"When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” ~Matthew 9:11
"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” ~Matthew 28:19
I'm not sure I could find any Christian who wouldn't agree that part of being saved is to spread God's word. To share his love, grace, conviction, salvation, forgiveness - to give others the gift that we have been given, though we are undeserving. We have the ability to approach the throne of the Father and sit at his feet. We can ask his forgiveness, seek his wisdom, praise him, and rest in his hands. And thank goodness - I've only been up for a few hours and I've already bent his ear a number of times.
When we find something so amazing, we have to share it. Though the examples aren't quite comparable, I can think of times when I've tried a new diet, product, restaurant, parenting hack (clear nail polish over the speaker of loud toys - thank me later), and I've wanted to share this thing that made my life better. And though I'm not the best at evangelizing, this is all the more true of God. I want everyone to feel loved like I do.
So why, then, do we sometimes fall into a pattern of what I like to call "heavenly hoarding"? We look at another person, one of our brothers or sisters on this earth, and we decide that their sins are worse than ours, so to heck with them. We self-righteously rail against them and puff ourselves up as quite literally holier-than-thou. We gather up our salvation and shove it into our vaults for safe-keeping, lest any of those awful, dirty "others" and "bad people" get their grubby little souls on it.
My friends, it would be easier to pour the entirety of the ocean into a county fair goldfish bag.
We belong to God, and we are his children. But we do not own him. God is our savior, but he is not a commodity that we can secret away in a pouch under our shirts when we travel. He's not a diamond to be auctioned off to the rich. He's not a mansion in a gated community where everyone inside the walls can congratulate themselves for not being like those on the outside.
God is for everyone. I'm going to say that again - God is for everyone. For liberals, conservatives, gay people, straight people, men, women, the homeless, the imprisoned, the rich, the poor, and even "that person" who you picture in your head and feel smug about when the pastor is talking about a particular trap of sin people can fall into.
Jesus felt the weight of all of our sins, all that we have committed, all that we will commit, all that were committed before he was clothed in human form, all that will be until the end of time - all at once. And here's an uncomfortable truth - every single one of us owns the same size wood splinter of the stakes that were driven through his hands and feet. You and I are both equally as responsible for his suffering. We have no horse to climb up on - only the ground to kneel on and thank him for his grace in loving us anyway. In saving us.
Open your hands and your hearts and pour out his love on ALL of your neighbors - we can use all the light we can get.
