Mark 2: 15-17 "Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many of this kind among Jesus followers.) But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, 'Why does he eat with such scum?' When Jesus heard this, he told them, 'Healthy people don't need a doctor-sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners."
Now a days its all the rage to have good self esteem or self worth. No matter your looks, your behavior, your job and so on, its all about feeling good about one's self. There were a group of people back in Jesus day that wanted that same feeling spiritually. They were the Pharisees. They got their self worth from keeping rules and regulations. They used them to try and make themselves right before God. In this day and age as much as a person wants to feel good about themselves there would be few that say they are good enough for God just the way they are. The dilemma comes in when we start using the word "sinners." Many people don't have a conscience that bothers them before God. They know they are not perfect but they are certainly not in the category of being called a sinner. That's for the really bad people. Jesus says that people who know they are sinners are the ones he came to save. The ones with good self esteem from keeping rules and regulations think they are without the need of a Savior.
Now a days its all the rage to have good self esteem or self worth. No matter your looks, your behavior, your job and so on, its all about feeling good about one's self. There were a group of people back in Jesus day that wanted that same feeling spiritually. They were the Pharisees. They got their self worth from keeping rules and regulations. They used them to try and make themselves right before God. In this day and age as much as a person wants to feel good about themselves there would be few that say they are good enough for God just the way they are. The dilemma comes in when we start using the word "sinners." Many people don't have a conscience that bothers them before God. They know they are not perfect but they are certainly not in the category of being called a sinner. That's for the really bad people. Jesus says that people who know they are sinners are the ones he came to save. The ones with good self esteem from keeping rules and regulations think they are without the need of a Savior.