Luke 5:31 Jesus answered them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."
Jesus' response as to why he was eating with "sinners" reiterates his true purpose on earth. The Pharisees, based out of their own misunderstanding of what the Savior was sent to do, completely missed Jesus' purpose. The Pharisees, one, did not see a need to be saved because they did not view themselves as sinners as they were perfect observers of the law, and two, they were expecting the Savior to come as an earthly king. Both of these thoughts caused them to miss the Savior altogether. Even today, we can get caught in the trap of thinking we are doing pretty well and begin working on our own "health". These actions cloud our view and we lose sight of the reason for Jesus. We are sinners and it is His job to save us AND make us fit for heaven. We can also get lost in our culture of plenty and desire for domination. We want Jesus to be a king of earthly wealth so we can be rich with Him. We want Him to do away with our enemies so that we can show power over others. Jesus clearly tells us that His kingdom is not of this world, but how easily we forget. Sometimes the simple reminder of 'only the sick need a doctor' is enough to snap me back to the truth. I am the sick in need of a healer. My sickness isn't always visible to the human eye, but Jesus views me with heavenly eyes and stretches out His nail-scarred hands to heal me. What a beautiful gift from the Great Physician!
Jesus' response as to why he was eating with "sinners" reiterates his true purpose on earth. The Pharisees, based out of their own misunderstanding of what the Savior was sent to do, completely missed Jesus' purpose. The Pharisees, one, did not see a need to be saved because they did not view themselves as sinners as they were perfect observers of the law, and two, they were expecting the Savior to come as an earthly king. Both of these thoughts caused them to miss the Savior altogether. Even today, we can get caught in the trap of thinking we are doing pretty well and begin working on our own "health". These actions cloud our view and we lose sight of the reason for Jesus. We are sinners and it is His job to save us AND make us fit for heaven. We can also get lost in our culture of plenty and desire for domination. We want Jesus to be a king of earthly wealth so we can be rich with Him. We want Him to do away with our enemies so that we can show power over others. Jesus clearly tells us that His kingdom is not of this world, but how easily we forget. Sometimes the simple reminder of 'only the sick need a doctor' is enough to snap me back to the truth. I am the sick in need of a healer. My sickness isn't always visible to the human eye, but Jesus views me with heavenly eyes and stretches out His nail-scarred hands to heal me. What a beautiful gift from the Great Physician!
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