When Jesus held a party, it was a very special event. He didn’t invite all the important people in the community but those who were unseen, dismissed. They were the new ‘special’. They were the people who never normally get invited to anyfeast!
Jesus had a keen eye to uncover the injustices in the world. As he went about his ministry, wandering around the countryside and visiting Jerusalem, the chief city where worship at the temple was a prize and the political power base was focussed, he sought out those who were not part of the elite but victims of the policies of the powerful. The blind, the infirm, women, children, the sick, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, the poor, the homeless. Jesus made visible those who were invisible. For Jesus’s celebration, these were the guests and these were given pride of place. Jesus often said: the first shall be last and the last first. What does that mean for us?
Jesus welcomes us into the realm of God. He invites us to make a difference to the world by turning it upside-down. The church is a place were you should be able to see this upside-down world in action, a place that, in miniature, we can see God’s plan made real. And like a mustard seed, the church believes this vision, once formed, will grow and prosper.
The church shares bread and wine, the feast of God, representing, the body of Christ, sign of God’s spirit, reaching out beyond the walls of the church into the community. And Jesus invites us all to share in that lifegiving opportunity. I think the church today is only too aware of its failings but each time we meet in Jesus’s name, we renew our vision of a different world where everyone is seen and recognised, and where everyone has a place.
