The Pharisees crashed Matthew’s dinner party and asked Jesus’ disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”1 I imagine Peter jumped out of his chair to defend Jesus and himself and everyone else when Jesus motioned toward him and mouthed, “I’ve got this.” And then told the Pharisees, “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.”2
Our first lesson from this story is that Jesus never felt a need to explain or defend his actions (see last week’s blog), which I think would be a great way to live, but there’s more to learn here. A second lesson is that Jesus said that there are two kinds of people: those who are well and those who are sick. Which is better?
Well . . . 😉if we could choose one over the other, we would probably choose being well. Afterall, who enjoys being sick? Who likes going to the doctor? Who loves keeping up with medication? Who prefers being dependent on others to do things for us that we usually do for ourselves? (Well, sometimes that is nice. 😏) But mostly, most of us, most of the time, would choose being well.
Jesus, however, spent time with the sick, those who were in “need of a physician.”3 And this is a key point. Our need of Jesus—not our goodness, not our wellness, not our righteousness—is what pleases God. Our desire for his help—not our skills, not our talents, not our determination to be good— is what gives us strength. If we wait until we do not think we need God’s help to ask for God’s help, then we will talk ourselves out of needing God’s help. It is best, then, to be sick—in need of help.
A third lesson is to figure out the part where Jesus added, “I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.”4 In other words, Jesus loved people who were loving rather than people who were good, even sacrificial. And he also loved people who loved people rather than people who loved goodness. The Pharisees loved goodness over people, but even more, they loved goodness more than they loved being good. The Pharisees believed that God loved goodness—which he does! But not the goodness that comes from being good, only the goodness that extends from being in Christ.
A fourth lesson from this story is the part where Jesus said, “For I came not to call the righteous but sinners.”4 God calls sinners. But aren’t we all sinners? Yes, indeed. But the righteous people do not believe they are sinners, so they do not hear the call. They actually do not hear God’s voice for a very good reason—he is not calling them! Jesus told Zacchaeus that he “came to seek and save the lost.”5 God does not seek after those who do not wish to be found and he does not save those who believe they need no saving. It is the one requirement to salvation: to admit our need of God—not to believe that there is a god, for even the Pharisees did that much (as did the demons!)—but to confess our need for God—his love, his guidance, and his healing power.
The irony of the story is that Jesus did not invite those who considered themselves healthy and righteous, religious and educated, to stay and share a meal with him. And they felt good about that.
1Matthew 9:11 2Matthew 9:12-13 3Matthew 9:12 4Matthew 9:13 5Luke 19:10