Luke 7:33-35 -- On Being Wise and Open-Minded

"For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil.
The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!
But wisdom is justified of all her children."
Luke 7:33-35


I don't think that I ever really registered the third verse of this selection before.  I always read it as a commentary on how people were going to criticize you no matter what you did, but with verse 35 included in my thinking today, it seems to be more than that.

Maybe the point here is that, whatever our choices, we need to be wise... and of course, living the gospel is being wise, but the gospel doesn't force us to all be the same.  It requires obedience to God's commandments, yes, but we can be extremely different people and still wisely live the gospel.  We don't all have to be on the same diet or have the same friends, or listen to the same music, or wear the same clothes, or have the same hairstyle, etc.  We just need to avoid things that are harmful to us, serve the Lord, and love other people.

Maybe we too often think that people need to be more like we are in order to be wise, and approved of God, when actually wisdom is justified of all her children, meaning that there is some vast variety in being wise, and that is okay.  Today, let's of course make sure we are keeping the commandments, and not compromise in that regard, but let's also try to remember the differences between Christ and John the Baptist, and be a little bit more open-minded about the different ways that we all choose to serve.  All are welcome, and needed, in the Kingdom of God.