The Doctor Referral

For 9/12, I've picked Matthew 9:12 as the verse of the day, "On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."  NIV

When the Pharisees began to ridicule Jesus for being in the company of sinners, He had a few choice words for them.  They were so well-versed in their laws and tradition that they missed the big picture. Their religion had become an elite club that cared more about dotting the I's and crossing the T's than it did about taking care of the needs of man and introducing them to their God.  It seems to me that these religious elitist were arrogant and prideful.    Something had gone awry!  Somewhere along their selfish way they had taken their eye off of God and represented something far removed from Him.

Lest we think we have arrived, let's be sure to check ourselves and our motives as we identify ourselves by a "religion".  I've often heard it said that religion is man-made and not what God intended for His followers.  He is looking for a relationship with us.  We should be careful not to let denomination or religion identify us, but to let our belief in Christ define us.  We are His.  When we act like it, people see Him in us.  They don't see a religion, they see a Savior.  They see how He has changed us.  Knowing Him changes us from the inside out and our relationship with Him becomes evident. 

I'm convinced that Christ wants us to reach out to those who need Him and to represent His love and mercy.  We cannot do that through religion.  We can do that by inviting them into our world and going out and telling them what He has done for us and can do for them.  We can represent what a relationship with Jesus looks like.  They need a doctor.  Let's refer them to our Great Physician...the One who loves to make house calls.