"Go and learn what this means, I desire mercy and not sacrifice..."
This is a reference to Hosea (one of the Old Testament prophets) chapter six verse six. Interestingly enough, the book of Hosea is well known as the book describing God's intense love for His people. The same book in the Bible in which the book, Redeeming Love, by Francine Rivers is inspired by.
*Side note:If you are wanting to be more fascinated, enchanted, captivated by God's enormous grace for you, read Redeeming Love.
Jesus continues to say, "For I didn't come to call the righteous, but sinners."
Can you imagine what the Pharisees thought of this response? First off I would be dumbfounded if I were in their shoes and someone just responded to something I was thinking...maybe what they were thinking revealed itself by their actions...by their facial expressions...by their attitude, body posture...religion?
The context of this verse is taken from when Jesus calls Matthew to follow Him. Matthew was a tax-collector. Thus, he was a very despised man (due to historical/cultural reasons, but also because why not?). Jesus hung out with this despised man. Jesus ate with this despised man. And because Jesus loved this despised man, Matthew gives us (people 2,000+ years later) an account of Jesus's life called none other but The Good News.
"I desire mercy more than sacrifice." Says Jesus.
What does that mean?! would be my next inquiry as a Pharisee. Pharisees were uber students/teachers/leaders of the Jewish Law. If it didn't them, it would bug me that someone would tell me-a superstar in the Teacher's Pet realm-to go study more. "Like I don't know this...like I don't already live this...like I didn't spend my whole life in this...countless hours studying this like a crazy-mad black woman..."
Well, obviously the Pharisees didn't think they needed to study more or in fact even take into consideration what Jesus said, because a few chapters later Matthew again records Jesus saying:
"...If you had known what this means: I desire mercy not sacrifice, you would have not condemned..." -12:7
Do you know what it means?
Do you find value in Jesus's words?
Mercy basically means that "I'm letting go of the wrath you deserve."
Sacrifice basically means that "I am not worthy, you are; thus, I give you x" and fill in the x.
"I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners." Says Jesus.
Everyone back in Jesus's day believed that the ones that were "truly righteous" were the Pharisees. The people believed that the Pharisees could do no wrong; that knowing all of God's Laws, continually sacrificing in the temples, wearing elaborate robes/attire, always talking about God and His Ways some how made this small group of people "special in God's eyes." If the Pharisees didn't get to go to heaven then there was no chance for anybody else!
Yet, Jesus called them out more than anything!
Let me say all of this in another way. Jesus command/challenge was this:
- I desire letting go of your offenses, than you always bringing it up
- I desire forgiving you, than you trying to earn it
- I desire a connection with you, than your traditions
- I desire genuine faith from you, than your organized religion
We fear that if we are not good enough God will not accept us. We toil over what religious activity to be a part of next so people will see us as "good". Then those burnt by such actions both inside and outside the Church are left confused. They become wonders, adrift, "spiritual" in their ways; but note, all are still accountable to their Creator in the end.
What we, as religious folk, do to the Gospel (The Good News) is like what I recently did with my cell phone.
In December I decided I wanted a really nice high class phone, so I bought one. Finally I could be caught up with the times and hip like the rest of my friends. My smart phone was sleek, thin, and superb. I thought to myself on the day I bought it that I would have this for a very long time. I was already imagining all that my phone & I would embark upon together...yeah I'm a typical young adult waaaaay to attached their phone! Well, it only made sense to me that I should protect this $600 phone so reasonably I bought a glass screen cover and a patted phone case (which looks pink when I specifically asked for Bronze). I was good to go! Except, my phone started having problems. It would freeze constantly! It would just go black during a phone call making it impossible to access the keyboard or even hangup! Half the time I couldn't even turn it on without taking the battery out! Very, very frustrating! Very, very disappointing! I tried calling support, even returned the phone to get another phone in the same model, considered changing the make/model all together, ect. Here we are at the end of June with me still fighting this so called "better technology". It was only natural that during these few months that I had dropped it a few times, leading to the glass screen protector to become cracked in several places. Yesterday, at my whits end ready to smash the phone into the eternal fires of hell, I took off all of the phone's protection-broken glass screen protector, ugly pink/bronze cushioned case cover, everything. And do you know what? My phone works perfect. It turns out my screen protector was blocking a sensor for my touchscreen preventing my phone from registering that I was beating it up, I mean accessing it.
Literally. That just happened. It's okay, you can laugh at me.
Lone beyond, there is a point here. Like my crazy phone scenario, we encase our faith in God in a layer of protection that is really blocking the Truth.
God doesn't need your fancy robe, your big church, your monthly tithe and neither do you. He doesn't need your hours of study in Church Doctrine or PHD in Theology, and neither do you. He doesn't need your daily "hail Mary's", your check list of volunteerism, or your guitar solo you do to sing worship songs with kids in Africa...and neither do you.
In fact God doesn't NEED anything. But He wants something. More like a someone. He wants YOU. All of You.
Why? So you can go back doing those things you were doing before? Trying to please Him being that "Super Christian" (believe it or not I was recently called this). There is no such thing. However, there is this thing called love. Not sure if you've heard of it before...it's kind of hard to explain...it's best if you ask the next child your run into...
"For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son to die for them, that only if they believed they would not perish but have everlasting life."-John 3:16
Side note: John refers to himself in third-person in His account of Jesus's life. And what he says after his name is this, "the one Jesus loved."
Maybe you need reminding of this. Go ahead say your name out loud right now and say, "...the one Jesus loved."
He loves you not for what you did for Him or can do for Him or will do for Him...it's because you are His.
Jesus is our Protection. Through Him and Him alone can we access mercy from the Father. Without Him we are just sinners...even with following all the Laws ever written...for the Law was to point us to the fact that we can not live without Him! What the Law failed to do-which was make us righteous-Jesus did upon the cross. He cleaned the slate. He covered you in grace. He came into your deepest darkest moments. He then resurrected you when He resurrected himself three days later. He trampled over death and the grave. Sin no longer has it's chains on you. You are free. YOU ARE FREE. This was nothing you did, it was all because of Him. He says come as you are; come, come, drink out of the fountain that will never yield its water! He came for you. He is here now for you. If only you trust in Him. Trust that what He says is True. For His words are nourishment to the bones, comfort to the soul and joy in your heart.
This July 2nd will mark eleven years of me knowing Jesus personally. I continually have to remind myself what I just shared with you now. My only question is, do you know Him personally?
You can. Right here. Right now. Talk to your Heavenly Father. Confessing that you believe in who He is and what Jesus has done for your sins. Ask His Spirit to come into your life to guide you and teach His ways as opposed to man's. Then simply, listen. Open up the Word and let God answer your prayer.
click & listen to Chris Tomlin's: "Good, Good Father"
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