“On hearing this, Jesus said to them, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners,’” (Mark 2:17).
This time of year, my kids catch one cold after another. Then they pass it to me. Lovely sharing, eh?
I don’t get it. I swallow handfuls of vitamins and wash my hands more times a day than anybody else in this house. I wipe down shopping cart handles and use separate towels. I know the precautionary measures, darn it! Why am I always getting sick?
It’s part of the human condition, of course—illness, germs, susceptibility. Lord knows I try, but I can never completely disinfect myself.
Body or soul.
“For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it,” (James 2:10).
My list of good deeds is growing. I lead Bible studies. I sing on the worship team. I’m faithful to my husband. I teach my kids to pray. Still none of it inoculates me from God’s judgment.
Do you know what that means? Just like I can chug glass after glass of vitamin C and consume a carton of Clorox wipes per day, yet all it takes is one sneeze in my face and I’m huddled under a blanket popping Mucinex—so it goes with my spiritual health. Even if I dedicate my entire life to being a “good person,” a single crabby thought or snippy word unravels everything.
I am hopelessly infected. And so are you.
But praise God. He gave us a cure.
Jesus.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” (Romans 6:23).
This week we’ll celebrate a baby, born in a feeding trough more than two thousand years ago. Why? Because that baby grew up and became the salve for everything that ails us. We can never be perfect, but Jesus is. He took our place on the cross so that one day, if we choose to believe and surrender to him, we can live forever in heaven where I hear there are no colds, no flu, no pinkeye and no bronchitis.
Sign me up. Amen?
Merry Christmas, everyone. May you enjoy a week of blessed health, priceless memories, and heartfelt joy as you celebrate the birth of our beautiful Savior.
Totally agree! It’s all too often that I find myself and every situation around me infected w/sin because of one moment of weakness. Great reminder to keep praying — even more so at this busy time of year — for God’s grace in even the smallest of moments – just where Satan loves to get us! God Bless you and your family too 🙂 Merry Christmas!