How do you say 'Thanks' for That?

I've been feeling bad about my sins lately, because I still have some. Of course, if you don't have any sins, you don't have to feel bad along with me. But here's a question: once we have know we've been forgiven of our sins, should we work hard to reform ourselves, cleansing
ourselves of all our sins from that point on? Should we focus on getting cleaned up of our sins, or on taking on more of Jesus? How would that work?

Luke 7:36-50 tells the story of Jesus being invited to dinner at the home of a Pharisee. While he was there, a "sinful woman" came and washed his feet with her tears, wiping them with her hair, and putting perfume on them. She had likely heard that Jesus was telling people their sins were forgiven, (Luke 5:17-26) and that he even took on a sinful tax collector as a disciple (Luke 5:27-32), and she wanted forgiveness too. Jesus sees the alarm in his 'law-abiding' host's face, and knowing his feelings, uses an illustration to point out the reason for this woman's intense feelings of gratitude.

The story was about two people owing money: one was a relatively small amount, and the other nearly two years' wages. The creditor forgave both debts. Jesus asked "which one do you think loved the creditor more?" and the Pharisee guessed "the one with the larger debt." Jesus pointed out that this woman's response to him was a response of great love for being forgiven her sins. By contrast, the Pharisee had insulted Jesus by not offering the normal social graces to him, and maybe he didn't think he had much to be forgiven of. This woman more than made up for it.

So, if this woman realized how much she had been forgiven (parking tickets and cheating on her taxes, perhaps?), how likely was it that she went back to a life of sin? Not likely! Her love for Jesus, her gratitude to Israel's God for providing the Messiah, most likely spilled over into every other part of her life. She would likely try to find out more about this man's teachings and pay attention to what they meant, because he had now become her model for how to live. And it should be the same with us. Now, with the Holy Spirit living in us as the mind of Christ, we can be led to a life of devotion to him. And we're less likely to go back to sin, and more likely to be gracious toward others who hurt us, if we keep in mind how much we've been forgiven.

Do you know how much God has forgiven you? If it's slipped your mind lately, let me suggest some quiet time with him, asking that he kindly and lovingly remind you of a little of it. I hope your gratitude level will rise to great devotion!