Matthew 9
By Pastor Steve
Have You Ever Been Shunned?
We live in a day and age when rejection runs rampant! People are shunned by others without care or concern about the emotional trauma the rejection causes. The television is filled with reality shows and talk shows that display and describe emotional pain in detail. Some folks say that this is exploitation; and some folks say that it is ridiculous. Some people feel as though the television producers are simply making millions off of other people’s pain and misery; and some folks think that these shows only perpetuate the problem. I guess that there is a bit of truth in all of the possible scenarios. No matter the motive, the money or the outcome—people are hurting!
In our passage for today Jesus is caught spending time with the despised and rejected people of His day and then chastised by the religious leaders concerning His willingness to eat with money mongers (tax collectors) and sinners. Although the religious people wanted to reject anyone who was a sinner, Jesus said: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’ for I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Although the world is completely willing to promote rejection and cause emotional pain, the Church of our Savior should be radically different. When the world offers ridicule and rejection, the Church should offer comfort and acceptance. When the world belittles and casts off a human being, the Church should uplift the person and see the soul that is redeemable by the grace of God.
Jesus said that He seeks people who offer mercy and grace because He is the author of mercy and grace. He placed a forever example for all of us to follow. As God’s people, our calling is to look beyond the surface of the individual and see the potential of the person. I think that the Church should view people who may not look or act like we think they should as people who are coming into God’s great hospital to seek healing and not humiliation.
In conversations with people who have found a church home here at TF Naz., I have heard again and again that people have felt accepted. I think that if Jesus were to walk into our house of worship, He would say that “His Body” is actively living out His wishes in the Magic Valley. My encouragement to all of us is this—keep on healing the sick, accepting the sinners, and participating in the Lord’s work through His body!
Blessings on The Journey
