I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how crazy God is about people your momma wouldn’t want you to hang out with. (She also wouldn’t want you to end your sentences with prepositions, so take that, Mom!) People who lie and cheat and steal. People who corrupt. People who kill. God loves the misfits, the rejects, the criminals, the honest to goodness lawbreakers, if they can possibly be described as either honest or good. You know, the people your parents caution you to avoid.
Maybe they’ll influence you to embarrass the family name. Maybe you are who you hang out with. After all, even Paul said that bad company corrupts good morals (1 Corinthians 15:33). But maybe God was on to something here. Check out some of the people he pursued and used to show his power, his glory and his love:
Zacchaeus. He ripped people off. Stole their money. Was disliked… and no wonder why. But Jesus was proactive about giving him a shot. He initiated a relationship with him, and Zacchaeus immediately volunteered to pay people back and start living right.
Jacob. He tricked his brother. He tricked his father. And he co-conspired with his mother to do it! Yet God saw through all his nastiness and saw some real potential there, and from his descendants came Jesus.
Rahab. Almost always identified in scriptures as “the prostitute,” she surely had created a reputation for herself. But she also had a sensitivity to God’s power and plan, and showed those Israelite spies (and all of us) just how smart and savvy she was.
Jonah. He had a superiority complex. He didn’t just ignore God, but blatantly disobeyed him. And he tried to argue that he deserved the good things in life without any trials. But God used him anyway, and Jonah’s ultimate obedience spared the lives of more than 120,000 people in Ninevah.
Eve. She broke God’s rule. She wanted to be a know-it-all. And she convinced her husband to go along with her. Yet God allowed her to be the first mother.
Adam. He went along with Eve! Boy, love makes you do some dumb things, doesn’t it? But as soon as God finished chastising them, He immediately went back to caring for them and meeting their needs. What a way to show constant, lasting love.
Peter. If loyalty is what you’re looking for in a friend, Peter may not be your best first pick. He talks big, and I guess there’s something to be said for professing and attempting loyalty, but boy was he lousy on the follow-through. Still, he was one of Jesus’ closest friends and was allowed to see extra glimpses of God as a result. And he had some great stories to tell other people later so they could know God better too.
Paul. OK, so perhaps it was Saul who was an even bigger jerk. But again, God saw the potential there and changed his heart, his mind and even his name, thus giving us one of the biggest examples of God’s transformative power in a jerk’s life. Still, even as Paul, he could get a little mouthy every now and then (which I, personally, find somewhat endearing, to be honest).
A Samaritan woman. Now, I can only assume this woman Jesus met at the well was something of a jerk. At least there are 5 ex-husbands who probably think so. And yet Jesus used her, of all people, to tell the story of God’s love to a whole town of Samaritans. Brilliant!
Judas. Everyone has a price, and we all learned that Judas is no exception when he accepted money to turn his friend over to the authorities who would soon have him executed. Serious jerk. Jesus knew all along this would happen, yet he took the time to invest in Judas anyway. Wow.
Pharaoh. The Israelites were stuck as slaves in Egypt. Pharaoh wouldn’t let them leave. But it was because of his resistance that God showed his supernatural power over and over. I have to think that part of that was for the Israelites’ benefit, and ours too. Sometimes we don’t get it at first; God has to show us repeatedly that he’s bigger and stronger before we learn to start trusting him with our lives and problems. (See, now I’ve clearly made us jerks too!)
There are plenty of jerks in our lives too. They’re mean. They’re dishonest. They’re scheming. Perhaps even criminal. Do we consider befriending them, or just keep them at arm’s length (or more)? Do we see them as God does—full of potential and worthy of love—or are we just as big of jerks for treating them like the jerks they are? Hmmm.
Kathy Raines, UBC College Minister
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