Out on a limb

GospelLuke 19:1-10 
Jesus entered Jericho and was going through the town when a man whose name was Zacchaeus made his appearance: he was one of the senior tax collectors and a wealthy man. He was anxious to see what kind of man Jesus was, but he was too short and could not see him for the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to catch a glimpse of Jesus who was to pass that way. When Jesus reached the spot he looked up and spoke to him: ‘Zacchaeus, come down. Hurry, because I must stay at your house today.’ And he hurried down and welcomed him joyfully. They all complained when they saw what was happening. ‘He has gone to stay at a sinner’s house’ they said. But Zacchaeus stood his ground and said to the Lord, ‘Look, sir, I am going to give half my property to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody I will pay him back four times the amount.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man too is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek out and save what was lost.’

 At the beginning of his Gospel, Luke tells us that he has researched many stories around the person of Jesus. The incidentals of this tale, told only by Luke, suggest a story that has passed the test of time within the community and carries a message worth remembering.

 Jesus has spent time with tax collectors in the past; he has made time for these unpopular collaborators with Rome. Certainly, Zacchaeus has profited from this collaboration - popular or not he has both wealth and status. Despite this, here he can't get what he wants; he can't even fight his way through the crowd. Perhaps an invitation is in the air; something Zacchaeus can't quite name; something irresistible. 

 He makes a choice- a choice to act out of character; to act more like a child than a grown man. He scrambles into a tree; literally going out on a limb just for a glimpse. And now there is nowhere else to go; as high as he sits he has now made himself vulnerable. No doubt some jeering asides add to the crowd's complaints. Perhaps it is this vulnerability that gets Jesus' attention; that invites hospitality and redemption. This vulnerability that makes Zacchaeus free to let go of what used to be so importan.t

 Seeking God's grace often suggests pilgrimage or journey; perhaps the first step is the willingness  to move out of your comfort zone; to make yourself vulnerable? To know that you are a child of God  with needs the world cannot fulfil.  Hearing the invitation that bring Jesus to the home within you; to the place of transformation. A transformation that brings forth something wonderful.

 wordinthehand2013

Comments

claire bangasser said…
Moving out of our comfort zone :-)
So very true, Word!
Thank you
3 November 2013 at 05:39
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Listen

Image
Jesus said: ‘I tell you most solemnly, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand. The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out his flock, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They never follow a stranger but run away from him: they do not recognise the voice of strangers.’ Jesus told them this parable but they failed to understand what he meant by telling it to them. So Jesus spoke to them again: ‘I tell you most solemnly, I am the gate of the sheepfold. All others who have come are thieves and brigands; but the sheep took no notice of them. I am the gate. Anyone who enters through me will be safe: he will go freely in and out and be sure of finding pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so
Read more

The servant’s name was Malchus.

Image
Easter Midrash  An imagined story of Good Friday  "The servant’s name was Malchus." John 18:10 The servant's name is Malchus. I am not dead yet, rather, far from it. I don't know how others felt when they were healed but the inside of a miracle is a place of light and clarity beyond any new dawn. The complex weaving of skin only reflecting the myriad unravelling of thoughts and memories below the surface. Paths of life's story being made straight. My name is Malchus. Named by my mother. Her bedtime tale that I was named after the appearance, in Jerusalem, of regal scholars from the East. Magi seeking a king who had not yet been born. A slave herself, she had stood holding a lamp as the temple priests and scribes argued amongst themselves; no-one wishing to tell Herod that the prophecy was not for his line. When I was born just a few days later, I became her little 'king'. That's what Malchus means. I didn't thank her for it. Growing up
Read more

The Fourth Shepherd

Image
There are many characters in the story of the Nativity but one that we rarely hear of is the Fourth Shepherd. When the angels came that night to bring the Good News, they began with the most unlikely. Shepherds were a tough lot, weathered and self-reliant,  who had to survive out on the hills protecting their flock from the weather, the wolves and their own stupidity.  Once the shepherds had gotten over the shock and wonder of the glory of heaven shining all around them, they immediately wanted to go and find the baby; the lights of Bethlehem beckoned as brightly as the stars – ‘Come and see’. The could barely stop to wrap their cloaks around them. They took hold of  their staffs and each caught a light from the fire.  All except one. One young shepherd remained seated, looking into the fire. When the others asked him why he wasn’t ready, he replied that he was; he was ready to stay behind and take care of the flock. The other shepherds shook their heads w
Read more