But some people have been hurt in organized churches and are a bit leery of entering them again - but they still desire a spiritual connection to God and to others (and would appreciate discussing spiritual matters). I think this is the idea behind it (from what I've read). Didn't Jesus meet people where they were?
"16 “But to what shall I liken this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, 17 and saying:
‘We played the flute for you,
And you did not dance;
We mourned to you,
And you did not lament.’
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her children.”
(Matthew 11)
"In his second epistle, Peter laments those who distort the word of God making note that,
“untaught and unstable people twist [it] to their own destruction.” (
2 Peter 3:16) As it was in Peter’s day, so it is in ours as the “untaught and unstable” have increased and the remnant “Berean” has become something of a novelty. We hear often that Jesus was a
“friend of tax collectors and sinners.” Error is proliferated by mangling an element of truth. Pawning of an absolute lie is quite difficult, but subtly twisting the truth is precisely the business of the devil — “It is written….,” he said. Yes, but we must always be prepared with, “It is written AGAIN…” that we might withstand his wiles. Was Jesus really a “friend” of tax collectors and sinners?
As our above text shows, it is plainly stated that Jesus is a friend of tax collectors and sinners, but lest we cast ourselves off the pinnacle of the temple, as it were, in our simple-mindedness, let us examine this passage more closely. Two chapters previous to this, in Matthew 9, Jesus calls Matthew, a tax collector, to follow Him. Later on, Jesus and His disciples are eating in a home (presumably Matthew’s) and many sinners and tax collectors came and sat down with them. The pharisees, always lying in wait, objected immediately and asked why he would eat with such people. Jesus says to them,
“Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick…… For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” (
Matthew 9:12-13) So then, Jesus acknowledges that they were “sick”, that they were “sinners” and they were in need of “repentance”. These were his reasons for allowing them in with Him, namely for evangelism.
Now, let’s return to Matthew 11. After hearing of John the Baptist’s imprisonment, Jesus lauds John to the multitudes even calling him,
“…more than a prophet.” (
Matthew 11:9) Jesus notes that “they” were slanderers of John and likewise slanderers of Himself. “They” was immediately referencing “this generation” (
Matthew 11:16), but it stands to reason that “they” were exemplified by the religious hypocrites; the pharisees and scribes as we see them doing precisely this only two chapters prior. Jesus says that “THEY” say John has a demon, and “THEY” say the Son of Man is a “glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.” THEY said this about Jesus but He never said this. Those who claim that Jesus was a friend of tax collectors and sinners are leveling the same false accusation that the pharisees leveled against Jesus, only usually for a different motive. Notice the other false accusations in the same line-up:
1. John has a demon
2. Jesus is a glutton
3. Jesus is a winebibber (a drunk)
4. Jesus is a friend of sinners and tax collectors
If Jesus was truly a “friend” of tax collectors and sinners as was claimed by His enemies, then the other accusations must also be true as we cannot arbitrarily separate them. When one validates the claim that Jesus was a “friend” of sinners (in the sense that they were implying), they unwittingly validate the claim that He was also a winebibber and that John the Baptist had a demon. God forbid!"
Was Jesus Really A "Friend" Of Sinners? | Servus Christi
So who then were Jesus' friends? He goes on to tell us in John 15:14:
“You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.”
Hope that helps. There is a lot of falsehood in contemporary cultural Christianity. You've just stumbled across one of them.
