In Need of the Physician

“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” (Luke 5:31-32)

A few months ago I made a doctor's appointment. My knee had been bothering me for several days and I couldn't even straighten it out completely. Just two days before my scheduled appointment my knee suddenly stopped hurting. I decided to keep the appointment anyway. The doctor examined my knee carefully and pronounced his diagnosis. "You're getting old." I wanted to say, "I paid you $25 to tell me I'm old? I've got a mirror that tells me that for free." I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. After all, my knee was well and Jesus did say, "Those who are well have no need of a physician."

What Jesus meant, however, was that people who have already repented of their sin and received God's grace and healing are not those desperately in need of Jesus as their Savior. Rather, it is those who are trapped in sin and spiritually dead who need to be rescued by the Savior.

Because Jesus knew this, He frequently spent time with tax collectors, prostitutes, and other notorious sinners. And He was roundly condemned by the "righteous" folks for doing so. Therefore, when questioned Jesus reminded these religious people of why He associated with such "low life."

What struck me as I read this passage was how much like the Pharisees and teachers of the Law many of us Christians are today. We don't want to associate with notorious sinners, and we will gladly condemn other Christians who are willing to do so.

We have forgotten Jesus' words about the sick needing a physician, and we have failed to live up to His characterization of the church He died and rose to create. Jesus told His disciples, "On this rock I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prove stronger than it." (Matthew 16:18). Notorious sinners are literally trapped behind the gates of hell. If we are not willing to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to them, they will never be set free. Only God's grace in Jesus can ever free them from the chains of sin and death that have completely overwhelmed their lives.

So let's remember what Jesus said. People who have already been healed of their sin by God's grace in Jesus are not the ones most desperately in need of a physician. Those who are sick unto death need to be healed by the forgiveness that Christ purchased for them by His death on the cross. Let's use His cross like a battering ram to break down the gates of hell and set them free! Let's be the caring Physician's assistants who bring healing grace to those who have been made sick by sin.

When Opportunity Knocks

"And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time."

I'm always looking for an opportunity to ride my bike. I thought I would have more of them after I retired, but since I am now working part time again it seems as though the schedule is as tight as it ever was. In fact, I've found it harder than ever to find an opportune time to hit the road this summer. In the past, winter was the tough time to ride, so I would set up a trainer in my house and ride indoors to avoid the rain in the Pacific Northwest. Now however, the heat in San Antonio makes it nearly impossible to ride in the afternoon, or to set up a trainer in the garage, and since I really don't have anyplace to put a trainer inside, I'm not getting the miles I would like.

In the Word for Today reading, Luke tells us that after the devil had thrown everything he had at Jesus in the wilderness, "he departed from him until an opportune time." The devil is a lot like me. Just as I'm always looking for an opportune time to ride my bike, the devil is always looking for an opportune time to tempt us to sin.

What are those opportune times? They take many forms. Sometimes it's in the midst of conflict, when he will tempt us to say or do something we will later regret. Or perhaps it is a time when we've gone somewhere we shouldn't go, someplace we know we are prone to sin, whether that be in the real world, in cyberspace, on TV, or just in our own minds. Sometimes the devil finds an opportune moment simply because we are emotionally or physically exhausted and too weary to resist.

The main thing we need to remember is that because the devil is always looking for an opportune moment for temptation, we must be vigilant to resist him. Peter says: "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith." (1 Peter 5:8-9)

What a great formula for victory. Be alert! The devil is. He is alert for the opportunity to tempt us. Be self-controlled. If we exercise self-control temptation is a lot easier to overcome. Resist him. This can take some effort, since the devil is persistent when he finds an opportune time. There's a saying that goes, "Opportunity knocks but once, but temptation leans on the doorbell." Therefore, Peter tells us to stand firm in the faith. This is where our knowledge of Scripture comes in. Armed with the sword of the Spirit, we have the weapon in hand that we need to defeat the enemy.

So remember, even if you've just overcome everything Satan can throw at you, he may leave for a time, but he always looking for an opportune time to tempt you again!

Use it or lose it!

I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. (Philemon 1:6)

Doctors understand that muscles which are not used atrophy. When muscles are inactive they lose mass and strength, as soon as four hours within the start of bed rest. This picture clearly shows the effect of atrophy in the legs of a man who auffered a broken ankle and was unable to put weight on his leg for some time. One of the most common causes of muscle atrophy is aging. As elderly people experience reduced levels of activity, their muscles begin to atrophy.

That's why I'm so glad to be a cyclist at my age. Riding my bike keeps me active both physically and mentally. I have to use the muscles in my legs to propel me forward. The muscles in my back are used to help support my upper body and keep me rigid enough to supply power to the pedals. The muscles in my arms are used to support my shoulders and to steer and balance my bike. The muscles in my neck get a strong workout as I lift and turn my head to see where I'm going.

But it's not only my muscles that get a workout through cycling. Doctors have discovered that cycling is a great activity to prevent the loss of mental agility that comes with aging and senile dementia. It is even a good prevention against Alzheimer's disease. When you are riding your bike your brain must process large amounts of data continuously to maintain your balance, direction and speed. All this activity keeps the synapses in your brain firing rapidly and keeps you mentally as well as physically fit.

The same is true spiritually as well. Paul told Philemon that he wanted him to be active in sharing his faith. Why? Certainly so that others would come to know Christ and find eternal life in Him. But there was a benefit to Philemon as well. Paul wanted him to be active in sharing his faith so that Philemon would have a full understanding of all the blessings that come from knowing Christ.

I've certainly experienced that in my own life. Through 35 years of sharing my faith as a pastor, I've grown tremendously in my understanding of God's Word and will. I've had to find the answers in God's Word to countless questions that people have asked. I've had to help people determine what God's will was in countless situations. I've had to overcome objections from unbelievers to many different aspects of the Christian faith. All of this has kept my own faith vital, strong and active.

So whether you're talking about muscle power, mental power, or spiritual power it's all the same -- use it or lose it. God wants us to use our faith actively by sharing it with others. As we do, our faith will grow and we will be strengthened in our relationship with the Lord and in our ability to serve Him.

Don't Join the Pack

When I ride my bike I usually go out alone. Part of the reason is schedule. It's easier to go out on my own than to look for someone who can ride at the same time. Primarily, however, I normally don't join in group rides because then I have to ride at their pace, and that is frequently a quicker pace than I would take on my own, since I am often the oldest rider in the group. One time since I've moved to Texas another cyclist who is on the same website on which I log my own rides contacted me for a ride. We went out together and I had to struggle for the next two hours to keep up. Group rides are often like this. They turn into what cyclists call "hammerfests" as everyone tries to show how fast they are and the whole group suffers along out of pride.

Of course, there is the danger of the "pack mentality" or "group think" in almost every human situation. It's easy to get caught up in and go along with whatever a crowd of people might be doing. I remember when I was a kid and a group of boys would dare someone to do something foolish. One dare probably wouldn't do it, but a whole group egging on the individual would generally get the job done, and usually with disastrous results for that person.

In Revelation 18:4-5 we hear a warning against joining the "pack." There John warns against the wicked city called Babylon, "Come out of her, my people, so that you will not share in her sins, so that you will not receive any of her plagues; for her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes.” (Revelation 18:4-5) In a similar vein Proverbs 23:20 warns: "Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat." And Proverbs 24:21 cautions: "Fear the LORD and the king, my son, and do not join with the rebellious."

It's important to watch what company we keep. "Bad company corrupts good character." (1 Corinthians 15:33) The influence of others can be strong, especially when we as God's people are in the minority. So just as I might ride harder than I should in a group ride just to keep up, so too, we as God's people might condone or even participate in evils that we would otherwise condemn, if we are influenced too strongly by the larger group.

If we don't separate ourselves from the sinful society that opposes God will, then we can find ourselves dragged down by it, and in the end experience the same plagues of judgment that our sinful, unbelieving neighbors endure. So when you think about what to do for entertainment, or where to go for relaxation, or what to watch or listen to for liesure time, think about this danger of the "pack mentality". Remember this warning, "Come out of her, my people" and steer clear of those groups or situations that might influence you to sin.