More on Jesus' Ubuntu.
In his ministry Jesus aroused the wrath of the religious establishment by "hobnobbing" with those who were called sinners: the prostitutes and the tax collectors, who collaborated with the hated Roman overlord and were despised for so doing (Mark 2:15-17). In such relation with the despised of society, Jesus declared, "He who has seen me has seen the Father" (John 14:7-10). He was revealing the self-same God who was biased in favor of the poor, the oppressed, and the outcast, and Jesus ultimately died for being on that side.
That notion about anyone "who has seen me has seen the Father" really has an element of shock to it when we attempt to see ourselves as better than others because we are religious people. When we follow Jesus, we are not better than others - we enter into the lives of others so that no one is outside the circle of God's amazing grace. When we cannot see God in, with, and under everyone we would rather not know or be with - then how can we say we can see God at all? God in Christ, Jesus, is hobnobbing with all of "them" because all of them are beloved and the only way to make sure people hear that word is to be with them as closely as one is with those who are the most beloved to us. In the circle of the loving embrace, people are caught up in a reality that the rest of the world does no call its own. And how far will this love take us? Jesus tells us that - all the way to the cross. He has been there before us and it was not the end as some had hoped.
Connection: Can we learn to love with such deliberate commitment to those for whom we may have a pocket full of prejudices and biases and hatred? We are assured that we can.
When you call us, O God, you call us to follow the way of your Beloved. We most often would go another way. Guide us, O God. Guide us by your Spirit and surprise us again with your loving power. Amen.
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