THE 12: PART 2- The Jar-Jar Binks of the Bible

In the Star Wars movie, The Phantom Menace, we were first introduced to an awkward, clumsy character, who has become, what many consider to be the worst part of Star Wars. Jar-Jar Binks is an outsider, even banished from his own city. He's even referred to as a "pathetic life form", by Obi-Wan Kenobi! While there are certainly Star Wars fans who love Jar-Jar, there is a very vocal group of "fans" who passionately hate the character. In fact, even the guy who played Jar-Jar in a motion capture suit has vowed to never play the character again, because so many people treated him badly and said nasty stuff about him! Even today, 15 years after his debut, Jar-Jar is still the subject of memes and is regularly hated on.

This week, as we continued our series looking at the stories of some of Jesus' disciples, we took a look at the Jar-Jar Binks of the Bible. This guy was so hated that people would cross to the other side of the street when they saw him walking. He likely was spit at and booed. And what's even more shocking is that even the religious leaders of the day treated him like he had some kind of disease, even referring to him as "scum".

Matthew (also known as Levi, the Jewish version of his name) was a tax collector. Tax collectors were hated so much because their job was to take money from the Jewish people and give it to the Roman Empire- this occupying force that ruled over them. On top of that, tax collectors were known for over-charging people and pocketing the extra for themselves. And if that weren't enough, because Matthew was a Jew working for the Roman Empire, he was considered to be a traitor to his own people. Nobody wanted anything to do with him! Well, almost nobody.

Mark 2:13-17 tells us that Jesus approached Matthew (Levi) and asked for him to be one of his disciples. Matthew not only followed Jesus, but decided to throw a house-party so that all of his friends (other tax collectors and people who were generally hated and looked down on) could meet Jesus. The fact that Jesus attended this party caused a big stir. The religious leaders questioned how Jesus "could eat with such scum".

1. Even though Matthew was hated, Jesus treated him with love and kindness. Jesus saw his worth.

Our world is full of many terrible examples of human beings treating other human beings like garbage. You see it in high school. You see it on the news every day. Even though Matthew was treated like garbage by everybody around him, Jesus treated him differently. Jesus invited him to be a disciple. Jesus hung out with Matthew and his friends over supper.

Do you have a reputation for being someone who cares about others and treats people with kindness, even when others might do the opposite? Jesus was known for having love and compassion for people who were often mistreated and rejected. Jesus was known for touching the untouchables! If you call yourself a Christian (a Jesus follower), then we're reminded that the greatest commandments are to love God and love others. Probably all of us know people like Jar-Jar Binks. How do we treat them? We can all agree that there's enough hatred, anger, bullying, and violence in our world. Every day we face choices where we can join in with the crowd and do what seems so normal, or to live the way that Jesus calls us to.

2. Jesus was slammed for hanging out with people known as scum.

Even the religious leaders mocked Jesus and were shocked that he would eat dinner with people who were so universally hated and looked down on. In fact, in Matthew 11:19, Jesus said that he was called a pig, a drunk, and a friend of scum. He was hated and looked down on for showing kindness to people who were hated and looked down on.

Are you someone who's willing to treat others right, showing love, kindness and respect, even if the consequence is to be mocked yourself? Do you let the crowd intimidate you into bullying, mocking, or mistreating others? Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:11-12 that when we are treated badly for doing the right thing, when we are insulted and mistreated for simply doing what Jesus would do, God will bless us.

Parent Discussion/Follow-Up:

1. Can your teen think of someone in their school or neighborhood who is mistreated, bullied, or mocked? Is there someone your teen has a hard time being nice to-- maybe because they are annoying or unkind themselves? Take the time to pray for that person. Pray that they would come to experience God's love and forgiveness for themselves. Pray that God would help them. Pray that God would open an opportunity for your teen to show kindness to people who aren't used to that.

2. Ask your teen what they think their reputation is? If someone were to look at the things they say and do, would they see someone like Jesus? Would they notice a difference in their lives? Would they see someone who is kind and cares for others? Pray together than God would help your teen follow Jesus' example, even when it's hard. Pray that they would live in a way that would show others that they're serious about loving and following Jesus.

3. Challenge your teen to do one thing in the next week that would show kindness and care to someone who is often bullied or mistreated. Brainstorm together what that thing might be! Maybe it simply means saying "hi" or having a casual conversation with that person? Maybe it means sitting next to a person in the cafeteria/lunch room who often sits alone, or inviting them to join your circle of friends? Maybe it means stopping your friends from saying unkind things or gossiping about that person?