Calvary.
1. Evil of debts (DIET). Many in the USA said nothing is really ours until we pay our debts.
2. Till debt do us part. Many couple filing for divorce because of unpaid debts. Are they fulfilling their vows, till debt do us part. They might have mispronounced death?
3. Lifestyle. Only death or (for the sake of getting a living forget to live) will give us freedom from all these debts, for a while we are all living continuously owing something. Freedom from financial debt does not relieve us from accountabilities.
4. We are still a debtor. We owe our parents respect. We owe our brethren prayer and visitation. We give honor where honor is due. We give Caesar due unto him and unto God those are God's.
5. The church is a debtor. The kind of Church we will produce will determined by the measure of our indebtedness. Whether we like it or not, we are not all debtors! JCRC, we will never be relieving to our spiritual accountabilities to all the people around us.
6. Apostle Paul and his three 'I am' ( I am debtor, I am ready to preach the gospel, and I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ). He spends his life preaching and had claimed that he was in debt. Romans 1:14 also Paul mentioned in Romans 13:8. Owe no man anything. Means freedom from financial debt does not relieve Any Christian from accountabilities.
C. Cross examination. Are you Simon or a sinful woman? the parable of the two debtors is about the creditor who forgave his debtors from their debts. Both has nothing to pay and were forgiven from their accounts. The only difference, the one owed 500 pence, while the other owed 50 pence.
1. Simon, the Pharisee. He can only offer to Jesus that He could only go as far as the table and food because he does not feel like he, as bad as the woman. He felt only 10% debtor or a sinner. Which means 90% of himself is still self-righteous. Many are like Simon today in their.
A) Commitment. Ineffective in the ministry. Is the same reason why most of church people serve God only 10% of their lives because they feel like they are not that wicked.
B) Conviction. The old fashioned altar represent death. Today, many could not be able to recognize the beauty of the altar because they think that the altar is only for the sinners.
2. The woman of sin. She went to Simon's house without house without invitation and was there to return gratitude for all the wonderful things she received from the Lord Jesus.
A) Sit at Jesus' feet. With godly sorrows and gears of joy washing the feet, then wipes it with her har afterward keep on kissing Jesus' feet.
B) Simon evil thought. He is thinking wrong to Jesus. Instead of doing what is suppose he should do that the woman did & Looking at her a sinner, an outcast a menace to society, a prostitute or what? But Jesus looks at her very differently "a great lover of God"
C) Simon question to himself. If Jesus is a prophet, He must not allow the woman to touch Him. Little did he know that Jesus was reading his mind and ask "tell me therefore which of them will love him most?" His answer was, " I suppose that he to whom he forgave most"
3 the veil of Jesus' love. He therefore unfolds the veil of his love that he had come to earth.
III. Conclusion. If we could only fill out altars with those who are 100% sinners, a men and women coming from the city streets, who can't pay their debt, we can see our Church full of people who are willing to sacrifice their lives for the Lord. We can be flaming with fire of genuine services of love if both the leaders and a member begins to acknowledge that they are debtors. They treasury will not be on red if every church member will admit that they are accountable to the lost & dying souls. Communities will not long be won to the Lord, if every member will claim that Jesus dies to fully paid our debts. Freely we receive and freely we give.
Points to ponder. our judgment is needed in the parable. We can judge the kind of debtor we are... by the kind of love we project or express to our Lord God Almighty.
Prayer. Gracious Lord God Almighty in the glorious Name of our Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth, my earnest prayer, that your most perfect love & compassionate heart to continue to overrule inside every heart of JCRC family, so as we can be flaming with fire of genuine services of love most especially in our leadership so as the member would be able to ignite their faith to have a deep undertaking in their ministries, on the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, we pray and as we give back all the praises and honor and glory, for thine is the kingdom and the glory forever and ever. Amen.