Friday, March 15, 2013

TRANSFORMED BY CHRIST’S LOVE


                Sometimes, in our skeptical world, we accept the premise that people don’t really change. Somewhere along in their personal development, the die is cast. A person can make cosmetic changes to the outside of their life, but their core being remains fixed. We often view people who have run afoul of the law in this way. Sometimes, people who have experienced significant traumas or have made significant mistakes in their past believe that they are trapped. Their past will always dictate their future. Unfortunately, for many people, this becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
               
                I said goodbye to a man this week who I watched undergo a significant transformation in his life. It wasn’t instantaneous; it happened over time. This transformation took place through the consistent application of Christ’s love in his life. I watched him move from being rigid and self-righteous to being compassionate and forgiving. He wasn’t perfect and he still had some rough edges, but he was definitely transformed.

                The Bible tells us that, when we put our faith in Christ, something miraculous happens. We become a whole new person. The core of our being is transformed and we begin to think and act differently. Paul puts it this way in 2 Corinthians 5:17. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

                There are a number of examples given in the Bible of this happening. Of course, the transformation of Saul, the vehement persecutor of the church,  into the Apostle Paul, the untiring advocate for the church, is an amazing example. But there is another example that most of us can identify with more readily. It is the story of Zacchaeus.

                Zach, to put it in modern terms, was a ruthless business man. He was always working an angel in order to gain some benefit for himself. His motivator was money. He wanted to live the good life, and so he found the easiest path to get there. In his day, the way to do that was to become a tax collector for the Romans. We may not appreciate the IRS today, but they are saints compared to the Roman Tax collectors. Taking on this responsibility offered Zach the potential for great wealth, but it came at a cost. He had to turn his back on his own countrymen and align himself with the hated Romans. He became reviled within his community, but he didn’t care, as long as he got the money.

                One day he heard about this young Rabbi, named Jesus, who was preaching in his area. He was intrigued by the things that he heard about this Jesus. The more he heard the more he wanted to see this amazing young man. When Zach heard that Jesus was coming to his town, he devised a plan to get a glimpse of Jesus. Zach was a short man. He knew that he would never be able to see Jesus over the crowds that followed him. Being a hated tax collector, no one would allow him to go to the front of the crowd. So he figured out where Jesus would be walking, found a tree, climbed into its branches and waited.

                Zach’s heart began to pound as he saw the crowd approaching. He strained to get a glimpse of Jesus. The crowd was pressing around Jesus, obscuring Zach’s view. His pulse quickened as he realized that the crowd would pass right under him. As the crowd approached, they stopped right under Zach’s tree. There was Jesus, only a few feet away. Much to Zach’s surprise, Jesus looked up into the tree and smiled a big smile at Zach. At first, he thought that Jesus was laughing at him. After all, it was rather ridiculous; this tax collector, in his fancy robes, precariously perched in a tree. Zach began to feel self-conscious and a little silly. Then Jesus spoke. Not to the crowd, as Zach expected, but to him.

                Zach, come down out of that tree. I am going to eat at your house today. Zach almost fell out of the tree, as he hurried to the ground. Jesus wants to come to my house! The crowd was shocked, but the smile never left Jesus’ face. Zach proudly escorted Jesus to his home, and then set the servants to work preparing the meal. As they waited, Jesus talked with Zach and some others gathered there. Jesus’ words penetrated Zach’s hard heart. What Jesus said made sense; more sense than Zach had ever known. Zach was overwhelmed by the compassion that Jesus showed him; compassion that Zach had not known since he was a child. Zach had not been particularly religious, but a longing to know God burst in his soul. As Jesus talked, Zach could hardly contain himself.
               
                The meal finally came, and all the guests took their places. Zach sat Jesus in the place of honor. Before the meal began, Zach stood and gained the attention of the guests. They expected some pious blessing to impress the young Rabbi. What they got shocked and surprised them.

                Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount." Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." Luke 19:8-10 (NIV)

                Zach was a changed man from that moment on. The Bible doesn’t give us the rest of the story, but I have no doubt that Zach was one of the first to sign up for “The Way” after Jesus’ death and resurrection.

                Most of us don’t have dramatic stories like Zach’s. But all of us are in need of transformation by the love of Christ. Without Christ in our lives, we all live for self. We may be respectable and even charitable, but we are still living for ourselves. The Bible calls this sin and living in darkness. But when we encounter Jesus, the lights literally go on. We cannot live in darkness in the presence of Jesus. In his presence we will respond in one of two ways. We will either run away, as fast as we can, or we will yield to the light and be transformed by his love. Jesus will force no one to stay in his light, but like Zach, he calls us by name and invites us in. Jesus invites all of us to stop viewing him from a distance and to encounter him up close and personal.

Ephesians 5:8 (NIV)
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light


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