Lessons From the Dentist

“Your smile looks good, but you have three cavities between your teeth.”

It took me a second to process what the dentist had just said to me. Three cavities? Me? Are you sure? I thought.

“You should make sure you floss a little more,” the dentist said.

I floss every other day! I thought indignantly. I had never really minded going to the dentist. That’s because it had always been a routine cleaning where the dentist would tell me my teeth were amazing. I would be sent home with clean teeth, a new toothbrush, dental floss, and feeling pretty good about myself and my near-perfect smile.

This time, the dentist said my teeth had some problems. What I had thought was true about my teeth going into this appointment—that they were healthy and only in need of a routine cleaning—was actually a distorted reality. The truth about my teeth was I had three cavities that were in need of being treated.

On my drive home (after getting over the huge blow to my pride that I, Linda, had three cavities), I couldn’t help but see the parallels between my cavities and our walk as Christians. It is so easy to go through the day thinking, “I’m not really that bad of a person” or, “As long as I give the appearance that everything is good, it is.” I especially find when I’m rushing from event to event, or quickly checking things off my to-do list, I can be unaware of what is going on below the surface. My mind can wander and be distracted all day.

If I’m not taking the time to find and work on my sin...that sin is like a cavity I didn’t even know was there. Although Christ has already paid for the penalty of our sin, we know that we are still fighting our old flesh daily. We’re impatient. We snap at those we love. We worship things and security more than our Savior. We feel anxious about tomorrow. These are all evidence of the “old self” we are fighting. Paul says to,

“Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:22-24).

It is amazing that God, in his grace, gives us a new self. Isn’t it incredible that our new self is created after the likeness of God—in true righteousness and holiness? Think about that for a second. Because Jesus died for our sins and our old self, he gives us true holiness. He doesn’t just fill our cavity, but he gives us brand new teeth.

“Because Jesus died for our sins and our old self, he gives us true holiness. He doesn’t just fill our cavity, but he gives us brand new teeth. ”

When it comes to your sin and shortcomings, are you just looking at the surface, like I was with my teeth? I didn’t see any cavities. My teeth seemed fine. But, the dentist still found some problems. In the same way, we need our brothers and sisters in Christ to help us see the sin in our lives that we don’t see. 1 Thess 2:11-12 says,

“For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.”

I was so surprised that I had cavities because I thought that flossing every other day was enough. We may believe that reading our Bible every other day is enough, or praying every other day is enough. Or looking like we have it all together every day is enough. Or checking off our to-do list is enough. But we need help seeing ourselves as we actually are. We need a dentist to really help us see past the surface. Hebrews 13:12-13 says,

“Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

I am so thankful that God gives us a body of believers to help us see our cavities. Let’s commit to talking with others in our life groups and community groups and inviting them into the parts of our lives that go deeper than the surface. When they graciously point out our cavities, let’s not despair, but let’s look to our wonderful God who brings true righteousness and holiness into our lives through Christ. And let’s remember that someday, he really will give us a brand new smile.