Fellow Journey Folk...
Have any of you ever someone say, "I would never be seen with him/her?" The statement reveals the speakers perception of the less than ideal person that they would never be seen with, right? Or maybe its not so obvious how one feels about the company around us, maybe its a deeper feeling of unrest that makes us hope and wish that no one sees us with so and so, from the other side of the tracks. Heaven forbid that person not only be from the other side of the tracks, but they are also a 'sinner.'
I am not talking about the hidden sins that you and i cover up and throw into our closet with the other skeletons which never see the light of day. I am talking about the overt sins: going to bars, dancing at the clubs, wearing clothes that snug the body, or maybe they even drive a foreign car, like a Jetta. These are the sins that everyone knows about and makes us wince at the thought of being seen with them, at least in public.
Or maybe we have that friend, i am pretty sure we all have one, that is really loud and obnoxious and cant help but draw attention to herself or himself. How many of us know of a friend like that? If you dont have that friend, you might do what i just did, look at the mirror and wonder if you are that friend. But anyway.
Social perception of who is and who is not acceptable can affect our level of comfort. How many of us would feel right at home walking with a known prostitute or drug dealer? How many of us would not bat an eye at shopping with the town drunk or tax collection agent? I am not talking about the agent that is doing her job; i am talking about the agent that goes above and beyond his call to duty and shuts down the ma and pa store everyone loves, because mom and dad cant pay their taxes. Do you dare walk out in public with that person?
How many of us would worship with the man on trial for killing his wife? Or how many of us would share a pew with the teacher who molested a student? Or, speaking for myself, how many of us would share our worship space with the person we detest the most, for me it is someone who spews hatred and racist remarks along with homophobic words. I would have a hard time worshipping our God with someone i deemed out of line.
But if God is God, Jesus is truth, and the Spirit is real, these are the people we must be seen with. No more than that, we must be intimate with. For so long the table was the best symbol of intimacy and walls coming down. When settling a financial deal, for work, we come to the bargaining table. When nations need to broker a peace deal, they come to the table and work out a peace agreement. We break bread around the family table. The table has always been a sign of deep intimacy and trust, so when Jesus eats with sinners and tax-collectors, he does more than be seen with them.
He sees them.
He sees them not as the sinner and tax collectors that society labels them. He sees them as children of a Loving Father/Nurturing Mother, and Jesus can't wait to be intimate with them. Jesus comes to their table or invites them to His, so that His amazing grace, love, and healing can do something truly miraculous: heal the sinner.
Not just heal the sinner in a way that encourages the person to leave their life of sin. But heal them in a way that society and time has all too often ignored. Jesus gives them something they have never known before: an identity as someone of value. He sees them as a treasure. Someone worthy enough to break bread with around His table of love, compassion, and grace. If the table remains a symbol of intimacy and trust; Jesus' invitation to the sinners to come to the table remains the greatest illustration of ministry.
So who are we inviting to our tables? And how many invitations are we accepting? Because the table is more than a tool for bargaining and peace building; it is the means to build a new heaven and a new earth in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Shalom
Salam
Peace
jerry
No comments:
Post a Comment