Not My List

We are accustomed to be in charge. We often work diligently to put together the best guest list possible.  Who can sit at this table, who do we need to separate, who can’t tolerate the others – all decisions we make when we really start deciding who will come and who will not.  It happens often, sometimes without us even thinking about it.  We purposely don’t invite certain folks and make sure others feel welcome.  And it’s okay, it is our table and our event and our money.  So it is totally fine.  Well, it is except in our faith.

Jesus had this incredibly unusual habit of inviting people to his table who didn’t belong.  He touched lepers (the untouchables), he hung out with those who had been forgotten, he healed a woman who had been unclean probably longer than she had been clean, he spent time with folks who were culturally irrelevant, and he listened to those who yelled his name, even though they should have no place even near him.  His disciples must have thought he lost his mind when they come back from the market and found him talking to a woman of questionable character from a rival tribe.  She was the least of people to even see, much less talk to or hang out with.  He must have been trying to ruin his reputation.  He certainly couldn’t have seen value in her.  She held no value in most people’s eyes.  And yet, this is the woman who he reveals who he is.  Check it out – he tells HER who he is.  He doesn’t do this for any of those who felt they were worthy.  SHE was the one (read John 4).

In other words, Jesus begins to open wide his invite list.  He even tells stories about inviting the poor and wounded, sick and desperate to the table.  He pushes all the cultural norms to sit with those who had never sat this close to a religious person before.  And if we are honest, the religious folks were extremely uncomfortable.  They had decided already who was in and who was out.  They had a list of rules and things people had to do and none of those people had done them.  They hadn’t completed any of the things that were required or said the right things or even signed the right agreements.  And yet…And yet…and yet…these are the people Jesus offers an invitation.  

Jesus’ list is one we are not in charge of (thankfully).  We don’t decide who is in and who is out.  And we also don’t decide who is worthy based on a list of criteria we have put together.  Jesus defies all of this.  And if we really take a moment, we should be grateful as well.  We might find we didn’t deserve to be at the table even if we did everything we thought was required.  We got the invitation because of Jesus’ love, not our worthiness.  And it just might be, the people we have decided are “those” people…these are the ones Jesus has a special place of honor at his table.  It isn’t our invitation list.  It is his.  And maybe, we become grateful for simply being invited.