August 14, 2022

Is Zaccheus seeking Jesus, or is Jesus seeking Zaccheus? The story of Zaccheus is the pinnacle of the “travel narratives” in Luke’s account of Jesus’ ministry. If you want to “see” it for yourself, read Luke 12-19 and underline anything with the “looking” theme (look, see, notice, watch, go after, find, search, lost/found, blind/seeing, etc.). Notice how Luke plays with the themes of being blind in the body (Luke 18:35-19:10) and being blind in the soul (i.e. “lost”). When we read Jesus’ interactions with people he notices them, then makes the first move. If we want others to see Jesus’ love in us, we need to become better noticers, better listeners, and become more brave in making the first move.

Smell: Read Luke 18:35-19:10

Taste: Watch the Video.

Is Zaccheus seeking Jesus, or is Jesus seeking Zaccheus? When I went looking for a good message on Zaccheus I found that most of them talked about the first half: the Zaccheus who seeks Jesus. But in the context of Luke’s “travel narratives,” this story is just as much about the Jesus who seeks Zaccheus. The pastor in this video captures that half well in the last 25 minutes of his message. It is worth watching the entire 60 minutes, but the last 25 minutes is most relevant for our conversation on Sunday. So your choice! Start at the beginning or 34:20

It may be helpful to give the last 25 minutes a little context:

• The larger theme of this messags is They are Us: Lazarus, Nicodemus, Zaccheus, and Jesus. This presenter has an energetic and relatable way of seeing ourselves in the stories of these biblical characters.
• The four “movements” of the sermon are: We all feel small, we all can seek Jesus, we all have a crowd, and Jesus seeks us. The 34:20 mark picks up at we all have a crowd.
• And lastly, as you will see, the style of this message is almost a polar opposite of last week!*  We listened to a straight-laced white dude last week and this week we will watch a black preacher engaging the congregation and working up a sweat! But that’s the beauty of the kingdom of God, right? God’s spirit has been poured out on all kinds of people. I think you will enjoy it.

*You will hear two words in this sermon that have a context: “destiny” and “breakthrough.” These are what I consider “suitcase” words, words that mean more in a specific context than their dictionary meaning, but that meaning is largely hidden away in the background. I would love to talk more, but for now, if these words seem foreign, I’d encourage you to hear destiny as “God’s good future for you” or “maturing into the whole person, who with God’s help, you can be” and breakthrough as “growing as a disciple of Jesus” or “experiencing a fresh freedom from sin.”

Eat:

Wait…the “monologue” (sermon, lecture, etc.) isn’t the main course? Not at New Vision! New Vision gathers to do things we can’t do alone. We can all watch or listen to a monologue at home, but growth in faith is stunted if we don’t grow with others. Our gatherings are conversational and oriented towards living as a community of Jesus followers.

In person: We gather Sundays at 5 PM. We eat a meal together, followed by a time of conversation and encouragement. No one will call on you. No need to bring anything, but if you are more comfortable with a contribution bring chips, bread, or a side dish. We hope to make you feel welcome! For more about what to expect, click here.

On Zoom: To join us for the conversation via Zoom, contact Pastor Christina at newvisionbic@gmail.com. She’ll give you the link!

On Sunday evenings in August and September, Pastor Christina will be facilitating six conversations adapted from the book The Nine Arts of Spiritual Conversations by Mary Schaller and John Crilly.

“Getting good at anything takes practice. In Matthew 29:18-20, Jesus made a point of saying that all authority on heaven and earth had been given to him; and with that authority, his instruction was to “go and make disciples.” As a Christian, that’s an important part of your calling and purpose. So how are you going to do it? It starts with the basics. Jesus modeled nine simple practices that pave the way for effective spiritual conversations and discipleship.” (Text is from the introduction of Practicing the 9 Arts of Spiritual Conversations Complete Guide)