Luke 7:31-35
People of This Generation
31 "To what, then, can I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to each other:
" 'We played the flute for you,
and you did not dance;
we sang a dirge,
and you did not cry.' 33 For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.' 34 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners." ' 35 But wisdom is proved right by all her children."
Mark 2:13-17
The Calling of Levi
13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth.“Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.
15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the “sinners” and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”
17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Matthew 22:34-40
The Greatest Commandment
34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
John 1:1-14
Jesus is the Word and the Word is God
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory,the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
I think on earth that reputations are built, and it takes a lifetime to do that...It only takes one incident to ruin a good reputation...But it seems that during His time, Jesus' reputation was not the best when viewed by many in His society, and those around Him...It seemed if He were a politician, He would have garnered his share of opposition vote...The opposition would have questioned His reputation...His reputation would have been thought to be bad by many...And most of Jesus' reputation came from the company He kept...He often ate with sinners and tax collectors...In fact, we know that He came to earth to call on sinners...So He spent a lot of time with sinners of His day...
Today, we certainly live in confusing political times, and these last few years have seemed confusing in general...Our country seems more polarized now than it has in years...The media, journalists, and writers seem and want to put us into camps...We are conservative, very conservative, liberal, very liberal, or independent...Some call it far right, right, far left, left, and the centrists...Is it wrong for me to be a liberal or a conservative or a follower (of this belief)?...What does the conservative think of the long time far left liberal incumbent or follower (of this belief)?...What does the liberal think of the long time far right conservative incumbent or follower (of this belief)?...Sometimes I wonder if the far right or far left thinks the other one is moral or immoral as I read or hear them speaking, and try to think how Jesus would explain these things to the people of this generation...We all are sinners conservative, liberal, or centrist...
If Jesus were here today He no doubt would eat and be with all groups, including those in the far left, and those in the far right...Jesus LOVED everyone and He LOVES sinners...He came to help sinners...I would bet there maybe a sinner or two in each of those groups (I know there is at least one, because I am in one of those groups)...And I think He would be teaching us to work together...
Jesus brings us the mind and thoughts of His Father...He and His Father are One...No one gets to His Father, except through Him...As you read the Four Gospels, you can just feel how close He is to His Father, and how much He knows about the Bible, and His Father...This is because, He is the very Word of the Bible...He is the Bible...He knows our His Father in heaven, because He has been with Him from the beginning...So when He tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves, He doesn't concern Himself with what group I am in or what group my neighbor is in...He is the very Spirit of the Bible, and is telling me to love my neighbors, each and everyone of them...
When we look at other peoples reputations and morals, we seem to be judging people sometimes based on their reputation...And we seem, fairly or unfairly, to base our neighbor's reputations and morals on what we believe...Jesus is our Example of what love is...He is our Example of how to treat our neighbors...He judged people from God's point of view, and not from one earthly point of view...His reputation in society was somewhat bad by some of those in Israel...He did not seem to get along with the religious groups very much...And because of those He ate with, and ran around with He did not gain in reputation -when it came to status...We are often known by the company we keep...Many of those who Jesus was with was not society's best...
But two thousand years later, His reputation is solid gold...His integrity and reputation today, as compared to when He walked the earth two thousand years ago are perfect...But wouldn't it be interesting, if He were here today and ran around with the same types of different outcasts that He ran around with in His day and ate with these same groups...Let us say He was constantly with the fringe of society, the seedy, the prostitute, the broken, those in prison, those from the wrong side of town, and the sinners of today...What would we think of Him now, if He ran around with these "type" people?...I wonder what His reputation would be?...I wonder what His reputation would be today under those circumstances?...