Am 8:4-6, 9-12
Psalm 119:2, 10, 20, 30, 40, 131
Mt 9:9-13 Full Readings
It is the Sick who need a Doctor
Brethren, nobody likes tax-collectors. In the days of Jesus, what made it worse in this case was that they were working for the hated enemy, the Romans. But Jesus positively chose them as his company. He called Matthew to follow him, and then went and had dinner with a group of them. He must have known that they were lonely and worried by their isolation, and wanted to heal them, just as he wants to heal us. So he went out of his way to call the sinners, not even asking them to repent first, but just because they needed him. He wasn’t worried that they were despised or even hated, nor that they were cut off from all the normal practices of religion. What scandalized the ‘people who went to church’ was that Jesus seemed positively to enjoy the company of these dirty sinners. He did the same with Zacchaeus, the chief tax-collector of Jericho, who must have been a rogue. Three times in this gospel Jesus says, ‘What I want is love, not sacrifice’. He didn’t care whether they ‘went to church’ or kept the rules. He must have known that there was good in everyone, if only it is allowed to come to the surface.
Living in denial is a terrible misfortune. No Christian should be there. The scribes and Pharisees in their holier than thou attitude categorized the tax collectors and others as sinners undeserving of the company of Jesus. Jesus however retorts that it is not those who are well who need the doctor, but the sick. The church is both a gallery of saints and a hospital for sinners. Let us ask ourselves today: Am I so wrapped up in my virtue, like the Pharisees, that I feel I do not need Jesus? Do I feel I do not need to go to confession? Am I resolved to be less judgmental of others who sin differently? Am I resolved to respond more promptly, like Levi, to the invitation of Jesus to follow him?
Brethren, when your neighbor stumbles through sin or ignorance, do you point the finger to criticize or do you lend a helping hand to lift him or her up? The prophet Isaiah in the first reading tells us that God repays each in kind. When we bless others, especially those who need spiritual as well as physical and material help, God in turn blesses us. In this lent, practice more oh helping rather than pointing fingers at others for who they are; remember we all need God's mercy.
When Jesus called a despised tax collector, Mathew, to be his disciple he surprised everyone. The religious leaders were especially upset with Jesus' behavior towards public sinners like Levi. The Jewish people were roughly divided into two groups: the orthodox Jews who rigidly kept the law and all its petty regulations, and the rest who didn't keep all the minute regulations. The orthodox treated the latter like second class citizens. They scrupulously avoided their company, refused to do business with them, refused to give or receive anything from them, refused to intermarry, and avoided any form of friendship with them, including table fellowship. Jesus' association with the latter, especially with tax collectors and public sinners, shocked the sensibilities of these orthodox Jews.
Jesus' response, that it is the sick who need a doctor, showed Jesus' mission in this world. He did not come to call virtuous but sinners. He is a true physician of body, mind, and soul. Jesus really sought out those in the greatest need. A true physician seeks healing of the whole person - body, mind, and spirit. Jesus came as the divine physician and good shepherd to care for his people and to restore them to wholeness of life. This lent, Jesus needs to heal us, let us come to him, as we are.
The orthodox Pharisees and Jews were so preoccupied with their own practice of religion that they neglected to help the very people who needed the greatest care. Their religion was selfish because they didn't want to have anything to do with people not like themselves. Jesus stated his mission in unequivocal terms: I came not to call the righteous, but to call sinners. Ironically the orthodox were as needy as those they despised. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). We all need God's mercy, and so let us continue to plead for it.
Brethren, Do you thank the Lord for the great mercy he has shown to you? And do you seek the good of all your neighbors and show them mercy and kindness? Are you ready to forsake all for the Lord Jesus Christ?
Let us Pray
Lord Jesus, our Savior, let us now come to you: Our hearts are cold; Lord, warm them with your selfless love. Our hearts are sinful; cleanse them with your precious blood. Our hearts are weak; strengthen them with your joyous Spirit. Our hearts are empty; fill them with your divine presence. Lord Jesus, our hearts are yours; possess them always and only for yourself. Amen
Be blessed
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