Who needs a physician?

​The religious leaders criticized Jesus for eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners. But they were the kind of people that were sick and needed His help. Jesus loved to be with people who knew they were sinners because He could help them without working through the blinding hindrance of pride. Unlike the Pharisees (who didn’t understand what Jesus was saying but just wanted to argue with Him), only those who realize they are sinners can see that they are sick and need help. 

Since there are none righteous, Jesus is calling everyone who understands and readily admits that they are sick sinners. He did not come to patch up the Old Covenant. Jesus came to establish the New Covenant. He is the cornerstone of an entirely new institution called the church. And the church will be made of sinners who turn into saints because of the blood of Jesus. The church will include leaches, like Levi, that transform into men, like Matthew—enemies of God turned into “gifts of God” (the meaning of Matthew’s name). Rigid religious rules and regulations can’t handle this—it would just break. New wine must be poured into the new wineskin of the New Covenant.