You Don't Have To Be Good
Jesus went to Zacchaeus’s house and became the guest of a notorious sinner. He went to Matthew’s house and ate dinner with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. In full view of everyone, He hung out with today’s equivalent to pimps, prostitutes, and crackheads. In that culture, to eat with someone was to identify with them. Jesus associated Himself with people who were shunned by every upstanding Jew. They were the butts of jokes and th e targets of smirks. No self-respecting person would risk befriending them for fear of being found guilty by association. By everyone’s standards, Jesus was a good man. So making friends with bad people didn’t make sense. Preaching at them, rebuking them, criticizing them, mocking them — that was expected. Even applauded. But sitting around a table telling jokes and enjoying life together? That was shocking. That was tabloid material. But Jesus didn’t care about the scandal. He cared about the scandalous. He liked spending time w...