Sunday Taster

(Metronome ticking)

Not for the well known
but for the unknown
not for the famous
but the forgotten
not for the well named
but the unnamed

Jesus has time (Stop metronome)

Pause

(Start metronome again)

Not for the included
but the excluded
not for the religious
but for the hopeful
not for the inner circle
but for the outer circle

Jesus has time (Stop metronome)

those of us
seeking healing
seeking hope
seeking life
Jesus has time for us
even as the world doesn’t

(Start metronome again)

Not for those who do know
but those who need to know
the unbounded and unlimited
love and compassion
generosity and grace of God

Jesus has time…

(Let metronome tick for a short while then stop)

Comments

[cheryl]

jesus doesn't have time for the famous or well known? are you sure?

[but apart from that it's lovely!]

[Roddy]

Hmmm...

In my mind at the moment Jesus was very much about bringing justice and raising up the little people. And yes he did rely on the wealthy to provide lodging and food and support for his ministry and, yes, the whole 'promsie of salvation' thing is for everyone but, at the moment I see him as a robin hood/che guevarra character who was trying to rebalance things.

[cheryl]

you're well known... does he have time for you? where's the cut off point?

In the gospels he had time for nicodemus, who was rich... and john the baptist, who was pretty well known... and for Paul... and for zaccheus...

i think he was on about justice, but the message was for everyone to hear, not just the poor [in fact the rich have to hear it, for the poor to receive it]... and isn't the heart of the gospel that everyone is offered grace, whether they deserve it or not; everyone is offered hope, everyone is invited into justice... God has time for even those we wish God didn't... which is part of the offensiveness of the gospel.

[Christine]

Others probably know the history better than me, but isn't it now quite well established that Robin Hood was probably entirely mythical? And didn't Che Guevarra do some pretty nasty things in the name of freedom? I kind of see what Roddy's getting at, but it seems to break down in the details.

I agree though that Jesus did emphasise re-balance and, in our societey as well as his, a key issue is the overcoming of material poverty through the redistribution of wealth and resources. But I think that's too narrow a focus.

There are people who, although financially comfortable, may be poor in other ways e.g. lacking friends, obsessed with work to the exclusion of everything else in their lives, addicted to drugs (young professional people are a significant group in terms of mis-use of drugs such as cocaine) etc.

I think Jesus would have time for these 'poor' too.

[Roddy]

Cheryl -

You are right, of course. It's the grace thing that is the big thing for everyone. I've made it too black and white when I know it's very shade of grey but possibly for the people it was written for (who are wealthy in so many ways) there needs to be a word that shifts folk (like myself) towards the priorities love aims for in the world. Then, of course, that's not right either...