Turning the Tables

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you... Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit."
Matthew 21:31, 43 (NIV)

I have found during 25 years of ministry that the church, like the Pharisees in the New Testament, often falls into the trap of judging who's in and who's out. The words of Jesus should be unsettling for those who consider themselves "religious".

Who are the "tax collectors and prostitutes" of our day? Who are the outsiders, the ones the religious elite judge as having no chance of being part of the kingdom as they are?

"The kingdom", says Jesus, "will be given to those who produde its fruit". Those who indicate that the Spirit of God is with them and within them by producing "the Fruit of the Spirit": love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control. (Galatians 5)

Some modern-day Pharisees quote passages that indicate they are the gatekeeper to the kingdom, determining who is qualified, or not, to enter into it. Jesus had a way, and still does, of sending to the end of the line those who promote themselves as the arbiters of grace.

I often hear Christians dodge the charge of being judgmental by saying, "I not judging, I'm just inspecting fruit." Perhaps it's past time for the church to focus more on fruit production and less on fruit inspection--or stick to inspecting our own fruit and not that of our neighbor.

Father, as one who has received grace and mercy, help me not to withhold from others. Forgive me for setting myself up as Judge, rather than seeing myself as one in need of a good Defense Attorney. Amen.