$h!t Jesus Says, Part Ten: Get In Line

This parable of Jesus' reminds us that God’s kingdom is not about status, appearance, or outward piety. It’s about the heart’s response to God’s invitation that Jesus personally delivers to us.

Well, we got through another amazing Olympic Games. I think Paris knocked it out of the park and certainly up’d the game for LA in 2028.

While the world will remember those gold-medal superstars, there’s another amazing thing happening at the Paralympics. These athletes are absolutely incredible, breaking barriers and inspiring us all.While they might get some news coverage, they don't get the same kind of hype as the Olympic folks.

I don’t know if it’s because people don’t think they have the same athletic abilities, or that secretly inside many people actually pity them instead of admiring them.

Even as the Paris Games sought for equality, some people in this world are still left out and looked down on.

This isn’t anything new. Jesus totally saw this stuff happening back in the day. Challenging our assumptions, he tells us this story.

“What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ He answered, ‘I will not,’ but later he changed his mind and went. The father went to the second and said the same, and he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but he did not go. Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them,“ Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him, and even after you saw it you did not change your minds and believe him.                                                                      Matthew 21:28-32

Every parable of Jesus reveals a sobering truth regarding God’s kingdom. This one highlights God’s radical inclusion that challenge our preconceived notions of worthiness.

This story takes place while some religious folks are questioning Jesus’ authority. They are priests and elders, the supposed exemplars of faith and righteousness. But Jesus sees through them. He knows their hearts. And he pushes back, calling them out in not so subtle of ways.

It must have been shocking for them to hear Jesus contrast their piety to tax collectors and prostitutes - the kind of folks we despised and ostracized today. Imagine the look on their faces when he declares these so-called sinners will enter the kingdom of God ahead of them. Why? Because “those people” believed what John the Baptist proclaimed. And they repented, changed their thinking and doing.

More than just a snub at the overly zealous religious folks, this parable reminds us that God’s kingdom is not about status, appearance, or outward piety. It’s about the heart’s response to God’s invitation that Jesus delivers to us.

Nadia Bolz-Weber reminds us that, “God’s grace is not defined by our worthiness; it’s defined by God’s willingness” to extend grace that knows no bounds.

God's is a radical kind of grace that runs after the drug addict. Embraces the queer kid. And reaches out to those who society has prejudiced and many good Christians have stigmatized. If we are not careful, we can become religious hypocrites whom Jesus describe as “whitewashed tombs” (Matthew 23:27-28). We can look good on the outside but be unclean and full of dead bones on the inside.

The truth is, it’s easy to get stuck in our own opinions and religious routines, forgetting that Jesus ate with tax collectors, embraced lepers, and conversed with women of ill repute. His love wasn't exclusive but a banquet open to all; especially those who are most aware of their brokenness.

Jesus even declares, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17).

If we truly follow Jesus, we'll see others through God's eyes. We will recognize everyone’s inherent worth and dignity. And offer the same mercy, love and grace God gives to us.

But like Barbara Brown Taylor recognizes that, "The hardest spiritual work in the world is to love the neighbor as the self - to encounter another human being not as someone you can use, change, fix, help, save, enroll, convince or control, but simply as someone who springs you from the prison of yourself."

Like I’ve been saying, Jesus transforms us from the inside out. He tells stories like this to get us to see beyond ourselves, especially through our relationships with God and others.

Our true spiritual growth occurs when we, like Mother Teresa, recognize Christ in the most vulnerable and move with compassion to help him. Jesus doesn’t shy from the messy realities of life. He enters it, bringing healing and hope to the entire world. To follow him, is to see everyone as valuable, whether we think they’re worthy or not

I know I have talked about the amazing work of Father Greg Boyle, whose must-read book Tattoos on the Heart reveals the transformative power of loving people this way.

Boyle shows us how to welcome those who were dealt a bad hand at life and to offer them a second chance to at the table. Fr. G, as he is lovingly called, founded Homeboy Industries as a means to redeem some of the most violent gang-members in Los Angeles. He created a safe place to get away from the violence of their family and neighborhoods and provides positive opportunities of growth to those who’ve been written off as worthless.

Over the years, Homeboy has become a beacon of hope that has helped countless people unlock their potential and discover their true worth in God’s family.

​Luis was one such person whose life was transformed from a notorious gangbanger to an award-winning graphic designer. Or Sharkey, who through the power of God’s radical acceptance and love, was able to move from a thug life of hatred and violence to a Christlike life filled with love and mercy.

Instead of fearing these people, Boyle meets them where they are. He shows them compassion, listens to their stories, suffers alongside them, and offers the unconditional love of God that ignites that small, flickering light of Christ within us all.

If you ask me, this is what the Kingdom of God looks like. A kingdom alive in the gritty reality of life; where everyone is worthy of love and belonging, no matter their past.

Like Jesus says, this kingdom is a place where those who jump to the front of line, are the ones who believe Jesus when he says, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 4:17)

Through Christ, we have all been given a second chance. And a shot at true redemption and transformation in the many ways we love God, love others, and serve both with unwavering support and compassion; especially to those Jesus calls, “the least of these my brothers and sisters.” And “When you love them,” he says, “you are loving me.” But he also warns, “When you reject them, or despise and ostracize them, you do the same to me” (Matthew 25:31-46). 

To follow Jesus, is to be like the One who recognizes inherent worth of everyone. We need to look past labels and see people as God sees them - as beloved children. Lest we forget Jesus says, “Let the children come to me, for the kingdom of God is theirs”(Mark 10:14).

We have been called to love our neighbors, not label them. For when we love others where they are and as they are, we reveal our true love for God whose kingdom come is alive within us and all around us.

Henri Nouwen wrote, "We are called to be a community of those who are broken and forgiven, who need one another, who live in the tension between the already and the not yet."

If we care to be such a community that honors God through Christ, we must first examine our own hearts. We must ask ourselves, if there are people or groups we’ve deemed unworthy? Or view as less than us because of our social status or good deeds?

If we take Jesus at his word, then we must take the time and try to truly repent - to ask God to change us to be more like Jesus who offers himself to the world, “So they may have life, and have it abundantly."(John 10:10).

With a new heart of Christ alive in us… we can faithfully leave our comfort zones to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, heal the abused, and advocate for equality and justice for the oppressed and forgotten. Like Jesus states, "I have come down from heaven, not to do my will but to do the will of the One who sent me." (John 6:38)

As we go out into the world, we must remember that Anamesa is more than just a space between us and them. It’s also, you and me. We are the beloved children of God, whose radical love and grace is offered, regardless of who we are or what we’ve done. Jesus calls us to go and give that same love to one another.

If we take Jesus at his word, like the tax-collectors and prostitutes did, then we too will see that God's kingdom is a place where “the first will be last and the last will be first" (Matthew 19:30).

Like Jesus says, “Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." (Matthew 23:12).



Work Cited:
​Bolz-Weber, Nadia. Pastrix: The Cranky, Beautiful Faith of a Sinner and Saint. (New York: Jericho Books, 2013).
Brown Taylor, Barbara. An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith. (New York: Harper Collins, 2009).
Nouwen, Henri. The Wounded Healer. (New York: Doubleday, 1972).