Joplin Community of Christ

Listen to today’s service using the player at the bottom of this page. Here is a direct link to download today’s audio message http://jcoc.no-ip.org/media/JoplinCOC-10-31-2010.mp3

at http://jcoc.no-ip.org/media/JoplinCOC-10-31-2010.mp3

Announcements
Today
6:00 PM – Christmas Choir Practice

Wednesday, Nov. 3
Mid-Week Renewal of the Spirit – 6:00 PM

Sunday, Nov. 7
Theme: Seek God’s Peace
Presider: Steve Hicks
Speaker: Fred Dalton
Musician: Diana Martin
Morning Devotions: Emmy Kingore
Deacon in Charge: Sylvia Honeyball
Pre-Communion Worship, 9:00 AM

Saturday, Nov. 13
Mission Center Conference ,12:30 PM at the Chapel of Peace, 909 W. Battlefield, Springfield, MO.

Sunday, Nov. 14
Congregational Business Meeting – Immediately following church to sustain/elect congregational officers for 2011.

Birthdays & Anniversaries, Oct. 31 – Nov. 6
Bob Brooks
2 Thelma Gold
4 Margo Peterson

Administration Teams, Oct. 24 – Nov. 6
Daytime & Evenings: Ben & Margo Peterson

Exploring the Scriptures

The story of the encounter between Zacchaeus and Jesus appears only in the Gospel of Luke. Even so, it is familiar to most disciples. Sometimes, the familiarity of a story from the scriptures can lead us to read or listen to the entirety of the scripture passage with knowledge of the end already in mind. When this happens, we might quickly pass over some of the richness of the text, thinking that the conclusion is what is most important.

As you explore today’s scripture from Luke for yourself, try to imagine you are reading it for the first time without already knowing what comes next in the passage. Spend some time focusing on the details of the verses leading up to the conclusion stated in verse 10. These details can add significantly to your understanding of the many lessons to be learned from this passage. They can also help you present this familiar story to your listeners in a fresh way to allow them to sense new meaning for it in their lives.

Zacchaeus is described as a wealthy chief tax collector. These facts set the stage for understanding why the crowd is so disgruntled with Zacchaeus and Jesus’ actions toward him later in the passage. A chief tax collector would be perceived as even more corrupt than a regular tax collector. In fact, this is the only reference in the New Testament to a “chief” tax collector. Being identified as rich is a theme in many stories in Luke and is usually associated with a harsh judgment from Jesus. Understanding that, at this point in the story, tends to lead us to expect such a result here as well. A reversal of that expectation later in the passage provides a new lesson: While it may be easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter heaven, Zacchaeus becomes that camel and shows us the way.

In this story Zacchaeus is attempting to see Jesus, while in the previous story in Luke the blind man Jesus passes by is also attempting to see. Note the similarity of the details of these two stories. Both men want to see, both stand to speak with Jesus, and both are hindered by the crowd. Perhaps the most significant similarity is that in both stories a healing takes place at once. The blind man regains his sight “immediately” and Zacchaeus receives salvation “today.”

As a tax collector, Zacchaeus would have been perceived as someone thought to be too dignified to run through a crowd or climb trees. The fact that he submits himself to ridicule by the crowd for these actions signifies how intense his desire is to see Jesus. In contrast, the crowd can only see Zacchaeus as the sinner they know and not as the repentant sinner he desires to be and Jesus wants him to be.

The act of generosity displayed by Zacchaeus in verse 8 is remarkable when measured against the Old Testament laws of restitution. Such laws were varied and Zacchaeus chose to apply the most demanding ones to himself. In his response, Jesus does not validate whether or not Zacchaeus has exhibited the correct amount of generosity. Instead, he acknowledges that Zacchaeus has changed and accepted Jesus’ vision of the peaceable kingdom.

Finally, in verse 10 we reach the concluding statement that makes it clear the story is not really about Zacchaeus but is about Jesus and his mission. In retrospect, it causes us to consider whether Zacchaeus was seeking Jesus, or if Jesus was seeking Zacchaeus.