The Word Christ in Greek is defined as “anointed one” and it is the same as the Hebrew word “Messiah.” This was the one who was to come and liberate Israel. This Messiah was thought to come and conquer the opposing forces. More or less he was supposed to be a political king. He would be a king of justice and rule with an iron fist against those that would try and cause pain against the nation of Israel. Instead of a political king that came only to Israel, there came a man who reached out to those who were not accepted in the religious order. The equivalent of those rejected today by the religious right. 

I think if Jesus came today he would accept many of the people that are not welcome in the church. I don’t even think that Jesus would be welcome in some churches. In a way he’s been made a affluent white GOP voting American. He has been made our President. That’s not who he is though. The people who Jesus would be hanging out with wouldn’t be those who claim to have it all together. It wouldn’t be the self righteous who hold “God hates fags” signs or the people who vote for the Republican party candidate. It would be the people who are about to end it all because they have no were else to turn. It would be the young teenager who feels remorse for engaging in premarital sex and now wants an abortion so that she won’t have to raise a baby all alone. It would be the homosexual who is searching for love, but can’t find it and all he hears is how much God is going to judge him instead of how much God loves him. It would be the liberal who fights for what she believes in. It would be the agnostic who wants to believe in God, but can’t because she’s afraid of his judgment.

These are some of the people who our king would be hanging out with. The lonely and the riffraff He would not judge them. He would love them. This is what the church needs to be about. It’s not about politics, whether or not you use birth control, wear tattoos or if you vote for the Republican party or not; it is about following Jesus. It’s about showing this love to people so that they to may share in the joy that there is a God who loves them no matter what they’ve done. This is what the Christ is. God, who is love, in the flesh.