Skip to main content

It Didn't Stick!

I’m fascinated when words, used as descriptors, are changed in an effort to reduce or remove negative connotations.

Drug addiction is increasing being referred to as substance abuse.

Mental illness is increasingly being referred to as brain health.

I’ve noticed a new change of late.  Homeless is being changed to unhoused.  I suppose homeless does have some negative connotations and the change is meant to help alleviate some of them.

The religious leaders, who could not tolerate Jesus entering their little realm of religious practice, called Jesus a “glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 7:34).  In their minds, these negative descriptors were meant to diminish his stature among the people and dissuade them from following Him.  As such, they had no inclination to ever reduce the negative descriptors that they had assigned to Him.  In fact, the more negative they could make them the better, at according to their way of thinking.

But their tactics didn’t dissuade the people!  Take a look at what Luke records in his Gospel:  “Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him.  And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”  (Luke 15:1-2). 

The religious leaders, who should have been pointing people to God, wouldn’t go near the tax collectors and sinners, the very people who probably needed to be pointed to God the most.  And here Jesus was speaking and teaching and the tax collectors and sinners were drawing near to hear Him!

If that wasn’t bad enough, Jesus, this friend of tax collectors and sinners, was receiving them. 

And if that wasn’t bad enough still, Jesus the “glutton” was eating with them!

But to top it all off, something that drew the tax collectors and sinners (and others) to Jesus was a direct threat to the religious leaders’ status:  “And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.”  (Mark 1:22)

While the religious leaders thought they had authority, their teaching said otherwise.  And while they tried to present Jesus as a glutton, drunkard and friend of tax collectors and sinners to prove He had no authority, His teaching said otherwise.

The negative descriptors that the religious leaders tried to stick on Jesus actually became quite the opposite as people voted with their feet and flocked to Him!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Not Just Idle Words

I own a 25 year old car.  The body might be falling apart but the engine runs great and it idles smoothly.  Such idling is good. Idling can also have to do with spending too much time doing nothing or being without purpose or being engaged in that which is pointless.  Such idling is not good. What if I were to tell you that I know of something that is the about as far as being without purpose as you can get?  Would you want it? Here is that something:  “They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.”  ( Deut 32:47) Other versions of the Bible use some different words for that first phrase in the verse and such can be helpful in assessing how important the words really are: “Not meaningless words…”   “These are not just useless words…”   “No empty word for you…”   “Not unimportant words…”   “Not useless words…”   ...

Very Present

I love words that have multiple meanings but the same spelling.  Take the word “present” for example.  You may be thinking of “present”, as in a gift.  Gotta love those! But I’m thinking of “present”, as in existing now or occurring now. I’m also thinking of “present”, as in being at hand. Why those two latter ones, you might ask, why not just go with the gift! Well, I recently read Psalm 46, and here is the first verse:   “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Some theologians suggest the word “present” in this Psalm has the meaning of “well proven”.  I certainly can appreciate that. But I’ve been wondering if “present” could include the meaning of “now existing or now occurring”.  That is, God is exists now and is occurring in our lives. Furthermore, I’ve been wondering if “present” could also include “being at hand”.  That is, God is here, right now, with us.   And with even further wondering, the wo...

Be Amazed!

Be amazed… Jesus welcomed sinners …The Pharisees and legal experts were grumbling, saying, “This man welcomes sinners… (Luke 15:2) Jesus hung out with sinners …And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” (Luke 19:7) Jesus ate with sinners …And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (Matt 9:11) Jesus was a friend of sinners …The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ (Matt 11:19) With Jesus being so welcoming, what did people do? People came to see Him …They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” (John 12:21) People came to hear Him …Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. (Luke 15:1) People followed Him …While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many ta...