“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
(Matthew 9:12–13 ESV)
The words, above, were spoken by Jesus in response to the Pharisees. He had called Matthew, a tax collector, to follow him. And Jesus, then, reclined at his house.
As he did so, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. And it was this that prompted criticism on the part of the Pharisees. They asked Jesus’ disciples why he ate with tax collectors and sinners.
The implication, of course, is that he should not have done so. The implication is that this was beneath him. The implication is that they were undeserving of his time and attention. And the implication is that there are others who were.
This, you see, was the problem. And it’s this attitude that Jesus addressed. Those who are well, he said, have no need of a physician.
The tax collectors and the sinners were just that. They were sinners. And, as such, they were in need of the healing he came to bring.
By their objection, then, the Pharisees were trying to deny these people the blessing they needed. They were trying to deny them the healing they needed. They were trying to deny them the grace and mercy of God.
In addition this, Jesus was in no way agreeing with the assessment of the Pharisees when it came to their standing. He was in no way agreeing with their assessment of their righteousness. And he, in no way, implied that they were well.
He was telling them something about themselves. He was alluding to their need. He was telling them that, like the tax collectors and sinners, they too were sick and in need of a physician.
They saw the sin of the tax collectors and the immoral, but were blind to their own. They saw the unworthiness of the tax collectors and the immoral, but failed to see their own. And if they were to receive the mercy of God, they needed to comprehend their guilt.
In the same way, like the Pharisees, we often want to deny Jesus to those who need him most. We want to deny sinners of the mercy he came to bring. And, at the same time, we deny our need for him, believing ourselves to be well.
In our mind, then, Jesus came for no one. His mercy is for no one. And, in addition to this, his death was for no one.
The good news for the Pharisees was that, just as Jesus came for the tax collectors and sinners, he had come also for them. And just as he desired mercy for the tax collectors and sinners, he desired it also for them. They needed only to recognize that they were not well, and that they were in need of the blessing he came to bring.
This, of course, is the good news for us as well. Although we aren’t the good people we believe ourselves to be, Jesus has come for us. And as we recognize and acknowledge our need for mercy, this blessing will be ours.
No comments:
Post a Comment