On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”’
(Matthew 9:12-13 NIV)
The Pharisees missed the point and sometimes we do too. When they saw Jesus fellowshipping with tax collectors and sinners, they criticized Him. They asked His disciples with displeasure, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (Matthew 9:11). When Jesus heard this, He didn’t wait for the disciples’ answer. He told the self-righteous Pharisees that He didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners. It’s easy to give up on the sinner when you’ve been redeemed from their way of life, but remember that Jesus came for sinners. It’s not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.
Jesus didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.
Rising with the Son 