January 25, 2022

Meeting People Where They Are At

Matthew 9:9–13

As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.

And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

We live in interesting times. Certainly things have changed from when I was growing up as a child during the 1980's. Back then, just about the only thing delivered to you was the newspaper and your mail. For the rest, you went out for it.

Nowadays, you can get almost everything without ever leaving your home. Restaurant orders are delivered to your home. Groceries are delivered to your home. Office supplies can be delivered to your home. We are working from home. You can almost do everything without leaving your home (you can even watch church at home too).

But as it is, some things really need us to step outside. I cannot put gas in my car without going to the gas station. 

I can have someone bring me a jar of ocean water and sand from the beach, but it's not the same as going to the beach myself. Smelling the salt air. Hearing the waves crash. Feeling the cool ocean breeze on my face. Hear the "squawk" of seagulls as they fly above (while at the same time always making sure I have a place to find cover from them).

I love reading through the Gospels and seeing the way Jesus related to and ministered to people. Here in Matthew, we find Jesus in the home of Matthew, a man He met and invited to follow Him. 

And then, where do we find Jesus and Matthew? Not at church. Not in the local synagogue. We find them, of all places, at Matthew's house....with Matthew's friends. Friends who apparently had some questionable character, or at least were looked down on by others.

More often than not, Jesus wasn't intent on bringing people to a certain place to hear about God. He was more focused on meeting people where they were at, sitting down with them, enjoying a good meal and some conversation.

Maybe it's time we follow Jesus' cue. Oftentimes Christians can get caught in a Christian bubble and lose connection with those outside the church. Maybe it's time we find more ways to meet people where they are at, enjoy a meal in a home, and enjoy some good conversation.

And hear me out. I'm not saying we should abandon the Sunday morning worship services, nor should we stop inviting people to attend. These are a critical part of the life of a Christ follower.

What I feel we are being challenged to do is look outside our box, outside of our comfort zone. Invest in relationships. Meet people where they were at. It is very exciting to me that not only did Matthew invite Jesus and the disciples to his house for dinner, he also felt comfortable enough to invite his friends as well.

There are some great ministry opportunities out there waiting to happen. There are people waiting to hear the good news of Jesus. There are people looking for real friendships, people they can count on. They might not be ready to step out all the way and ask, and that's why we have Jesus model for us the intentional importance of relationships.

This week I encourage you to schedule some dinners, some type of simple event. Nothing big. Just enough to sit down with neighbors or friends who might not know or understand who Jesus is, and share life together. Be available, be relational, be intentional, and through it all, be prayerful.

God can and wants to and will do great things through His people. And it all starts with meeting people where they are at. 

​-Pastor Brian