Jesus People

In our passage this week (Luke 6:12-26), Jesus summons an unlikely crew to advance his mission. This by itself is surprising: why would the perfect One entrust his rescue mission to imperfect ones? But Jesus is not done surprising us. Because as soon as he comes down the mountain with his new community, he teaches all his apprentices what kind of qualities he looks for in people who advance his mission: the poor; the hungry; the sad; the hated, excluded, and insulted because of Jesus (note: not hated because of our bad behavior). 

Imagine standing before Jesus as he expains the kind of people he wants to entrust with his mission. Are you surprised to hear what the Messiah values?