Let s Get Real. Luke 19:1-10. April 5, 2015 (Easter)

Transcription

1 Let s Get Real Luke 19:1-10 April 5, 2015 (Easter) At first glance this might seem like a strange Easter text. And really after preaching so many sermons on the Easter texts in the 4 Gospels I was looking for something different for a couple of different reasons. So let s take a second look at this much beloved story about Zacchaeus. The first thing that should be understood is that the author of this Gospel, Luke, was a Doctor, a scientist. He was by nature a man of detail. You can see that in his opening paragraph way back in chapter 1; Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good alsot to me to write and orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus. So everything that he 1

2 included in his account of Jesus life was deemed to have been both important and verified. So here we have a story that is only recorded in Luke s account of Jesus life, which in itself is significant because the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) chose so many of the same stories about Jesus. It s the story of a tax collector; no not just a tax collector, but a chief tax collector; that s important. Who wants to see Jesus and climbs up a tree because he was short. Once again, on the surface, it s a cute little story and we have even written a children s song about it. But at it s core it s more than a cute story, it has to be because this man of science who researched his account of Jesus life choose to include it and none of the other writers did. Remember that means that it is important. On this Easter morning when I m not using one of the typical Easter passages, let s look a little more closely at the story of Zacchaeus. 2

3 Zacchaeus a tax collector and chief tax collector at that. We need to understand something about tax collectors in Jesus day. These were men who first of all worked for a foreign government, a government who an occupying army in the country. They collected a hated tax for a hated occupier of the country. The way the system was set up a tax collector had certain taxes that needed to gotten from each family, but he was allowed, by the Romans, to steal as much as he could from the people. And to back up his theft there was always the threat that he could tell the Romans that so and so hadn t paid any taxes. Suffice it to say that tax collectors weren t a popular group of people, but they were rich. Luke makes sure that his readers know that Zacchaeus was a wealthy man. 3

4 The next part of this unique encounter was that of Zacchaeus wanting to see Jesus. At this time in Jesus life He was headed to Jerusalem for the last time. He knew it would be His last trip and that He would be betrayed, Arrested, Given a mock trial, Savagely beaten, And finally executed by crucifixion. Now we see Jesus as He enters Jericho on His way to Jerusalem. Zacchaeus hearing the commotion and finding out that it was this Jesus about whom he had heard so much goes running out of his house and because he is short can t see over the crowd and so he climbs a sycamore-fig tree to get a better look. This is where the story gets really interesting. If Luke s entire purpose was to show that even wicked people wanted to see Jesus then we could end the story right here. Luke, the scientist who researched everything, says that as Jesus was passing under the tree where Zacchaeus was sitting he looked up and said; Zacchaeus come down 4

5 immediately. I must stay at your house today. Did you hear that, Did you catch the verbage, Did it resonate in your head and heart? Jesus is saying that the purpose, His sole purpose of His passing through Jericho on His way to Jerusalem was to have lunch with Zacchaeus. Man that is powerful and it can be life changing when we let it sink into our hearts. The next part of the story is to be expected; the people begin to grumble and complain, especially the religious people. Why is Jesus hanging around with such a sinful man? This man is a tax collector after all. He is the lowest of the low. A teacher of the people shouldn t be hanging out with people like him. What happens next? Did Jesus give him a stern talking to about how wrong it was to steal and lie? Did He reprimand him for being a dupe for the Romans? Did He give him a long 5

6 sermon about what it means to be a good Jew? No Luke doesn t record a single word that Jesus said.?we Preachers should remember this; Sometimes those stern talks back fire on us. Story of the Methodist minister on the subway with the guy who had been out carousing all night.?? But the change in Zacchaeus was amazing. He said; Look Lord I m giving half of all I have to the poor and if I have cheated anyone I will pay them back 4 times what I took from them. Man, Zacchaeus must have been one wealthy man. He was going to give away half of what he had to the poor and then 4 times what he had stolen back to the people from whom he had stolen. He had stolen from hundreds even thousands of people. He must have been a very wealthy man indeed. Three very important points jump out at me about this encounter between Jesus and Zacchaeus. 6

7 1. Zacchaeus didn t plan this encounter, Jesus did. Zacchaeus may have thought that the only reason that he climbed up that tree was because he was curious about this Jesus about whom he had heard so much. No it was Jesus who planned to be in Jericho that day and it was to have a meal with Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was drawn up into that tree by God. Jesus says in John 6:44 that no one can come to Him unless the Father draws them. Zacchaeus was drawn by God up into that tree. 2. Zacchaeus doesn t seem to be an unhappy person who is looking to make a change in his life. In fact he seems quite content with his wealth and life style. If it were different Luke would have told us because he was a scientist and he was methodical in his research about Jesus life. But God knew, He knew that there was great big whole in Zacchaeus, an emptiness that wouldn t go away no matter how much money he had or how much played or partied. It was an emptiness that wouldn t go away and it got bigger everyday. That s why God drew him out to that tree in Jericho almost 2000 years ago. 7

8 3. IT WAS BEING IN THE PRESENCE OF JESUS THAT MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE. It wasn t a sermon or even just a thought that changed Zacchaeus that day; it was being in the presence of Jesus. It wasn t a powerful message that changed the heart of that rich tax collector and thief, rather it was being in the presence of the living God who lived in Jesus. Let s get real for a moment. First let me say how glad I am for all of you who are visiting with us this morning. You may be from out of town or live in one of the neighborhoods near the church. We are so glad that you choose to spend part of Easter morning with us here at Gainesville Church. Also allow me to say that it s not lost on me that there are a lot more people here than there were last week. And I m going to go out on a limb here and guess that next week is going to be a lot less crowded. I get it in more ways than most of you realize. 8

9 Since we are being real here for few moments I want to ask you a question; why are you here? Maybe you are visiting family from out of town. Or possibly you are looking for a church and you decided to come on Easter to check us out. Again, welcome, everyone is welcome in this house of worship on any Sunday. Again while we are getting real, some of you are here for the one or two times a year that you go to a church. One more time I welcome you, no judgment here. But once more the question; why do you think you are here? Did you promise your spouse that you would come on Christmas Eve and Easter morning? If so you can breath a sigh of relief because Easter is early this year and you have almost 9 months to go before you need to come back. Again I welcome you, no judgment from me. Maybe you promised your kids that you would attend at least once a year and here you are. In that case you ve got another 12 months until you have to come back. 9

10 Maybe you came because this is a holiday weekend and all the other things that you have to do on Sundays aren t happening. Or maybe because you think church is something that everyone should do at least once a year. Those might be some of the reasons that you thought brought you to this place this morning, but I would propose that isn t really the reason why you are here. Just like Zacchaeus on that day some 2000 years ago you were drawn here by a God who loves you more than you know. This same God knows the hole that is in your heart. He knows it because He put it there. It s a God shaped hole and only He can fill it. We can party and play and amuse ourselves with all of the latest and greatest. We can have the best careers and the biggest bank accounts, but the hole is still there and only this loving God can fill it. No matter what reason you had for coming to church when you got into the car this morning it isn t the real reason. You are here because the God of all creation drew you because 10

11 He wants to fill that emptiness inside of you. And all you need is to be in the presence of Jesus the one who loves you so much that died on the cross so that you could be forgiven, truly forgiven for all that is wrong in your life and in your past. I knew that you would be coming this morning. That s why I asked our regular attendees to park as far away from the church as possible so that all of you, our visitors, could have the best parking spots. That s why the musical groups have been working long extra hours to get ready for this morning so that the music would help you to be in the presence of this Jesus. Because being in the presence of Jesus changes lives. That s why we are doing everything possible to keep each of these worship service to 1 hour so that everyone visiting with us this morning can get to their other activities after services on time. We are very glad that you are hear and want this to be an experience that you want to have next Sunday and the Sunday after that. 11

12 Everything that we are doing this morning is to help you be in the healing presence of Jesus. It s His presence that makes all the difference. It s not a sermon or preaching or a strong talking to by some religious leader, but being in the presence of Jesus. It is my hope and prayer that all of us find His presence this morning, but I pray for it most especially for all of our visitors. I pray this morning that if you are one of those folks who only rarely finds your way into a church, that your heart will be warmed by the love of God here in this place. I pray if you are one of those who have been wounded by the church in the past that your heart will be healed this morning by the presence of Christ Jesus. I ve been praying for you. During the time of silent prayer you were the focus of my prayers. It is my prayer this morning that if you are one for whom church has become irrelevant in this modern world that you feel the presence of Jesus this morning and be touched by the love that He has for you and it will begin to fill that hole that is 12

13 in your heart. It s only then that Church will become relevant in your life. You might have come this morning thinking that you would be judged here for not attending more regularly, but that s not the case. I m glad that you responded to the call of God this morning. I pray that you will do so again next week because it s here that the amazing love of God is both seen and felt. 13