I don’t know about you, but there are two places I don’t really like to go: the dentist’s office and the doctor’s office.
It seems even if it’s a teeth cleaning, they will always find some other issue, which usually means that dental drill is coming.
Don’t get me wrong. I have a great dentist and I know he is looking out for me. I am just not a fan of the strange torture-like devices dentists use. You know you are in trouble if, while doing work on you, your dentist asks you, “Is it safe?” (Obscure reference to a film there. Hint: The Marathon Man.)
The same goes for doctors. I suppose I am afraid they will find something wrong—and no one wants to hear that.
Jesus, the Good Doctor.
Jesus compares Himself to a doctor in Mark’s Gospel. He said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17 ESV).
Some time ago, I had a physical. I ran the treadmill, had my heart and blood pressure checked, blood tests . . . you name it, I got it. They review everything and I return for another appointment. He then tells me what, if any, changes I need to make in my diet, activities, etc.
A good doctor does not give the same prescription to every patient. The thing is, you need to do what the doctor tells you!
You want to avoid this exchange:
Patient: It’s been one month since my last visit and I still feel miserable.
Doctor: Did you follow the instructions on the medicine I gave you?
Patient: I sure did – the bottle said, “Keep tightly closed.”
It’s important to note Jesus never dealt with any two people in exactly the same way.
God will come to us in a way we can understand. For instance, to Peter He said, “Follow Me and I’ll make you a fisher of men.” For Peter, a fisherman who had recently caught nothing, this was a unique statement.
To the military man Joshua, He came as a general. To the conniving Jacob, He came as a wrestler.
Here is the point: God always meets us where we are.
Scripture says of the Lord, “To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless, to the pure you show yourself pure, but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd”(Psalm 18:25–26 NIV).
A.W. Tozer, in his book The Knowledge of the Holy, wrote:
“To the self-condemned, He is generous and kind,
To the frightened, He is friendly,
To the poor in spirit, He is forgiving.
To the ignorant, He is considerate,
To the weak, gentle, and to the stranger, hospitable.”
God will meet you where you are. Here’s the good news: Jesus, the Great Physician, makes house calls!
