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    Apr 02, 2017

    Empowered

    Passage: Luke 19:1-10

    Speaker: Rev. Vivian McCarthy, Pastor

    Series: Gospeled Lives

    Category: Discipleship

    We are empowered to serve others and our world when we draw near to Christ.

    Back in December, I had a burial at Pleasant Grove. If you’ve never been to Pleasant Grove church, you wouldn’t know that the church and the cemetery sit all the way at the top of a hill, surrounded by open fields, and on that particular day, the wind was blowing like crazy. And it was chilly – made chillier due to the brisk wind.

    Many of you know that I am rarely cold. I’m more likely to sweat when it’s above about 65 or there is the least little bit of humidity. On that day, however, I was a pastor-cicle, cold all the way to the bone when that brief service was over.

    I went to the luncheon afterward, and when I got to the house, I wandered in to the living room where a very cozy fire was in the fireplace – with a vacant chair beside it. All I could think of was basking in the warmth of that fire. Basking – that’s the word I want you to hold onto.

    I claimed that chair so I could thaw out, and the second I sat down I knew I made a HUGE mistake! It was a lovely, old, antique chair with carved arms and beautiful upholstery – and not one single spring in the seat. I am not exaggerating when I tell you that my bottom was about 3 inches off the floor. My knees were almost up to my nose, and I just knew I’d need a crane when the time came to get up. Someone came over and said I was in a terrible chair – and would I like to move. I wasn’t about to move until I had to – I was, after all, basking and beginning to feel my toes.

    I am happy to report that when the time came for me to hoist myself out of the chair, I was able to get up on my own and did not embarrass myself – what a relief!!

    This week’s story of Zacchaeus’ encounter with Jesus and John Indermark’s reflections on that encounter led me to think about basking.

    This week’s theme is Empowered. We’ve walked through Called, Challenged, Rejected, and Transformed. Empowered. It is just so natural to want to simply soak – to bask – in the love and grace of God and to consider that enough. Enough to know the love of Christ. Enough to enjoy the music. Enough to go to ROCK or summer camp or on a retreat or mission trip and feel those great feelings that come from those experiences. Enough to give all our problems to Jesus. It is so natural to want to leave it at that – to bask in the security of knowing that Jesus loves me.

    f we only receive, if we only get so far as knowing that our sins are forgiven, if we only want to be assured that we will receive eternal life. That’s enough – right??

    Let’s get to Zacchaeus, the tax collector, before we try to answer that question.

    I can’t resist sharing this portion of the introductory remarks Indermark shares since I’m pretty sure some of you haven’t had a chance to read it. He begins with the song I just sang with the children:

    It is a cute song. But as with other Bible stories we tell to the young ones, it goes much deeper than cuteness. Zacchaeus may have been a wee little man, but he was also a rich little weasel as well. [Indermark, page 93]

    The power of this story rests in how far Jesus is able to take Zacchaeus on that afternoon when he invited himself to lunch. Everybody in town wanted a glimpse of Jesus. Zacchaeus couldn’t see, so he did the practical thing and climbed a tree. Can’t you just imagine everyone straining against the rope like when a public figure walks through our streets today? This one thrusting a baby for a kiss on the cheek. That one stretching out a hand in welcome – please shake my hand! Just imagine the looks on the faces -- and the deafening silence when Jesus calls to Zacchaeus.

    It was just as scandalous as when Jesus went to that banquet arranged by Levi, as we discussed a couple of weeks back. But this one was more spur-of-the-moment. It was lunch – likely just Zacchaeus, Jesus and the household instead of the grand banquet that Levi put together with as many sinners as his house could hold.

    We don’t know much about the conversation at the table. All we know is that Zacchaeus makes a complete 180. He offers to give money back – to the poor as well as to those he has defrauded.

    Indermark masterfully sums this up in this way:

    In the estimation of Jesus, what has happened is salvation: ‘Salvation has come to this house.’ Has salvation come in Jesus’ presence or in Zacchaeus’ act? The answer is yes. Encounter with Jesus’ hospitality toward him empowers Zacchaeus’ gracious and just response toward all. Salvation comes when divine grace and human response welcome each other.

    So it is with us. Salvation comes when we realize God does not need us to decide who is and who is not worthy of grace. The Cross rendered that decision quite well, thank you. God’s welcome of us in Christ invites our lives to be shaped by such grace. The shaping begins within, in our spirits, but by no means does that tell the whole tale. The goal of our empowerment by encounter with Jesus is not simply hearts strangely warmed. Christ empowers us to live as he lived toward others: affording grace, seeking justice, enacting love. [Indermark, pages 94-95]

    Remember the question above? If we only receive, if we only get so far as knowing that our sins are forgiven, if we only want to be assured that we will receive eternal life. That’s enough – right??

    Well, no. I asked a few people this week to consider this description of salvation. One person reflected on some people who describe themselves as “born again.” Being born again, to some folks, means that no matter what, they are “in.” Know what I mean? They can do no wrong. They can even be nasty – God’s got it covered – and besides, now that they are born again, they are always right.

    Remember what I just read from our author?

    God’s welcome of us in Christ invites our lives to be shaped by such grace. The shaping begins within, in our spirits, but by no means does that tell the whole tale. The goal of our empowerment by encounter with Jesus is not simply hearts strangely warmed. Christ empowers us to live as he lived toward others: affording grace, seeking justice, enacting love. [Indermark, page 95]

    That shaping takes a long, long time – a lifetime to learn to be like Christ.

    If you look at our devotions over the last few weeks, you begin to see a progression. From call to challenge to rejection to transformation. This week’s readings should be deeply assuring just as surely as they compel us to action. Empowered. Call, challenge, rejection and transformation set the stage. Empowerment means that we have the tools – the gifts – the strength – to carry it out. To live in the way Jesus lived. To make faithful decisions. To love our neighbors, even the difficult ones. To love as Christ loved. To do as Christ did – bring good news to the poor, free the captives, feed the hungry, offer the thirsty something to drink, visit the sick and those in prison, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger.

    That, beloved, is the very definition of a gospeled life. Will you allow God to work through you, to empower you to bring healing and hope, to move beyond basking in your strangely warmed heart? To become more like Christ?