Text: 2 Tim.2:3-4

A good soldier makes a difference in the world. Someone has written:
IT IS THE SOLDIER
It is the soldier, not the preacher, who gives us freedom of religion.
It is the soldier, not the reporter, who gives us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet, who gives us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the protestor, who gives us freedom to assemble.
It is the soldier, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the soldier, not the politician, who gives us the right to vote.
It is the soldier, who not only salutes the Flag, but serves under the Flag, fighting for the country that Flag represents.

Veterans Day is a time our nation sets aside to honor the difference a soldier makes.

On November 11, 1918, a treaty was signed by the Allies and the Germans to end the hostilities of World War I. In 1938, congress passed a bill to declare November 11 Armistice Day to honor the veterans of World War I.
In the 1940’s, there was a movement to change the day to include honoring the soldiers who fought in World War II and the name Armistice Day was eventually changed to Veteran’s Day to honor all of America’s soldiers from all of the wars.

The purpose of Veteran’s Day is to remember those who have given their lives to protect the freedoms that our country enjoys, to pay tribute to those who have selflessly served our country and defended our freedom and to honor those who currently serve in our armed forces.

From the birth of our nation we have realized that freedom is never free. Our freedoms have been paid for with the blood of those who answered the call to stand when our country needed them the most. Our history is filled with battle after battle in our fight for freedom. We have too easily forgotten that our freedoms are never free.

Abraham Lincoln in his dedication speech of the battlefield at Gettysburg to dedicate a portion of that land as a national cemetery…

"We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting & proper that we should do this.
"But in a larger sense we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living & dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here; but it can never forget what they did here.

"It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us - that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion - that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, & that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

But folks, we must realize that if freedom is to be carried on from generation to generation - if our children & our grandchildren are to enjoy freedom - then we must be willing to pay the price, because "freedom is never free."

"Freedom is never free." It sounds like a paradox when you say it, but it is true. "Freedom is never free."

In the same way, forgiveness is never free. That, too, sounds untrue at first. But before forgiveness takes place there is always a price to be paid.

With that in mind, I call your attention to Luke 7:36-47. This incident, & the parable that Jesus shares in it are of particular importance to us. Please listen as I read.

Jesus had been invited to the home of a Pharisee by the name of Simon. That is quite something because the Pharisees saw Jesus as a threat to their power, their teachings, their very legalistic system. They saw Jesus as their enemy. Now, not all of them, of course, but most of them.
But this Pharisee invited Jesus to his home. We’re not sure exactly why, but he did invite Him. And Jesus accepted the invitation.

The scene needs to be described, I think. It was normal, when a guest arrived, to make him feel welcome by going through certain common courtesies.

First of all, his feet would be washed. A guest’s feet would be caked with dirt after walking in sandals on the dusty roads. So a servant would greet him at the door with a basin of water, & would wash & dry his feet. After his feet had been cleansed, the host would come & greet him with a kiss to make him feel welcome, & let him know that he was an honored guest.

Then it was a matter of courtesy to anoint the head of the guest with some cooling oil. Maybe it was because of the hot oriental sun. Maybe some of the men were thin on top & slightly sunburned. I’m not sure exactly why, but it was customary to use oil to anoint the head of a guest. All of these things went together to say, "You are welcome in our home."

But when Jesus visited the home of this Pharisee, none of these things happened. Luke says that Jesus sat down at the table, without His feet being washed, without the customary kiss, or the anointing of oil.

Now, as they began eating, an unusual thing happened. This woman - Luke calls her a sinner - & the word means "an immoral woman, a prostitute," came to where they were eating - probably an outdoor patio to take advantage of the evening breezes. She fell at the feet of Jesus & started weeping. Her tears fell on His feet, so she dried them with her hair. Then she broke a vial of expensive perfume & anointed his feet, & began kissing them.

All the while, Simon the Pharisee was watching. He was greatly offended & embarrassed by what was going on. Because all the things that he had failed to do to make Jesus welcome, this lady was now doing. Simon knew what kind of woman she was. So as he judges her, he also judges Jesus. He assumes that Jesus, in encouraging her, is encouraging immorality. Simon thinks, "If this man really were a prophet, He would know that this is an immoral woman."

It seems obvious from the Greek language that Jesus already knew the woman. Both times when He talks about her sins being forgiven He says, "Your sins have been forgiven." I think we are safe in assuming that Jesus had met her before, & had already forgiven her & she had become one of His followers.

You see, Jesus knew more about her than Simon knew. Simon thought of her as a prostitute on the street. Jesus saw her as a forgiven sinner, washed clean by the grace of God.

Then Jesus begins to tell a parable. He says, "Simon, there were two men who each owed a moneylender money. One of them owed 50 denarii, & the other owed him 500."

One owed the equivalent of 50 working days, & the other owed 500 working days. Using a 5-day work week, one man owed him ten weeks work & the other owed him 100 weeks, or almost two years.

Now Jesus says, "Simon, neither of them could pay their debt. Then the moneylender says, `Tell you what, men. I will stamp your notes, `Paid in Full.’ You no longer owe me anything.’ Now then, Simon, which one would be the most grateful?"

I imagine that Simon was sitting there with his mouth open. First of all, to think that a moneylender would not collect what was owed him was unreal. Simon couldn’t even imagine that type of thing happening. Then he began to consider the question Jesus had asked. "Who would be the most grateful, the most thankful, if both were forgiven?"

Probably about that time a light clicked on in Simon’s brain. Simon started to see the comparison. You see, Simon would admit, with some reservation, that he was a sinner. But there is no way that he would ever admit that he was a sinner to the same degree that woman was a sinner.

So obviously the conclusion he reached was this: "This woman is the one who owes 500, & I owe the 50. Now how am I to answer the question?" Then he answered, "I suppose," he said, "it would be the one who owed the most who would be the most thankful."

There is a lot more that could be said, but for a moment let us go on. Jesus said, "You have judged correctly." And He leaves it there.

Then Jesus talks to the woman. He reminds her that her sins have been forgiven, & then He tells Simon that those who have been forgiven much, love much, & those who have been forgiven little, love little.

CONCL. Now how does that tie into our feelings of patriotism this morning? I think in a very significant way, because forgiveness & freedom correlate with one another in so many significant ways.

PROP. I have 3 simple things that I want to say in light of this parable, & then we will quit.

I. EVERY ONE IS SPIRITUALLY IN DEBT - EVERY ONE OF US IS A DEBTOR

A. Every person in this room is in debt to society, to our nation, & to God. We all are debtors. Now, if I were to talk about atonement or regeneration some of you might go out scratching your heads. But when I talk about being in debt, you know exactly what I am talking about. All of us are debtors.

I imagine when Simon looked at himself he thought, "God, you’re lucky to have me on your team. I’m pretty special. I have memorized the law & I pray beautiful prayers & I do many significant things for You. I’m a Pharisee & I have mastered the art of being a Pharisee. God, I’m a pretty special guy."

What Simon forgot was that he was a sinner. His sins were sins of the heart, & he didn’t recognize them as sins. It was easy for him to forget that he stood in need of forgiveness.

B. And isn’t it so easy for us to forget how indebted we are to those who paid a price to achieve freedom for us? Isn’t it easy for us to get in our cars & drive from one place to another without even thinking about the blessings of the freedoms we enjoy?

Isn’t it easy to come into God’s house & open our Bibles & never even give it a second thought? Isn’t it easy for us to forget those pilgrim forefathers who crossed the ocean to this new land? Isn’t it easy for us to forget the blood that was shed at Valley Forge, & at Gettysburg?

We put hamburgers on the grill & sit around enjoying all the material blessings that God has given us, & forget the blood that was shed so that the stars & stripes could fly in the breeze & that we could still enjoy the freedom that is ours as citizens of the United States of America.

We owe a great debt to our country, & to those who have gone before. We also owe a great debt to our God who has redeemed & forgiven us. We are all debtors. We all owe a debt.

II. WE CAN NEVER REPAY THAT DEBT

A. Secondly, we can never repay that debt.

Now back to our story. This woman came to Jesus & fell at His feet. She wet His feet with her tears & tried to dry them with her hair. Then she anointed Him with oil. It was an expression of gratitude & love.

You say, "Well, that’s the way to pay God back." But she wasn’t paying Him back. All she was doing was saying, "Thank you, Lord. Thank you for forgiving my sins."

B. That’s all we can do, too. We can never pay God back. But we can roll up our sleeves & go to work. We can worship & we can serve & we can cry a little bit & we can pray a bunch. And we can get out & reach people for Jesus. We can do all that, but we will never - even if we work 20 hours a day the rest of our lives - never be able to pay the debt that we owe our God.

III. FORGIVENESS IS AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE

Then finally this - Forgiveness is available to everyone.

A. First of all, we stated that all of us are spiritually in debt. Secondly, we said we can never repay the debt.