In the gospel of Luke, Jesus gives an invitation to inclusion.
But Jesus called them to Him and said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.
Luke 18:16
In the first century, children were overlooked
Marginalized, not valued, not considered worth much.
In the passage, the disciples followed the culture.
They thought they were preserving Jesus’s valuable time and attention
Reserving it for those more worthy, more deserving.
Jesus turned the cultural idea on its head.
He invited, welcomed, elevated the standing of the children.
Earlier He encouraged us to have the faith of children.
So, if you are one of those on the fringes of society.
Those overlooked and devalued …
The poor, the homeless, the addicted,
The sketchy, the mentally ill, the ex-con,
The L, G, B, T, Q and others,
The trauma survivors, the refugees, the jobless,
The immigrants, legal and illegal.
The high maintenance.
Jesus Christ invites and will include you in His kingdom
By His grace through faith and forgiveness.
We are the body of Christ.
His representatives.
His ambassadors.
We must invite and include
Those on the fringes of society.
Those overlooked and devalued.
The poor, the homeless, the addicted.
The sketchy, the mentally ill, the ex-con.
The L, G, B, T, Q and others,
The trauma survivors, the refugees, the jobless,
The immigrants, legal and illegal.
The high maintenance.
We must help bring them into His kingdom with us
Because we were just as needy
And someone showed us
His grace and forgiveness.