Treating the Parasite We All Carry

S - Matthew 9:9-13 (NRSV): "As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, "Follow me." And he got up and followed him. And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" But when he heard this, he said, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, "I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.""

O - Jesus friend of sinners is a hard "concept" for religion … and since religion is culture and to be human is to have a culture guess what? Jesus friend of sinners, at some point and at more than one point, is going to be very hard on all of us--no exceptions. Somehow we have, imperceptibly to our conscious minds, created category after category after category of sinners. The first grouping we accept is the one we're in. Then hopefully, over time, we discover other categories which our culture can accept as the appropriate type of sinner to be friends with. What is a striking surprise is that even when we intentionally pursue the truth of the friendships Jesus is after, we still find categories or types of sinners which are religiously, culturally taboo. Fortunately, the good Doctor, Jesus, knows this to be true and so he gives us the prescription which is necessary to combat this serious cultural malady … a prescription which requires daily doses: Go (make a choice) and learn (intentionally pursue) the Lord's desire for mercy not sacrifice. The daily dose of this kingdom medicine will continue to knock down this very present spiritual parasite we all carry. The good Doctor knows we never stop needing him and so he refuses to be shocked when we have need all over again. He's not put off by the need, only by those who refuse the diagnosis and treatment. When we start considering ourselves "righteous" (even in Jesus' name and because of His grace) we risk missing his voice … he calls to sinners not to the righteous. Praise the Lord; praise the Lord let the earth hear his voice! He instructs us to start at mercy and lead with love … unto our own healing and the healing of the nations.

A - My assignment (prescription) is to embrace the learning curve of grace and mercy which I will never master but ... must be mastered by it. As I follow Jesus, who is the friend and doctor of sinners, he expects me to live out loud and to say out loud that which is his desire -- mercy not sacrifice.

P - Dear Lord Jesus,
I want to confess again my true status as a sinner in ongoing need of your grace. I make this confession because it is true and because I want desperately to hear your voice. Lord, since you are calling to sinners, please call to me; speak Lord, your servant is listening. Thank you for your patient and consistent dealings with all the categories I have and the larger number of categories I don't even know I have. Thank you that the remedy is awesomely powerful for them all and the prescription is the same. Show me the way you who are the way … I will follow.
Steve