A Bitter Accusation

A Bitter Accusation

The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.

Matthew 11:19

Friendship is a serious matter. We have many acquaintances, but few friends. A friend is that person who knows you well, and loves you for who you are, not for what you can do for them. The Scripture presents Christ as the Greatest of Friends. His enemies did not like His choice of friends. Our text today states, ‘The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.’ Let us consider the line, ‘a friend of publicans and sinners.’ In the mouth of Christ’s enemies, this was a bitter accusation. Why did they employ this as an insult? Really, this accusation says much more about them than it does about Christ. It brings into stark contrast the love and compassion of Christ against hypocrisy and vain religion. Christ loved the broken. They despised the broken. Christ humbly helped the weak. They ridiculed the weak. Christ lifted up the fallen. They stepped upon the head of the fallen in order to elevate themselves. Christ gave hope to the hopeless. They removed hope by asserting that these ‘publicans and sinners’ would never be able to achieve the high moral standard to which these accusers believed that they had attained. Christ demonstrated Grace, while these hypocrites  demonstrated self-righteous arrogance. Christ loved the unlovely, while these showed that their unloveliness was the fruit of self-deception and hypocrisy. Christ just continued to be the ‘friend of publicans and sinners,’ regardless of His enemies’ accusations. That makes us glad.  The same Christ, Who was the friend of ‘publicans and sinners,’ is our Great Friend as well.

Our Wonderful Savior and our Friend,
we praise You with great joy and thanksgiving,
that You do not despise us for our lowliness.
We rejoice that You are our friend,
and are not ashamed to claim us.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning