The Consequences of Meeting Jesus

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Sunday Reflection

Read Doreen Raymer’s reflection, titled, “The Little Man In A Tree,” from Sunday’s sermon. You’ll find it in the Sunday Reflections blog.

Sunday Scripture Reading:  Luke 19:1-10 (NRSV)

1 He entered Jericho and was passing through it. 2 A man was there named Zacchaeus. Read More…

Looking to Sunday

by Elaine Poproski

Do you know this song? I’m pretty sure I used to sing it in Sunday School[1] when I was a child. It goes like this:

Zacchaeus was a wee little man and a wee little man was he.
He climbed up in a sycamore tree for the Lord he wanted to see.
And when the Saviour passed that way, He looked up in the tree.
And said, “Zacchaeus, you come down
for I’m coming to your house for tea,
for I’m coming to your house for tea.”

For those of you who know the song, I’m so sorry; it’ll be stuck in your head for days.

The focus of the song is clearly that Jesus took notice of a short man and invited Himself over for a meal. As kids, the message was that Jesus notices people others don’t notice – like kids – and that He wants to spend time with them. It’s a good message. It’s a true message. But it’s not the whole message. Because it’s not the whole story.

On Sunday we’ll be reading Luke 19:1-10, which is the story of Zacchaeus and Jesus. As you prepare for Sunday, I invite you to read the story. You’ll notice that Zacchaeus was, indeed, a short man, which is why he climbed the tree to see Jesus. And you’ll notice that Jesus did invite Himself over for dinner. But you’ll also notice that Jesus’ invitation changed Zacchaeus’ life. This isn’t just Zacchaeus’ story; it’s the story of everyone who’s ever met Jesus. Knowing Him changes people’s lives – then and now. If you’ve met Jesus, I invite you think about how He’s changed your life. And if you haven’t met Jesus, I invite you to consider asking Him to introduce Himself to you.

[1] Sunday School was a tradition of Baptist churches in which kids had classes Sunday mornings before church during which they learned Bible stories.