Show Us The Way

Luke 18:31—19:10

31Then he took the twelve aside and said to them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished. 32For he will be handed over to the Gentiles; and he will be mocked and insulted and spat upon. 33After they have flogged him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise again.” 34But they understood nothing about all these things; in fact, what he said was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.

35As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38Then he shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39Those who were in front sternly ordered him to be quiet; but he shouted even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40Jesus stood still and ordered the man to be brought to him; and when he came near, he asked him, 41“What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me see again.” 42Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has saved you.” 43Immediately he regained his sight and followed him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, praised God.

19He entered Jericho and was passing through it. 2A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. 3He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. 4So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. 5When 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.” 6So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. 7All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.” 8Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.” 9Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. 10For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”

We are on our way to Jerusalem. Moving ever closer but not there yet. I’ve read the book, I know how this particular story goes. I know what the way to Jerusalem means and yet, I’m still not quite sure what it really means. I know it means we’re headed for wonder, conflict, betrayal, suffering, heartbreak...but also redemption. We are going up to Jerusalem - the city where crucifixion isn’t an abstract. We are going up to Jerusalem - the place where impossible hopes come alive.

Jesus must know the limits of TELLING people things, even his closest followers. There’s just only so much you can explain, only so many ways, so many times you can repackage and reiterate an idea this big. Perhaps this is why Jesus then spends so much time SHOWING the disciples, the crowds, those at the edges, and those hovering from above...what this pain and arising looks like, providing glimpses of what it can and will be. 

It looks like….

A person who isn’t even given a name, who is made to sit on the outskirts of society, who is abandoned to poverty because of their disability, who is set up to rely on the help of others, of whom some would have said that he deserved this condition for some wrongdoing...a blind man...hears that Jesus has come near and calls out for mercy. Others nearby who are literally IN the crowd, the in-crowd if you will, find this distracting, even disruptive from the teaching and healing they thought they might hear and see and experience. They decide that this, this wayside place leading to Jerusalem, is not the time and place for such cries. They try to quiet him, to keep his noise from disrupting the holy procession. This only drives him to plead even more loudly. Jesus hears. Where the many would block the way, Jesus directs that a way be made for this one in need so that they can be truly near to one another. 

Jesus asks, “what do you want me to do for you?” What do you want God to do for you?

Sight, he says. Let me see again. Restore my body, restore me to community, restore my soul.

Immediately the blind one regained his sight and followed Jesus, glorifying God, and all the people, when they saw it, praised God.

One who sat on the margins, who would be degraded and silenced...is joined to those making their way to Jerusalem and becomes a reason to celebrate. 

It’s still an incredible wonder of kindness, justice, and liberating wholeness. It’s astounding, even if not all that surprising when you think about the character of Jesus. And I like this compassionate Christ who lifts up those society has made low. I wonder how the story of the blind man makes you feel?

Because then Jesus sees and invites the Tax Collector, Zaccheus, along the way. I grew up singing the Sunday School song about the determination of a wee little man, but the older I get the more this story makes me uncomfortable, even angry. I mean, it’s kinda offensive. Tax Collectors within the Jewish people were seen as traitors to their community.  They were a part of the people but seemingly had set themselves ABOVE and against the people by colluding with Rome, the Empire, in a way that brought suffering among them. They had seemingly chosen their own economic, political, and personal superiority at the expense of others. Many, if not most, Tax Collectors added their own little percentages to skim off the top and enrich themselves while those they charged struggled to survive. To the crowd, this role is synonymous with betrayal and exploitation.

This text doesn’t really tell us whether or not Zaccheus himself has committed the same offenses personally, or whether he is made complicit by his participation in a system that does these things. And yet he too longs to see this Jesus. Perhaps he too longs to BE SEEN by Jesus. He doesn’t call out to Jesus, but Jesus calls out to him by name. 

Jesus doesn’t embrace him because of his position of power, but essentially puts him in a position to use that power for generosity and hospitality. But it’s not a good look to the crowd and they grumble.  I’m pretty sure I would whole-heartedly be in that group. 

Both these stories show a crowd that tries to sit in judgement, whether of the poor and disabled or the exploitatively rich. Jesus is guarded as a show or limited essence to be protected and preserved rather than as a salvation to be experienced. Care is seen as disruptive rather than central. Welcome is seen as betrayal rather than reconciliation and liberation. And THIS… only echoes the misunderstanding that the disciples show. It is a fundamental misunderstanding or what God is here for. God has come for US, not just me. 

While traveling this past week, I got to read a bit more of Pastor Juanita Rasmus’ book “Learning to Be” where she writes, 

“Comparison and judgement are based on feelings of inadequacy and powerlessness.” so she asks herself “What’s going on in my heart and mind? What am I unwilling to face about myself that makes it easier for me to stand in the mob than to defend people I judge?” Than include and care for?

“Judgement has an energy that is not life-giving for anybody. When I live on judgement instead of the truth, something within me dies. Often that something is compassion for myself and ultimately compassion for others.”

Somehow, someway, even Zaccheus is changed. He turns his riches to generosity and insists on integrity, and offers reparations to any who were harmed. Jesus proclaims that he too is a child of Abraham - meaning heir to the promises of God, included in this cosmic covenant of divine care and faithfulness.  

This moment in time is an odd one. We feel the pull of joy as spring arrives and vaccinations spread. And yet we also hear of religious leaders in the Catholic Church would deny the belovedness and sacredness of the full extent of love in LGBTQ people. There is more death as self-hatred is turned onto others as racial and gendered violence. In the courts, we await justice for George Floyd and those connected to Breonna Taylor.

I wonder if perhaps it is at least in part because they could not understand their own identity as beloved child of god apart from toxic supremacy, dominance, control, and exploitation that these people could not see the harm in their actions. Perhaps this is what feeds the demon that brings harm to others.  I wonder this as a lamentation is not an apologetic nor an absolution. 

There is certainly a place for accountability. Zaccheus may be embraced by God, but must still make amends with the people. And yet at the end of the day, we see how judgement without understanding only separates and isolates, where Jesus connects. 

The text begins with a bold proclamation of direction - WE are going up to Jerusalem. The journey to the cross is not made alone. While Christ is ultimately the one who will bear it, getting there is still communal, but so is moving through it. We are only saved in as much as all people are included in that salvation. 

As we wrestle with the pull of “returning to normal” and wondering what that will be like, how we will get there without simply transposing the old normal onto new times in a way that would misunderstand the moment….Jesus show us the way. Jesus shows how everything will change, is changing.  And we will be a part of it. 

Amen.