Love Like Jesus: Inclusion Is Where Love Begins
We’re launching a brand-new series called Love Like Jesus—and while it’s new, it’s really a continuation of what God has already been doing among us.
Our previous series, Awakening, focused on what happens when Jesus begins to work inside us—first as individuals, then as a church. We talked about revival taking root in our hearts and eventually leaving the building as we step back into our communities. Last week, we explored the what and the why of taking revival into everyday life.
This series is about the how.
How do we represent Jesus outside of church walls—in our neighborhoods, workplaces, schools, and everyday interactions? How do we love people the way Jesus did?
The Command That Defines Us
Our anchor verse for this entire series comes from John 13:34–35, where Jesus says:
“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”
Jesus calls this a “new” commandment—not because it had never been said before, but because it hadn’t been fully lived out. He makes something unmistakably clear: the world will recognize His followers not by how loud they are, how right they are, or how much Scripture they can quote—but by how they love.
Over the next four weeks, we’ll look at how Jesus loved people, using real encounters from His life as case studies. And we’ll quickly discover that Jesus loved people very differently than we naturally do.
Love Begins With Inclusion
The first aspect of love we’re focusing on is inclusion—because people who feel excluded rarely feel loved.
Think about a time when you felt excluded. Maybe it was a new school, a new job, or walking into a room where no one made eye contact or moved toward you. Those moments stick with us. Our brains record them in high definition.
That’s because exclusion quietly tells us, You don’t matter.
For many people outside the church, that’s exactly how Christians feel to them. We know each other. We clump together. We talk among ourselves. But often, we don’t move toward them.
And that’s where Jesus does something radically different.
Jesus and the Most Excluded Man in the City
In Luke 19, Jesus passes through the city of Jericho and encounters a man named Zacchaeus.
Zacchaeus was:
Jewish, but rejected by his own people
A chief tax collector, meaning he made his fortune by exploiting others
Wealthy, powerful—and completely isolated
He was hated by everyone. He was the poster child for exclusion.
Desperate just to see Jesus, Zacchaeus does something socially unthinkable for a rich man in that culture: he runs ahead of the crowd and climbs a tree.
And in a crowd filled with people eager for Jesus’ attention, Jesus stops.
He looks up.
He calls Zacchaeus by name.
And He says, “Come down. I must be a guest in your home today.”
Jesus singles out the most excluded person in the crowd—and includes him.
Three Things We Learn About Love From Jesus
1. Inclusion Is an Act of Love
Religious leaders in Jesus’ day were experts at exclusion. They believed holiness meant distance. Jesus showed that love moves toward people instead.
By choosing to eat with Zacchaeus, Jesus crossed a powerful cultural line. Sharing a meal wasn’t casual—it meant connection, acceptance, and relationship.
Jesus didn’t wait for Zacchaeus to change. He loved him first.
“God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” (Romans 5:8)
Who is the Zacchaeus in your life—the person others avoid, dismiss, or overlook?
2. Inclusion Does Not Mean Agreement
The crowd grumbled: “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner.”
Jesus was accused of endorsing sin simply because He loved sinners. But Jesus makes something clear: you can love someone deeply without agreeing with everything they do.
Jesus gained a reputation for this. He was called “a friend of sinners”—not because He compromised truth, but because He refused to withhold love.
That same tension still exists today. Loving like Jesus may invite criticism—but it also reflects His heart.
3. Inclusion Comes Before Transformation
The order matters.
Jesus invites Zacchaeus in before anything changes. The transformation comes later—naturally, willingly, joyfully.
Zacchaeus responds by giving away half his wealth and repaying those he cheated four times over. His life is radically changed—not because Jesus demanded it, but because love made it possible.
We often reverse the order: Change first, then you’re welcome.
Jesus says: You’re welcome—then let love do the changing.
Who Are You in the Story?
There are two ways to read this story.
You might be Zacchaeus—feeling excluded, unseen, or unworthy. If that’s you, hear this clearly: God so loved the world—and you are included in that “everyone.” Jesus welcomes you exactly as you are.
Or you might be called to play the role of Jesus.
Jesus spent most of His ministry outside religious buildings, actively seeking the overlooked. And He still does.
This Week’s Invitation
Here’s the simple challenge:
Look for the excluded person.
Move toward them.
Start a conversation.
Show kindness with no agenda.
No pressure. No conditions. Just love—because that’s how Jesus changed the world.
One life at a time.
And it still works the same way today.
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35)
Let’s learn to love like Jesus.