After the teaching one morning this week, one of the men got up and looked at all the guys lined up on the piece of bamboo, “Hey,” he said, then with a smile on his face he continued, “You are all sick and you need a doctor.” The men on the bench laughed, but they knew even though he was teasing them he was serious. One of them responded, “What you say is true, but you need a doctor too.”
“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” This was the response the Jesus gave in Luke 5:31-32 when asked why he ate with sinners. I had just taught the Patpatar people about how Jesus had called Matthew, a despised tax-collector, and how he had dined with him and other sinners. The self-righteous Pharisees on the outside in an effort to “follow all the rules to God” criticized Jesus for eating with the sinners. Our team had acted out a skit of two sick people, one who knew they were sick and wanted a doctor and the other who was unaware of their sickness and refused the help of the doctor. The impact of the lesson came when they realized how Jesus was the doctor, He came for those who are spiritually sick; for those who realize their sinfulness and need of a Savior. We are excited to see many of the people begin to understand that Jesus was more than just a great man to follow, but that He is in fact the only hope of sinful dying men. Continue to pray for their understanding and for the deliverance of their spiritual sickness.
Speaking of sickness.this week has been pretty rough physically on our family. Everybody in our family and some of the Kunzers were sick this week with either malaria, fevers, or colds. Thankfully we are all on the road to recovery, but would appreciate your prayers for continued health.
Coming this week:
* The parables of Jesus – Jesus taught through His Words. * The miracles of Jesus – Jesus taught through His Actions. * The Bread of Life – Only Jesus will satisfy our hunger. * The prayers of the Pharisees and the sinners – Self reliance vs. God dependence. * Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the promised Deliverer.
Only 3 weeks left,
Aaron