“Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.” (Matt. 21:31)
The Bible says that when Jesus sat down to eat in the home of a Pharisee named Simon, a woman who was a harlot came in with an alabaster box filled with fragrant oil. She stood at the feet of Jesus weeping and began washing His feet with her tears and anointing them with her oil. This “woman of the night” had obviously repented of her sin because she sought Jesus out. It is very possible that the oil she was anointing His feet with were oils she may have used in her “former” sinful life. She would have no more need for these oils because she had given that life up.
Nearby sat Simon the Pharisee. In his heart he judges this woman’s motives, knowing the life she had lived. So Jesus spoke up and told the story of two debtors. One debtor owed 500 denari and one owed 50. Neither could pay their creditor, yet he forgave them both.
Jesus was saying, “Simon, these two debtors are you and this woman. You may see her as a $100,000 sinner, but you are a $10,000 sinner. Her sin may be an outward sin of passion, but yours is an inward sin of pride, and neither of you can pay the debt you owe to God.”
The lesson for us is this: Whether you see yourself as a $100,000 sinner or only a $10,000 sinner, all of us have a debt we cannot pay. But the good news is that Jesus died to pay for ALL of our sin debt, no matter how big it is! All that is required is recognizing, as this woman did, that you ARE a sinner and are in need of forgiveness.
Call out to God in prayer. Repent of your sin and walk in His forgiveness.