THE GREAT PHYSICIAN

Jesus answered them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.”—Luke 5:31-32

The doctor says, “That spot on your skin may be very serious. It may be melanoma. Even though it is just one speck on your skin, you understand that cancer can kill you. Now, you can deny what the doctor has told you and ignore his advice or you can yield to what he has to say. So it is with us sinners. We can ignore that fact and suffer the eternal consequences later or we can listen to God’s remedy and be saved from our sin.

Have you ever lied, even if it is a so-called “white lie”—that is a “little” lie? I have not met anyone yet who has told me “no.” That makes us all liars. More than that, in the Book of James we are told that “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it” (James 2:10). Because of I have lied that also makes me an idolater, a blasphemer, a parent dishonorer, a Sabbath breaker, a murderer, an adulterer, a thief and a coveter. Yes, all of us have broken all of God’s law. When we understand the seriousness of our sin and the holy and purity of God, then we can comprehend why He would condemn us forever. Not one sin can enter His presence in heaven. Not one! The whole human race is in trouble. God hates sin!

Jesus came to save those who acknowledge their sin and their need to repent from it. He did not come to save those with the attitude that “they are all set” and don’t need any forgiveness from God. They believe they are just as good as the next guy, but as stated above, the next guy is also in deep trouble if his sin is not forgiven. Can you imagine two guys that have terminal cancer and one says of the other “I am not as bad as that guy?” They are both terminal! So it is with those who don’t think they need God’s forgiveness when they compare themselves with someone else that also needs God’s forgiveness. They are both on the road to eternal destruction.

Do you hear God’s call? Then repent of sin, turn from it, have a new perspective on what sin is, learn to hate it and follow Jesus. Following Jesus— nothing better than that!

Dear Father, please help me to faithfully follow Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.