“Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” – Matthew 9:13
Thank you, Jesus!!! You came for us! We’re all sinners and none of us are righteous by our own efforts (despite what we may think sometimes). Jesus came for us and through His death and resurrection He makes us righteous by God’s grace through faith in Christ alone.
We who follow Jesus must remember this truth well. Our greatest responsibility is to likewise call “sinners” – those who don’t know Jesus. We must be extending the mercy and love of God to those who are most vulnerable, confused, and spiritually lost. We must be investing our time and resources in those most unlike us.
We must never let our preferences and passion for religious practice fill our minds and hearts to a greater extent than the needs of those outside the church to learn about Jesus. We must have a greater heart (evidenced by money spent, time invested, emotion expressed, and energy expended) for the eternal fate of those outside Christ than we do for the spiritual comfort and well-being of those already in the family of God. This turns traditional church life upside down, but it’s why Jesus came and we must be about His business!
NOTE: While Pastor Brian is on sabbatical, we offer this devotional which was originally published on January 10, 2020.