Spiritual Cleansing vs. Comfort
- Feb 20, 2024
- 1 min read
While reading Leviticus 22-23 this morning, I thought about what Jesus said to the Pharisees in Matthew 9:10-13 "And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, 'Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?' But when he heard it, he said, 'Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice." For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.'”
Jesus was quoting Hosea 6:6 here, because the religious leaders of His day had drifted into a habit of using religious rituals to try to make themselves holy rather than using religious rituals to acknowledge their sinfulness and seek God's mercy.
Where do you find your sense of self-worth? It's easy to drift into a habit of seeing ourselves with rose-colored glasses -- ignoring our own sinful, self-centered attitudes by comparing ourselves with someone worse than us. That's a lot more comfortable than confessing our sinfulness before God, but it's also a prison. God wants us to seek spiritual cleansing through Jesus, because that's the only way we can find our true identity in Him. It's the only way we can rest in His love rather than struggling to earn love and self-esteem.
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