The Source of Love

Where does real love come from? There is a beautiful story found in Luke 7 that gives us an understanding of where love comes from. Jesus was invited to the house of a Pharisee by the name of Simon. During the meal which was served outside, a woman who had a known sinful past came up to Jesus who was reclining at the table. She wet his feet with her cascading tears of joy that poured forth. She then dried his feet with her hair and finally anointed them with perfume from an alabaster flask.

Simon was outraged at the behavior of this woman and the fact that Jesus never rebuked her for not knowing her place. He doubted that Jesus was really a true prophet for allowing her to touch him. Although Simon never shared his thoughts out loud, they were nonetheless known to Jesus. The Lord shared a story with Simon of a man who loaned money to two men; one received a very large sum and the other a much smaller sum. However, neither party was capable of repaying their debt, so the lender canceled the debt of both. Jesus asked Simon which of the two would love him more (Luke 7:42). Notice Jesus used the word love in response to the forgiven debt. Simon hardly knows how to answer such an obvious question and says, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled" (Luke 7:43).

Jesus masterfully painted a picture of the woman and Simon with his words. He said Simon had no kiss for him when he arrived, no oil for his head and no one to wash his feet, but this woman has washed his feet with her tears and dried them with her hair and anointed them with her best perfume. Then he added the reason she did this extravagant act was that she had been forgiven much, and therefore she loved much. On the other hand, Simon has been forgiven little, and therefore he loved little (Luke 7:47-48).

Simon knew very little about love and couldn’t give what he did not have. Having never experienced forgiveness on a massive level, he had no comprehension of the love the woman poured out to Jesus. He was incapable of celebrating the grace of God in her life.

Where does love come from? It comes from having our souls forgiven by the grace of God. From that act love flows out to people who need forgiveness. Do you need more love? Then let God’s grace overwhelm you, and love will flow out of your life. Once you feel God’s acceptance of you, then you will have the ability to accept others.