Zanny Zacchaeus
Who do you have in your life that makes others look at you weirdly? Who is YOUR outcast? Who is your person always in trouble? You were once that to someone. You need this person in your life to teach you some great things about God. Jesus once met up with someone like this, like everyday, yet I am specifically speaking of a man by the name of Zacchaeus. Here is how The Message shares that interaction:
“Then Jesus entered and walked through Jericho. There was a man there, his name Zacchaeus, the head tax man and quite rich. He wanted desperately to see Jesus, but the crowd was in his way—he was a short man and couldn't see over the crowd. So he ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus when he came by.
“When Jesus got to the tree, he looked up and said, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry down. Today is my day to be a guest in your home.’ Zacchaeus scrambled out of the tree, hardly believing his good luck, delighted to take Jesus home with him. Everyone who saw the incident was indignant and grumped, ‘What business does he have getting cozy with this crook?’
“Zacchaeus just stood there, a little stunned. He stammered apologetically, ‘Master, I give away half my income to the poor—and if I'm caught cheating, I pay four times the damages.’
“Jesus said, ‘Today is salvation day in this home! Here he is: Zacchaeus, son of Abraham!’”
Your Zacchaeus can be anyone, but they will always be someone that gets on your friends LAST nerve. They seem to have no social skills, or filters. They challenge everything that you think because they do not seem to listen, care or work toward something. They always come up short, are up a tree, or just do not fit in.
They are far from efficient and helpful. They cause us to see God in the midst of messiness. We, ourselves, are far from perfect so we have had someone bring us in when we were out in the cold. The interesting part of the relationship we have with God is that we need this personality to keep us grounded and focused in the grace that we get from God for our own lives. We need someone that stands out because they cause us to see the world from a different view. They cause us to see that love and life is not near as easy or clean as we want them to be.
The other thing that a Zacchaeus does in our life is teach us what it looks like and means to respond FULLY to God’s presence and promise. Did you notice how generous he responded? Giving HALF of everything he had and promising to restore to the maximum requirement anything he gained dishonestly? Why do you think we do not respond in such ways to those around us? Why do we hold back from the promises that such an embodiment brings?
This week remember you WERE Zacchaeus and you NEED a Zacchaeus. Go out and find one!
Blessings,
Pastor Greg
“Then Jesus entered and walked through Jericho. There was a man there, his name Zacchaeus, the head tax man and quite rich. He wanted desperately to see Jesus, but the crowd was in his way—he was a short man and couldn't see over the crowd. So he ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus when he came by.
“When Jesus got to the tree, he looked up and said, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry down. Today is my day to be a guest in your home.’ Zacchaeus scrambled out of the tree, hardly believing his good luck, delighted to take Jesus home with him. Everyone who saw the incident was indignant and grumped, ‘What business does he have getting cozy with this crook?’
“Zacchaeus just stood there, a little stunned. He stammered apologetically, ‘Master, I give away half my income to the poor—and if I'm caught cheating, I pay four times the damages.’
“Jesus said, ‘Today is salvation day in this home! Here he is: Zacchaeus, son of Abraham!’”
Your Zacchaeus can be anyone, but they will always be someone that gets on your friends LAST nerve. They seem to have no social skills, or filters. They challenge everything that you think because they do not seem to listen, care or work toward something. They always come up short, are up a tree, or just do not fit in.
They are far from efficient and helpful. They cause us to see God in the midst of messiness. We, ourselves, are far from perfect so we have had someone bring us in when we were out in the cold. The interesting part of the relationship we have with God is that we need this personality to keep us grounded and focused in the grace that we get from God for our own lives. We need someone that stands out because they cause us to see the world from a different view. They cause us to see that love and life is not near as easy or clean as we want them to be.
The other thing that a Zacchaeus does in our life is teach us what it looks like and means to respond FULLY to God’s presence and promise. Did you notice how generous he responded? Giving HALF of everything he had and promising to restore to the maximum requirement anything he gained dishonestly? Why do you think we do not respond in such ways to those around us? Why do we hold back from the promises that such an embodiment brings?
This week remember you WERE Zacchaeus and you NEED a Zacchaeus. Go out and find one!
Blessings,
Pastor Greg
posted by Covenant of the Cross at
10:49 AM
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