Jesus Lived as a Social Reformer
Jesus demonstrated radical social change through acceptance of women and their contribution to God’s work. He demonstrated egalitarianism in table fellowship by inviting all to sit and eat with Him. He refused to become a village patron, instead as a wandering preacher and healer He went to all.
This social ethic is a reason for the growth of the Early Church. In the early centuries, women cared for destitute babies and orphans. Christians knocked on poor people’s doors and offered to move in to nurse the sick, deliberately exposing themselves to illness. They shared their rooms and food, though not their marriage beds. They were indistinguishable by speech or clothing but different in their conduct and character. We do not need new technologies to be an effective church. We need a rediscovery of this vision and energy, compassion and morality.
