Jesus' Acceptance and Rejection

Jesus knew that for the Kingdom to truly be of God, it must be open to everyone, without exception.  This doesn't mean that there weren't dividing lines, but one couldn't be excluded by race or class or sex or disability.  Everyone must have the same opportunity of acceptance.

This doesn't mean that Jesus gave everyone equal opportunities.  After all, if one wanted to connect to God, a healthy Jewish male adult had a better opportunity to do that than anyone.  They were the only ones who could enter into God's house, the only ones who were considered to be heard by God.  Jewish women were somewhat accepted, but non-Jews were completely excluded, unacceptable.

Jesus made it clear that Gentiles had the same opportunity as anyone else to enter God's kingdom.  If they showed faithfulness to God and belief in God's Messiah to save them, they were in.  This is a radical notion, especially among the first century Jewish theologians, who had deep debates of how pure one had to be in order to be acceptable to God.  And if there was one thing the Jewish theologians agreed upon, it is that no Gentile was pure.

Jesus said that only faith made one pure.  And for this reason, he made the most radical statement:  Not only will Gentiles be accepted, but many of those who have remained "pure" all their lives will be rejected, outcast by God.  Most because they refused to accept those whom God accepted.

Anytime we reject a mentally ill person, a homeless beggar, a child, a person of a different culture, a person with different spiritual habits than we, we are committing the same sin.  Should we reject those who Jesus accepts, we will find ourselves rejected by Him.

Let us take great care as to who we outcast, lest we find ourselves on the wrong side of the gate.

Jesus Revealed

Jesus had just revealed to his disciples his most important secret—that he was the coming king that had been promised, but that he would be killed before the end.  At this point the disciples might doubt that he really is the king.  But he gave them convincing proofs that he really was the king, the coming Messiah.   Jesus had said to the disciples and the crowd, “There are some of you standing here that will not die before you see the kingdom coming with power.”  This excited people, because they thought he meant that the end would come before the end of their lifetimes.  But Jesus meant something different than what they thought.

            Six days after Jesus declared to the disciples his plan to conquer by death, he told his three closest disciples—Simon Peter, James and John—to follow him while the rest stay behind.  The three followed him up a steep hill, where there was no one else.  The three looked around, and they saw Moses and Elijah there, waiting for Jesus.  They looked at Jesus and saw that his whole appearance had changed—he was shining and his clothes were brilliant, whiter than anyone could clean it.  They realized that they weren’t seeing Jesus on earth, but Jesus as he really is in heaven.

            The three were so stunned that they couldn’t speak.  Jesus was speaking to Moses and Elijah about the coming events to happen in Jerusalem.  Simon then felt that someone ought to say something, so he stammered out, “Uh… it’s great that we’re here.”  Feeling that his words weren’t adequate to the situation, Simon added, “Well, I suppose we should get ready for the night.  Um… how about if we set up three tents—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah?” 

Suddenly, the Father’s voice came out of heaven and spoke to Simon, “This is my beloved Son, listen to him!”  In an instant, Moses and Elijah was gone and Jesus was alone with them and he looked like his usual self.  Jesus then told them that they should tell no one about this experience until he had risen from the dead.

As they were walking toward the rest of the twelve, they noticed that there was some commotion around them.  As Jesus drew near, some people ran up to him, saying, “Master, we are glad you’re here.  A man brought his son to the disciples to be healed and they couldn’t do it.”  The disciples were having a discussion with some scribes about the matter.  Jesus came up to them and asked, “What’s going on?”  They said that there was a boy with a demonic spirit, but they couldn’t cast it out.

Jesus went to the father and said, “What’s wrong with him?”  The man replied, “My son has been attacked by an evil spirit for years.  He is mute and will have seizures.  But the seizures aren’t just arbitrary.  They would throw him into fire, or into water to drown him.  If it is possible, please heal him.”  Jesus said, “If it is possible?  Everything is possible to one who believes.”  The man replied, “I do believe, but please help me in my unbelief.”

Jesus would have talked to him more, but a large crowd was coming, so Jesus acted quickly in order to keep the matter private.  He commanded the demon to be gone, and the boy began having a seizure.  Suddenly, he stopped and he lay still, as if dead.  Everyone stared at the boy, waiting to see if anything would happen.  Then, slowly, the boy got up normally, and he was fine.

The disciples later came to Jesus and asked, “Why couldn’t we heal him?”  Jesus said, “Well, that demon was especially difficult.  It could only come out by prayer.  But, like I said, anything is possible to the one who is faithful to God.  If you have only as much faith as a mustard seed, you can say to a mountain, ‘Be thrown into the sea’ and it would happen.  So pray and have faith and whatever you ask for will be granted to you.

“And one more thing, if you want your prayers to be heard, forgive.  You have all sinned before the Father, and you want him to forgive you.  But if you don’t forgive others from your heart, then the Father will not hear you.  Once there was a slave who owed his king a huge debt—over a hundred thousand dollars.  The slave asked the king for mercy, and the king forgave him the debt.  But that same slave had another slave who owed him twenty bucks and he insisted that his fellow slave pay him.  His fellow slave asked for mercy and more time to pay.  The first slave refused and put him in prison.  When the king heard about this, he withdrew his mercy on his slave and said, ‘If you were to show gratitude to me for my mercy, you should have forgiven your fellow slave.’ The king had the first slave thrown in jail until he paid his whole debt.  Even so, if you do not forgive those around you, the Father will not forgive you.”

Jesus' Wisdom from the Desert Fathers

Translation from Thomas Merton's The Wisdom of the Desert:

An elder said: Do not judge a fornicator if you are chaste, for if you do, you too are violating the law as much as he is.  For He who said 'thou shalt not fornicate' also said, 'thou shalt not judge.'

Malice will never drive out malice.  But if someone does evil to you, you should do good to him, so that by your good work you may destroy his malice.


An elder was asked: What does it mean, this word we read in the Bible, that the way is straight and narrow?  And the elder replied: This is the straight and narrow way: that a man should do violence to his judgments and cut off, for the love of God, the desires of his own will.  This is what was written of the Apostles: Behold we have left all things and have followed Thee.

One of the elders said, It is not because evil thoughts come to us that we are condemned, but only because we make use of evil thoughts we suffer shipwreck, but it can also happen that because of them we are crowned.

A certain brother came to Abbot Poemen and said, What ought I to do, Father?  I am in great sadness.  The elder said to him: Never despise anybody, never condemn anybody, never speak evil of anyone and the Lord will give you peace.

A brother came and stayed with a certain solitary and when he was leaving he said: Forgive me, Father, for I have  broken in upon your Rule.  But the hermit replied, saying: My Rule is to receive you with hospitality and to let you go in peace.

Abbot Pastor said: A man must breathe humility and the fear of God just as ceaselessly as he inhales and exhales the air.

One of the elders was asked what was humility and he said: If you forgive a brother who has injured you before he himself asked pardon.

A brother asked one of the elders: What is humility?  The elder answered him: To do good to those who do evil to you.  The brother asked: Supposing a man cannot go that far, what should he do?  The elder replied: Let him get away from them and keep his mouth shut.

Taking the Supernatural Out of Jesus

Many say that we can follow the morality of Jesus, but avoid the supernatural overlay that has been placed “over top of the pure gospel” of that moral message.  I appreciate these concerns and the heart that is behind such a belief.  They recognize that Jesus’ extreme teaching of love is a high and noble standard, even for those who cannot abide a “foolish” belief in resurrection or supernatural healing.

However, Jesus cannot be divided in such a way.  With almost all of his moral positions, Jesus also gives reason for such extreme good actions and they are all based on supernaturalism.

• Jesus says that surrender one’s own possessions to the poor is based on the idea that such a one would receive greater goods in God’s future kingdom. (Luke 12:33-34)
• Jesus says that loving one’s enemy is a good act because imitating the God who gives food even to the ungrateful is a proper goal of life. (Luke 6:35)
• Jesus says that we forgive others because otherwise God would not forgive us of our sins. (Matthew 18: 21ff).
• Jesus says that we should not look at the opposite sex with lust, for to do so would send us into hell, and likewise insulting another, and so displaying hate toward them. (Matthew 5:21-32)

Thus, Jesus bases his morality on the final judgement and the resurrection. 

Frankly, to have such an extreme morality makes no sense in a strictly material world.  Loving all, even those who do us harm, makes no sense if this world is all there is.  After all, those who do us harm should learn that harm-doing is unacceptable, and the best way to do that is to harm them for their harm-doing.  That is basic human morality.  That is what makes sense in a limited universe.  But Jesus’ high level of morality only makes sense if there is a second chance on life for those who live that high morality.  Only if this life is not all there is could there be enough time for all to be made right. 

On the other hand, Jesus recognizes that such a high level of morality is necessary for this world to be made right.  Only if some live to never punish another, but to help all those in need—even those who do not deserve it— can the world be a place of justice.  Only if we forgive the unforgiveable can we be forgiven for our unforgiveable actions.   Only if we give to those who have nothing to give back will our needs be met when we have nothing to give.   For us all to survive, at least some must live the outlandish morality of Jesus.  But none of us will do it unless we believe in an outlandish justice, beyond life’s limitations.

Thus, faith is the basis of living.

Forgiving Like Jesus

Jesus’ Life

Mark 2:1-12
"Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven'; or to say, 'Get up, and pick up your pallet and walk '? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins "-- He said to the paralytic, "I say to you, get up, pick up your pallet and go home."
The majority of Jesus’ ministry was letting people know that they were acceptable to God, not matter what their circumstances, past or the judgements they had suffered. This man, although ill, was really looking for acceptance in God’s presence. If he went to the temple in Jerusalem, he wouldn’t be accepted, but Jesus was saying that he was accepted anyway. The Pharisees strongly disagreed with him, saying that he had no authority to accept for God someone who was quite questionable. Jesus, however, said that he did have that authority—and to prove it, he healed the man.

Luke 7:36-50
"I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little."
Pharisees were interested in keeping Israel pure. And that meant that they were to separate out those people who were questionable in their eyes. Someone who has had a lifestyle of sin—even though they were repentant—is certainly questionable, and thus unacceptable to the Pharisees. However, Jesus fully accepted her repentance and declared her to be acceptable before God. In fact, Jesus declared her devotion for God to be greater than the Pharisees, for she had been forgiven of more.

John 8:2-11
Jesus said, "I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more."
Rulers of the Jews were going to stone a woman caught in adultery. Jesus makes the point that those who were deserving of judgement were not worthy to condemn or punish. But at the end, when Jesus alone could stand and punish, he offered her an opportunity to set her life straight. He didn’t offer forgiveness, or acceptance before God, but he offered the opportunity to live in repentance.

Matthew 26:26-28
"Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins."
Jesus also sacrificed himself so that others might be forgiven. It was not enough for him to offer a possibility of forgiveness, he also needed to create the context in which people could be forgiven. For him, that meant the ultimate sacrifice—his honor and body had to be destroyed in order to bring about a nation which accepts the fallen who are repentant.

Our Lives

Luke 17:3-4
"If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, 'I repent,' forgive him."
We are to forgive those who come to us to repent. If anyone repents of their sin, we are to accept them as we would a close family member—no matter who they are or how evil their sin was or how much they hurt us. We must accept them. We must restore the relationship. We must welcome them back in our lives.

Matthew 18:21-35
"And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart."
Forgiveness isn’t just a nice idea, or a merciful option. If we are to maintain our position before God as being acceptable before him, we have to accept others as well. If we refuse to accept others because of a hurt they do us or based on some standard that is not in God’s word, then we will be rejected by God.

John 20:22-23
"If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained."
Not only are we responsible to forgive others who hurt us, but Jesus gave us the authority to forgive or to not forgive in God’s name. In accordance with the standards God gave us, we can declare someone acceptable or unacceptable before God. We do this in accordance with the gospel and in accordance with the Holy Spirit.

Matthew 7:6
Do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
We must take care who we grant the acceptance of God and the Holy Spirit to. We cannot give it to everyone. Those who are unworthy of receiving the blessing of God—because of their judgement, their desire for personal gain, or their impurity before God.

Example
Menno Simons taught on forgiveness in his churches among the Dutch churches in his care. At one point the churches heard of a group of English Reformed believers who were on a ship in a Dutch harbor, who were not being allowed to dock. These believers were rejected by England, and now they were not allowed to dock because they were Reformed, not the religious pursuasion that was acceptable by these two nations. Although the Reformed churches in other places were killing Anabaptists, the churches under Menno’s care asked permission to have these believers come off their ship and be housed by Anabaptists overnight until they were ready to leave. Even though they showed care and acceptance to those in need, nevertheless, the Anabaptist churches could not have those who were impure or unloving in their churches, and would separate from their communities those who would not abide by the teaching of Jesus.

Live it Out

Give everyone the opportunity for forgiveness
God grants everyone the opportunity to be acceptable before Him. No one is to be excepted. Even so, if someone is ready to repent, we need to give them the opportunity—in their own time, in their own way. Pray for people to be forgiven by God, even if they don’t deserve it and perhaps God will give them grace so they can be accepted.

Forgive the repentant
When someone has repented and is ready to submit to God, we need to accept them fully—not half-heartedly, or with regret—but with joy. We receive them as family and we accept them and help them as we can.

Forgive your brothers
Sometimes those closest to us can hurt us terribly and we want to hold onto that hurt, even if they apologized. However, true faith accepts the one who hurt us, because we all belong to God’s family. If brothers are separated and do not accept each other, then one—perhaps both—will then be unacceptable before God. Only if we accept each other will we be a part of God’s unified nation.

Pray for those you forgive
If you know that you have a responsibility to forgive and don’t feel like it, pray for them. Allow God’s love for this other person change your attitude and be willing to accept them.

Speak out forgiveness
When someone is forgiven, tell them. Don’t just assume they know. If someone is accepted before God, let them know. If you forgive someone their sin against you, let them know if they were asking for forgiveness. To show and speak your acceptance of another person is a powerful blessing.

Treat those you forgive as family
It is not enough to forgive from a distance. Some might say, “I accept you as long as you stay away from me.” That is not true forgiveness. True forgiveness welcomes people as family. It is acceptance and hospitality and open welcome.

Don’t forgive everyone “carte blanche”
Not everyone is ready to be accepted by God. In fact, most people are not. We give everyone the opportunity to be forgiven, but we do not actually forgive everyone. We forgive only the repentant, only those who are submitted to God.

Judgment, Cheap Grace, and Mercy

• Judgment is immediate.
It demands the quick decision and the sentence is as swift and demanding as a guillotine.

• Mercy is slow.
Mercy takes its time, deliberating, mulling over options. Mercy is often second-guessing itself, repenting of former decisions as repentance is made known.

• Cheap Grace is careless.
It cares not what the issues are, and is as swift in its decision of forgiveness as judgment is of condemnation.

• Judgment is simple.
Black and white, clear cut, no recourse, no compromise. Judgment sees all situations from a demanding, no fills position.

• Mercy seeks truth—no matter how messy.
It deliberates, considers, ponders, discusses—but not without a goal. Mercy plods, the tortoise who wins the race, slow and steady. Mercy understands that truth cannot be found in a headline, but in a feature article based on many interviews.

• Cheap Grace triumphs the ignorant.
There is no need for determinations, deliberations or decisions. The decision has already been made—freedom and blessing for all, no matter what the situation.

• Judgment focuses on the law as a principle.
“The law is a standard which once broken cannot be mended. It is the Humpty Dumpty of God. It is an ancient china doll, needing to be placed behind glass—protected, served, and loved from a distance.” But the law of judgment is cold, hard and sharp as a steel blade. Judgment claims to be for the good of society, but the only one who benefits is Judgment itself.

• Mercy loves the law as a benefit to others.
The law is to “love your neighbor,” thus mercy is the heart of the law. The law is to train us in mercy, to see the Other as the beneficiary of all of our actions. Mercy considers the well-being of all—even the law-breaker. Mercy’s law is comforting, light, for it always seeks the benefit of all.

• Cheap Grace discards the law.
“The law was a plaything of youth, but is to be set aside as unworthy of consideration. Grace has set aside all law, especially the law of Jesus, as unworthy of God.” Cheap Grace claims to speak for Mercy, but denies the heart of God.

• Judgment demands recompense.
Judgment seeks equity to the cost of the action of the law-breaker. “You broke it, you pay for it.” It seeks a balanced account book for which each debit has its equal and opposite credit—the coin of which is blood and dishonor.

• Mercy pursues reconciliation.
Mercy can lead to dishonor, should repentance be the flip side of that coin. Mercy pleads for restoration, constantly seeking an ingathering together for all the saints.

• Cheap Grace rejects cost.
Cheap Grace points to Calvary and claims that all had been accomplished there. Cheap Grace ignores the man who said, “All who would follow me must take up their own cross daily.” Cheap Grace demands no personal cost, no change, no death, no discipline, and so gains no gift, no new creation, no life, no restoration.

• Judgment has no escape.
Once judged, there is no exit. The sentence is irrevocable, the differences irreconcilable, the community ununitable.

• Mercy offers an out—repentance.
The one who has harmed another—and so has defied the law—has an opportunity to be brought back under the law. To repent, to reconcile is the extent that Mercy demands, and will seek any way to achieve that goal.

• Cheap Grace is unconditional forgiveness.
It is spiritual bloodletting—seeking to heal the patient, while ignorantly killing him. Cheap Grace sees no need to gather in, to restore, for there was no separation.

• Judgment demands payment from the lawbreaker.
As the law suffered, so must the criminal. As society was harmed, so must the harmer. Judgment claims the lost deserve nothing, and so gives nothing.

• Mercy sacrifices.
Restoration also has a price, and the merciful takes that price on oneself. Mercy pays whatever the cost so the sinner can be restored. Mercy groans in prayer, endures attacks, forgives debts against it, pays debts against others, sacrifices its comfort, its family, its friendships, its resources, its very life—all for the sake of the lost.

• Cheap Grace gleefully ignores cost.
It is the thief, stealing from God’s honor. Cheap Grace receives no payment, demands nothing, gives nothing, since there is no debt incurred. Cheap Grace celebrates at the foot of grace delivered, but ignores the call of grace transferred to others. Cheap Grace requires nothing and so gains nothing.

• Judgment never forgets.
It is the elephant of virtues. It never trusts, never believes, never forgives, never restores. Judgment says “Once a sinner, always a sinner.”

• Mercy gives the benefit of the doubt.
Mercy does not forget, but allows complete restoration, a rebuilding of trust. Mercy believes in new creation, a new life, which has nothing to do with the old.

• Cheap Grace always trusts, even the hypocrite.
It always believes, even the liar. It always forgives, even the unrepentant. It accepts everyone and everything—except God’s truth.

• Judgment is Satan.
Judgment is the accuser of the brethren, the murderer of humanity for the sake of a bloodless law. It is the prosecutor seeking the death penalty.

• Mercy is Jesus.
It is the self-sacrificer, the reconciler to God, the perfect sacrifice. Mercy is the one who said, “Go and sin no more,” “The one whom the Son sets free is free indeed,” “I have come to seek and save the lost,” “Unless you repent you will likewise perish,” “I have not come to call the righteous but the sinners to repentance,” “Be merciful as your Father is merciful.”

• Cheap Grace is the Flesh.
It is self-seeking, self-upholding, self-deceptive. Ultimately, it upholds what is abhorrent to God as the will of God. They practice sin and gives approval to those who practice it.

• Judgment is a liar.
It claims that God does not forgive, sees the sin and not the sinner. It denies the power of God to change the one in Jesus. It is lost, for it has forsaken the mercy of Jesus. Those in the power of Judgment will die by God’s hand—“Judge and you will be judged.”

• Cheap Grace is a liar.
It claims that God’s standard is flexible, and so non-existent. It loves the lost to such a degree that it cannot be separated from the lost. It causes the lost to remain lost, and so dead. Those in the power of Cheap Grace will die by God’s hand—“Whoever does not obey the Son will not see life.”

• Mercy is the truth of God.
It upholds the law, which is to love all. It demands love, even as it offers love. It demands forgiveness, even as it offers forgiveness. It demands sacrifice, even as it sacrifices. It demands purity, even as it offers purity. It demands devotion to God, even as it offers devotion to God. “Be imitators of God, and walk in love as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us.”