Post by Les Brewer on May 3, 2012 16:11:34 GMT
John Wolf
Calvary's Cross Ministries
Preaching Christ Crucified...I Cor.1:18-25
From the Pastor's desk...
Hi to all my friends and family.May the blessings of the Lord be upon you all...
Luke 5:31-32 says,Jesus answered and said to them "Those who are well have no need of a physician,but those who are sick.I have not come to call the righteous,but sinners,to repentance."
Much can be said about th...ese two short verses in Luke,and I suppose I will give my view as well.Basically,the way I am seeing it,is like this.People who are in good health do not go to the doctor,accept for maybe the yearly check up,all the while hoping that the doctor will find nothing wrong.However,in this context of the Scriptures,Jesus is the Great Physician,who knows us better than we know ourselves.
The religious leaders of Jesus day,in this case,the scribes and the Pharisees,complained that Jesus was associating with the common people.People who knew they needed a doctor."Why do you eat with tax collectors and sinners?" was their question.In those days,tax collectors were considered the scum of the earth,not much has changed in two thousand years,has it?
At any rate,the lesson I think the Lord would have us to learn,is one of self-righteousness,and how sick a person is,who trusts in his own righteousness rather than the righteousness of Christ Jesus.The scribes and the Pharisees were of the self-righteous lot of which many today belong to as well.Just exactly,what is self-righteousness?There are many who would like to think that those who claim to be Christians are of the self-righteous kind.Nicknaming them things like "holy rollers" or "holier than thou's" or "fanatics".In my life,I've been called all three and more,some names I can't repeat.And I'll also admit that at times I deserved it.God has convicted my heart on many occasions of being self-righteous.However,the thing I think we all overlook often-times is the difference between the two groups of people Jesus was addressing.
The one group WERE sinners and tax collectors,they knew they were the despised of the earth,they knew they were not worthy of the grace of God to come to their lives.These are the one's that Jesus loves the most.The outcasts,down trodden people of society who seem to really have nothing to offer.These are the one's that Jesus went to the cross for.Those who recognize the fact that they are lost and on their way to a devil's Hell.These are the one's that have lived all their lives to the fulfillment of the flesh,and at the end of their lives have come to realize that they need something in their lives that all the searching in their life they have done,to fill the void in their heart,has not produced.God loves these types of people so much that it cost Him His only begotten Son,to save them.
The second group of people Jesus was speaking to,were the religious hypocrites.Those who were trusting in their own alleged righteousness and holiness.He was speaking to those who either did not realize or refused to look at their own lives,in light of the glory of Christ.Self-righteousness is the thing that God condemns,it is like a cancer in the body of Christ today,that is choking and destroying us and we don't even see it.The body of Christ is sick with a terminal illness,that only true heart-felt repentance can cure.Many today,in the church,are trusting in their own alleged spiritual health to save them.They are so busy doing religion,that they have failed to see how sick they really are.They have failed to see their need of the Great Physician.
We as Christians must come back to repentance,to the alter where we can be healed and cleansed of the cancer that is eating us alive.The greatest thing that the Great Physician has taught this poor old wretch in 32 yrs. of living for Him,is that,the closer you come to Christ,the brighter the light of His truth reveals all the impurities that are still in me.It is very similar to lighting a match in a dark room.You can not see all the imperfections in the paint and drywall,the cracks in the floor,the scratches on the furniture...But,turn the wall switch on,and all the imperfections in the room become a lot clearer.
When we begin to recognize that our lives compared to the righteousness,holiness and perfection of Christ fall far short of what God expects from us,the more we will begin to pray for God's mercy and forgiveness in our lives.It is easy to fall into the trap of self-righteous living when we compare ourselves to others faults and failures.It is quite another when we truly begin to compare ourselves to the standard of righteousness found in Christ.It seems we have lost sight of Who our standard of holiness should be.
Let us not be found to be looking down our noses at others who may not measure up to what we think they should be,because we may find ourselves on the outside looking in,rather than being invited in ourselves.
The greatest thing about trusting the Great Physician,Jesus Christ,is that he has given us the proper and correct diagnosis.We are,without Him,wretched,poor,blind and naked.He,unlike earthly doctors,does not practice medicine.He is the Medicine and the Cure for self-righteousness and ungodliness.He will cleanse us of all sin and forgive us for all our unrighteousness.
Let us come back to Him today and diagnose our sickness.He will write us the prescription we need.The Cross is the medicine we need,where we die to self and live unto Him. Hallelujah!....I pray you have a blessed day in the Lord....J.W
