Living in the Spirit
October 29, 2016
Scripture Reading: Luke 19:1-10
He entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax-collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.’ So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, ‘He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.’ –Luke 19:1-7
Who is on our top ten list of sinners with whom we do not choose to associate? We, of course, like to think that we do not judge and isolate others, but we do. In our world, we might be more apt to fawn after a rich person than to shun them. Who would be the equivalent of a tax-collector type today? Perhaps a member of the mob or a gang would fit the bill as people whose riches were from ill-gotten gain. Would it be the owners of payday loan companies who charge exorbitant rates or the thieves who rob the local convenience store? Our country is extremely divided. A part of that division centers in our perception of who is good and who is bad. Some consider charging the highest price the market will bear for a life-saving prescription as a good business; some think it is no different than the thief at the convenience store.
How will we ever succeed at transitioning to a world ruled by God’s love, if we are unwilling to relate to all our neighbors the same? How can we be a conduit for justice unless we seek equal treatment for all? CEO’s in this country get a golden parachute worth millions of dollars when caught in bad business practices that cheat many people out of their livelihood while the kid who robs a convenience store gets five years in prison. Where is the justice in that?
God calls God’s followers to be conduits of justice. During this election year, we have an opportunity to work toward justice as a part of our civic duty by voting for issues that support restorative justice. More importantly, we are called to emulate Jesus by befriending all who are out of sync with God’s justice helping them like Jesus helped Zacchaeus to heed God’s call to live justly.
Prayer: Lord, plant in our hearts both the desire to live justly and a will to do justice. Amen.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.