Our view of our standing in society can be based on many different factors. Part of how we rank other people comes from what we expect from them.
Take someone who is prominent in the music field, a composer, perhaps. Have another accomplished composer step into the room, and he will take immediate notice. However, the Sports Hall of Famer may be totally ignored by the very same composer as someone of no consequence.
We find the same attitude in the New Testament. The Pharisees were at the top of the ladder in their society; they ate at the best restaurants; they lived in the best homes; they had the best jobs.
Luke 18:9-12 reveals the depth of disdain the Pharisees had for others in their society. We read of the Pharisee who went to the temple and raised his eyes to God, saying, “Thank God I am not like this tax collector.”
The schism between Pharisee and tax collector was as wide as any in our modern day society. In Mark 2:16, several Pharisees who taught the Law saw Jesus eating with outcasts and tax collectors. They were disgusted. They asked of the disciples, “Why does your master eat with these fools?”
Jesus had a very different view of the situation. He ranked people’s standing by how great their need was, for he had come not for the good man, but for those who were sinners.
We should see our place in Christian society as Jesus saw it. If we can afford to fund a new wing on the church, what need have we of a $50 blessing in the mail? If we have a standing account at the country club, why would God direct someone to ask us to lunch after church? If we lead lives that reflect God’s teachings, why would God show a missionary to our door?
Rather, we should find the person who can barely afford gas to come to church, and we should offer to fill his tank. We should invite a family to lunch and pick up the tab. We should look for people who clearly don’t fit in the church and invite them in.
How did Jesus word it? It is not the healthy who need a doctor’s care. A doctor helps the sick. Jesus came so that sinners would come to repentance.
This message is so important that in the Scriptures we find the story repeated almost word for word in Matthew 9 and Luke 5.
Let’s let God show us the world through his eyes. We might be surprised at the people who show up on our social calendar.
It is when we look through the eyes of Jesus that we can see people as they truly are.
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