Accept one another,
then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.
One of the things I love about children is how accepting
they are. When my two kids approach a public playground filled with children,
they just see a whole mess of friends to play with. They exchange a quick “you
want to play” and 2 minutes later it’s like they are the best of friends,
chasing one another around with smiles on their faces. They don’t look at the
kids clothing, the car they rolled up in, or the color of their skin to
determine if they should play together. They just see another person with a
smile on their face and quickly get down to the business of playing. As adults,
we are quite a bit more discerning than our children. We have experienced
things in our lives that have lead us to develop boundaries, barriers, and a “nose”
for sniffing out trouble. And for the most part, this discerning lens that we
have developed is a good thing, as it keeps us from those individuals in this
world that have succumb to sinful ways and are bent on causing harm to us. But
when we are in situations where harm is not present, we still tend to gravitate
to that same discerning, or judgmental, view. When still tend to categorize and
separate others, creating the old “us” and “them” buckets, and quickly filling
the “them” bucket with those we are not completely comfortable with. And we are
not comfortable because we have developed some criteria that we find acceptable
and appropriate…and if they don’t fit this criteria, then it’s hit the road Jack!
When Christ was on this earth, the elite in the society (e.g. Teachers of the
Law; Pharisees) were appalled at who Christ was hanging out with. He was
sharing meals with the likes of liars, swindlers, adulterers, and those labeled
as “low life’s” in the town. He touched those covered in skin diseases, spoke
with those so poor they didn’t have two pennies to rub together, and embraced those
cast out of society as unclean and unfit. In short, he associated with those
that society had said were undesirable and unfit to be welcomed into the
activities of daily life, much less welcome in God’s church. The challenge for
the “elite” (those that were categorizing and casting aside people) is that
they were failing to see their own shortcomings. These elite were failing to
see that their own sins made them just as unclean, unfit and undesirable as the
people they were kicking to the curb. They thought that since they had a high worldly
position and that they were well-versed in God’s Law, then they were somehow
better than others. Christ could have rightfully taken the top spot in the circle
of the worldly elites, but he chose to rather come as a humble servant. Christ
reversed the trend. Christ came to save all people…he didn’t separate based on
health, economic level, social status, or ethnicity. When we are standing in
our churches on Sunday mornings and an unfamiliar face walks through the door,
do we welcome them warmly or do we pretend like we don’t see them? When we see
a person of a different color or ethnicity walk into the sanctuary, do we
rejoice that another person has come to hear God’s Word or do we quickly put
that person in the “them” bucket? When we see someone come through the church
doors so poor that they lack the two pennies mentioned above, do we go and
shake their hand with a smile or do we quickly pass judgment around whether or
not they belong? Christ shared God’s Word with all those who came to hear.
Christ revealed God’s Law to all those who could hear so that all may come to
not only acknowledge the brokenness in their own lives, but also to allow the
Holy Spirit to transform their lives. When Christ accepts us, he makes us a
part of his family and then he leads us through a transformation to a new life
that seeks to glorify God. Our goal as a body of Believers should be the same
as Christ, welcoming all to hear the Good News so that all may come to
repentance and receive the Fathers mercy and grace…the same mercy and grace
that we hold onto so tightly. So today, may we lower those glasses of discernment
just a bit, so that the love of Christ might guide our hearts and minds as we
look to serve the Lord in loving and accepting one another. To God alone be the
glory!
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