11th Week of Pentecost

the Fruit of the Mission to the Jews
The Repentance of Zacchaeus the Tax Collector
Ephesians 2:17-22
He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near, for through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. Through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord; in him you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

Luke 19:1-10
He came to Jericho and intended to pass through the town. Now a man there named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector and also a wealthy man, was seeking to see who Jesus was; but he could not see him because of the crowd, for he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus, who was about to pass that way. When he reached the place, Jesus looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay at your house.” And he came down quickly and received him with joy. When they all saw this, they began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to stay at the house of a sinner.” But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I shall give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.”

Zaccheus is a crook and is short in stature, yet when he has an opportunity to meet Jesus he does not allow his circumstances or his sin to stand in hia way. He must work harder than others to see Jesus and he does. He must repent to a greater extent than others and he does. What excuses do we use so that we keep Jesus out of some part of our lives? No matter the obstacle, embarrasment, inconvenience, or our own sinfulness we should run to Jesus to change our lives.

O God,
through the blessings of this holy day,
the Sunday of your glorious resurrection,
grant us secure and peaceful times.
May we join the heavenly hosts in praising you, O God,
in the highest heavens,
and on earth may there be peace and blessed hope for all people, now and forever. Amen.