There's Always One: Radical Inclusion and Invitation

``Radical inclusion is offensive because it challenges our assumptions about who belongs and who doesn't. It unsettles the lines we draw between the worthy and the unworthy, the respectable and the suspect, the insider and the outsider. Jesus had a habit of stepping right over those lines. Jesus had a way of acknowledging that there was always There was always one who needed grace. There was always one who needed mercy. Jesus had a way of seeing people not as they were, but how they could be with the transforming power of God's love. [00:43:01] (45 seconds)  #RadicalInclusion

There's always one who's in need of grace. There's always one who's in need of mercy. Matthew's story reminds us that God's mercy is always wider than our expectations. The people we think should be out may be the very people that Jesus is calling and that makes us a little uncomfortable. And you know what? I'm okay with that. I'm okay with living with living with a little bit of discomfort. If that means that others will know about the grace, love, and mercy of Jesus Christ, I'm okay with a little bit of discomfort in that case. [00:47:25] (47 seconds)  #AlwaysOne

But Jesus and I love those two words, but Jesus. Jesus walks right up to Matthew. He looks him in the eye and he says these simple words, follow me. And Matthew does. Matthew does follow Jesus. Because I think that Jesus that there's always one. There's always one person who needs to follow. There's always one person that is in need of grace. There's always one person that is in need of an invite. There's always one person to include. [00:39:13] (46 seconds)  #FollowMe

Who are the people that if we invite them, people would be offended? Who are the people we instinctively place outside of our circles that we draw? Who are the people that make us uncomfortable? Maybe it's someone whose politics are completely different from ours. Maybe it's a person struggling with addiction. Maybe it's a former prisoner. Maybe it's someone carrying a painful and public past. Because sometimes when we read this story, it's easy. [00:44:30] (39 seconds)  #IncludeTheMarginalized

Their complaint is not that Jesus is excluding them. Their complaint is that he's including the wrong people. Why does he do that? I think it's one of the most fascinating questions you can ask because I think it's still asked an awful lot today. Because radical inclusion is offensive to some. Radical inclusion offensive. And if you don't believe me, how about this? Why does your church welcome the LGBTQIA plus community? [00:41:08] (56 seconds)  #ChallengeExclusion

We elect tax collectors. They're not good or bad. They just have a job to do. We don't have that context. So what is our context? Who are the modern day tax collectors? We can cheer on Jesus because inviting tax collectors doesn't make us uncomfortable. But radical inclusion, the radical inclusive nature of the love of Jesus Christ, it makes us uncomfortable. That makes us uncomfortable. [00:45:52] (37 seconds)  #ModernTaxCollectors

We can marvel at Jesus' inclusivity when he's inviting sinners, but sometimes we get awfully tripped up by inviting people who have committed only certain types of sins in our church today. The challenge of the gospel is that Jesus often goes exactly where we would least expect him to go. He seeks out people that others avoid. He calls people that others reject. He sits at tables where others refuse to sit. [00:46:30] (28 seconds)  #SeekTheRejected

It's easy to get a hearty chorus of amens when we talk about God's love for being inclusive being available to everyone. We can cheer on Jesus as he welcomes tax collectors, we might start to worry about the image of our church when we sit with homeless people. We can cheer Jesus on as he welcomes tax collectors because we don't know anything about that culture. If I were to tell you, oh, tax collectors are bad. Okay. [00:45:09] (44 seconds)  #InclusionBeyondComfort

Their complaint is that he's including the wrong people. Why does he do that? I think it's one of the most fascinating questions you can ask because I think it's still asked an awful lot today. Because radical inclusion is offensive to some. Radical inclusion offensive. And if you don't believe me, how about this? Why does your church welcome the LGBTQIA plus community? [00:41:12] (51 seconds)

We can cheer on Jesus because inviting tax collectors doesn't make us uncomfortable. But radical inclusion, the radical inclusive nature of the love of Jesus Christ, it makes us uncomfortable. That makes us uncomfortable. We can marvel at Jesus' inclusivity when he's inviting sinners, but sometimes we get awfully tripped up by inviting people who have committed only certain types of sins in our church today. [00:46:09] (33 seconds)

The challenge of the gospel is that Jesus often goes exactly where we would least expect him to go. He seeks out people that others avoid. He calls people that others reject. He sits at tables where others refuse to sit. And the church, you and I, are called to do the same thing. Not to abandon truth, but to embody mercy. The gospel is not a reward for people who have it all figured out. [00:46:41] (33 seconds)