If He Calls, Answer

“When Jesus heard it, He saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick:  I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”  Mark 2:17

I have contemplated this verse for a long time.  What Jesus heard and responded to was a criticism by the scribes and Pharisees regarding Jesus’ friendly association with the tax collectors and sinners, as they were judged by the religious leaders.  Jesus answered that it was the sinners whom He called to repentance, not the righteous.  But wait a minute.  Isn’t everyone born with a sin nature and thus classified as a sinner?  Isaiah the prophet wrote that we are all sinners, and our righteousness is as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6).  The last time that I checked, the word “all” still means “all”.

Jesus’ statement would, on the surface, tend to indicate that there are some folks who are righteous and need no repentance, but the righteous to which Jesus referred were those who thought they were acceptable to God because of their prideful assumption that their positions, piety, and privilege gave them special favor with the LORD.  In their minds, they were too “good” to be sinners  (No one can be born again without first recognizing that he or she is a sinner in need of forgiveness.)  Jesus’ use of the word “righteous” in this verse was actually hyperbole, that is, an exaggeration for effect not to be taken literally.  Jesus used hyperbole in other passages of scripture:  for example, when He said that folks must hate their parents in order to be His disciples (Luke 14:26), He did not mean that one must hold hatred in their heart for his or her mother and father, but that the love he or she has for Him must be so strong that the love he or she has for mom and dad would almost seem like hate.  Since Jesus desires for us to love our enemies, He surely does not want us to hate anyone.  In Mark 9:43-48, Jesus gave a very extreme solution to one’s inability to abandon a sinful lifestyle.  He said that if one’s hand cause him to sin, then cut it off, and the same with a foot.  He even said to pluck out one’s eye if one could not keep his sight and mind from focusing on what is vile and evil.  These drastic measures indicate how seriously God views sin.

The self-righteous religious leaders were so prideful and arrogant that they would not humble themselves and admit their need for forgiveness.  The tax collectors and sinners had open minds and saw their need for Christ.  Which group do you think had the clearest understanding of God’s will?