TEXT: Matthew 11:16-19
Second, many people will reject the Gospel if we are as gracious as Jesus in our teaching. While John the Baptist was mocked for being out of touch with the world and living in the wilderness, Jesus was mocked for being in touch with worldly people. When Jesus fasted, He did so in private. He was often found feasting in the houses of publicans and sinners. Publicans were tax collectors employed by the Roman government who often charged the people more than the actual tax rate so as to enrich themselves. Sinners comes from a general Greek term for any type of wrongdoing, however, based upon the context, it seems to refer to people who were known to be sinners in the community, such as prostitutes, drunkards, or criminals. If we Christians are seen around people known to be sinful in an effort to point them to Christ, we will be rejected by society as sinners ourselves.