The Authority To Forgive

Q

Luke 7: 36-50 tells of a Pharisee who invited Jesus to dinner.  A woman known as a sinner came and washed his feet with her tears and hair.  Jesus saw how sincere and humble she was before Him. This was before the cross but Jesus said that all of her sins were forgiven and that she was now saved.  Wasn’t she still under the law until the cross?

A

In Mark 2, at the beginning of His ministry, Jesus claimed the authority to forgive sins on Earth, and as evidence healed a paralytic who had been lowered through the roof of the building where He was teaching. The incident began in Mark 2:1 and ended when He said,

But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…” He said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”

He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!” (Mark 2:10-22)

It’s good to remember that keeping the Law never saved anyone (Romans 3:20).  Like everyone before and after her, the woman in Luke 7 was saved by her faith (Luke 7:50).