Call it an occupational hazard, but I always see the world through sermon tinted glasses. Fifteen years of having to prepare multiple sermons, bulletins, radio programs and classes weekly, will do that to you. So it should be no surprise that at 8:30 yesterday morning I was sitting in the dental chair at the office of my good friend and brother in Christ, Dr. Nathan Owens, thinking about how I can make this experience the focus of one of my getting over the hump blogs.
The parallels are overflowing and obvious.
Sin = cavities: Think about how you get cavities in the first place. You get them by eating or drinking things that are sweet/sugary/syrupy, in other words, things that taste good but aren’t good for you, and then failing to clean them from your teeth. In time, these substances lead to tooth decay which leads to pain and, if ignored, destroys the tooth. Sin works the same way. It is appealing and tempting to us because it is momentarily sweet and pleasurable. When allowed to remain in our lives, it leads to decay in our lives, which causes pain and if ignored, will destroy us. Just as we should brush regularly to keep these potentially destructive substances off our teeth, we should daily practice prayer and repentance to keep sin from building up in our lives.
Christ = dentist: Granted, this is an oversimplification of Christ, yet no disrespect is intended, simply a comparison. We go to the dentist because we are in pain and cannot fix the problem ourselves, even though we try. Our attempts to fix ourselves are temporary at best. When it’s a tooth we might take a Tylenol or use some Orajel, which numb the pain briefly, but it always returns. Too often we attempt to alleviate the pain of sin with more sin (alcohol, drugs, sex, spending money, putting others down, losing our temper). It might make us feel better briefly, but the pain always returns. The only way to make it better is to turn to someone who can help. The dentist drills out the decay and then fills the tooth. When you think about it, stabbing a needle into your gums, using a high speed drill to grind away your tooth and then fill it in with epoxy is a pretty drastic action. It is, but it’s necessary to fix the problem and still save the tooth. Once a cavity develops, it will never go away, it has to be removed and refilled. Similarly, God allowing His Son to be nailed to a cross to die an excruciating death is a drastic and extreme act as well, yet it was necessary to fix the problem of sin. Once we sin, it will never go away, it has to be removed, and only Christ can remove it and save the sinner. Not only will He remove our sins, He will fill our hearts and lives with love, grace and blessings. The whole process can be painful while enduring it, but in the long run it leads to healing. You’ve got to make the decision to go to the dentist, but once you get there you have to turn it over to him and let him do his work, and the same is true with Christ. You have to make the decision to bring your sins to Him, but then you have to trust Him to do His work in you.
(P.S. - Thanks Dr. Owens for your usual wonderful work in fixing my teeth, and thank you Jesus for making me whole again).
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