“So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree in order to see Him, for He was about to pass through that way. When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.””
Now, right away, I’m already struck by the fact that even though the crowd was unwilling to accommodate Zaccheus’s “differentness” in order to help him see Jesus, he would not be deterred from seeing Jesus! A lot of people today would just leave the crowd or leave the church and harbor a growing bitterness in their hearts toward the church because they prevented them from seeing Jesus, but not Zaccheus! No no, he wasn’t going to let that crowd keep him from seeing Jesus! So he ran. Pause. Did you know in his culture at that time it was considered shameful for someone like him, an elder or wealthy nobleman, to run, much less climb up into a sycamore tree? But Zaccheus didn’t care, for he was willing to publicly shame himself before the crowd in order to see Jesus! Oh my friends, this is the kind of faith that Jesus is drawn to like a magnet. And being that Jesus was about to pass by, He intentionally goes to where Zaccheus was to create a safe space for grace. For, what Jesus is teaching us here is if we’re going to create a safe space for grace, we first need to…
GO TO THEIR SPACE.
Remember, in our story today, Zaccheus embodies for us those that are the worst of sinners and those that are different, like those from the neurodivergent, deaf or differently abled communities. Or simply physically different like Zaccheus was short. And Jesus models for us that if we’re going to make accommodations and create a safe space for grace, we first need to go to their space.
You see, grace is like a heat-seeking missal. It pierces into an environment searching for the worst of sinners or the most misunderstood person who’s different. Then once it locks in on its target, it quickly invades their space with overwhelming grace! This is what Jesus demonstrated by going to where Zaccheus was and creating a safe space for grace.
Watch this message by Dr. Peter Roennfeldt to learn the art of bringing Jesus closer to people.
So, if we’re truly going to be followers of Jesus, then let’s look at exactly how Jesus did it and follow. He intentionally goes to the space where Zaccheus was and looks at him. Jesus is fully present to Zaccheus, with full awareness of his story and the scene that was before Him. We too need to truly see people and be fully present to them, with an increased awareness of their story. Jesus then speaks to him and says his name. Engaging in conversation with people, while knowing and saying their name acknowledges their humanity with dignity. Then Jesus continued on the journey to Zaccheus’s space. When someone allows you into their home, they have invited you into their lives, which is an honor and an opportunity for you to create space for grace in their space. When Jesus taught the 12 disciples and then later the 70 disciples, He then sent them out to go to the houses of the people they were trying to reach and eat a meal with them. He was simply teaching them to do what He had been doing in order to make disciples. Therefore, when Jesus gave us the Great Commission He said “Go into all the world”, and not “tell the world to come to us”! We are to go, like Jesus did, to their space and there create a safe space for grace.
Sometimes we have an attraction-based orientation to church, where we want to attract people to our space in order to experience grace. However, Jesus models for us that we need to be the church, the body of Christ, moving into the spaces of people that are in need of His grace. Who’re the worst of sinners or different in the places where you do life? Who is the Spirit impressing you to go to their space?
Stay tuned for Part 3!
