Scripture: St. Matthew 9:9-17 (NKJV)
9 As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax
office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him. 10 Now
it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax
collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples. 11 And
when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, “Why does your Teacher
eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 12 When Jesus heard that, He said to
them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I
did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
14 Then the disciples of John came to Him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees
fast often, but Your disciples do not fast?” 15 And Jesus said to them, “Can
the friends of the bridegroom mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? But
the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then
they will fast. 16 No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for
the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse. 17 Nor do
they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is
spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new
wineskins, and both are preserved.”
Devotion
“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.”
Everyone feels the sickness of sin within them; unfortunately some just hide it
or suppress it better than others. But we are all plagued with the illness of
selfishness, inappropriate desires, and hurtful carelessness toward others.
It is a poor physician who says to one who is gravely sick, “You’re fine, just
get up and get back to work. Suck it up and earn your keep….” Christ shows
mercy to those who are sick. He calls our illness what it is by the wisdom of
His Law and teachings. His Word and Spirit make us humble and discerning so
that we can faithfully understand that we are sick and dying because of those
sins. And then He makes us whole and renews our spirit through the merciful
gift of His body, His blood, and His forgiveness.
Furthermore, it is His teaching, wisdom, and Spirit that make us well enough to
truly rise up and serve Him, not merely the treating of symptoms with feelings
or entertainment. It is dangerous malpractice on the part of His servants who
ignore the Word and tell dying sinners that they are not really sick. Others
carelessly focus on the symptoms, trying to make people feel better with
superficial things like hollow entertainment-worship or self-help placebos.
It is far more beneficial to us, and far more important, that we receive the
truly substantial blessing of His whole Word, rightly applied, and His
Sacraments of Baptism and the Supper. These are the things that truly make us
well and give us everlasting life.
We pray: Lord God, always grant us Your Word and Sacraments so that we may be
strengthened and preserved in saving faith in Christ Jesus. Amen.
The Lutheran Herald is a publication of the Evangelical Lutheran Diocese of
North America. These daily devotions are authored by the bishop, pastors, and
deacons of the diocese. Daily posts are provided by The Reverend Jeffrey A.
Ahonen.
_______________________________________________
Sermons mailing list
[email protected]
http://cat41.org/mailman/listinfo/sermons
