Luke 19:1-10 When God's Grace is Too Radical
I had the honor of being a guest preacher at Resistance Church, on October 31st. Below is the transcript of my sermon. You can watch the video here:
One key concept throughout the book of Luke is the idea of a great reversal or an upside down world and kingdom. Meaning Luke presents a Jesus and a God who frequently butts heads with those in positions of power. Jesus rebukes empire values which elevate the rich and powerful while subjugating the poor and marginalized. Empire values are synonymous with injustice, violence, and oppression. Jesus calls for a dismantling of the oppressive status quo.
In general I’m like, “Yes, go Jesus. A thousand percent agree.” But in Luke 19:1-10 Jesus asks us to also reconsider our notions of salvation, repentance, and who we consider worthy of God’s grace. And to be honest, that’s a bit hard. And I know I’m not the only one who struggles with that. Because you see, it’s easy to read the gospels and to read Jesus’ parables as a great reversal-but for other people and with limits. But Jesus’ call for an upside down kingdom, isn’t just geared towards the people we don’t like, but it’s also directed at us-those of us who think we have it all together, those of us who are just the right amount of progressive or radical, those of us who claim to be on the right side of history.
As Rev. Bri-Anne preached about last Sunday, it’s too easy to look down at others whom we see as doing wrong and saying, thank God, I’m not like them. But are we really so different? I think not. Well, at least I’m not as different as I would hope. You know how I know? Because whenever I read this story of Jesus and Zacchaeus, I get more than a little annoyed. I get angry. Why?
Because, why would Jesus waste his time, going to the house of someone whose position in society is based on the exploitation of others. Jesus is going to honor Zaccheus, this oppressor, with his presence? And not only that but how do we know that Zacchaeus is actually going to do what he says he will do and give away half his wealth?
Now I know some of you may say, “Naiomi, where have you been, Luke and the other gospels frequently mention Jesus hanging out with tax collectors and sinners.” But to be honest, if I can, I tend to ignore the tax collector part. My mind reads it and tends to skip over it. Or I tell myself, “well maybe, they are one of the better tax collectors.
You know, maybe they are one of the tax collectors who doesn't demand above and beyond what the empire insists on charging. Maybe they don’t pocket extra money. Maybe the tax collectors referenced are privately good people.” When it comes to this chapter I also want to give Zacchaeus the benefit of the doubt, no, not for his sake, but because it would make me feel better if God didn’t show grace to someone that I view to be so despicable.
But Rev. Dr. Fred B. Craddock makes two important points in his commentary on this passage one point, and I quote, “In a corrupt system, the loftier one’s position, the greater one’s complicity in that system.” (end quote). and point two, and I quote again, “no one can be privately righteous while participating in and profiting from a program that robs and crushes other persons.” (end quote).
So try as I might, I can’t really downplay the fact that Jesus regularly interacts and loves those who have caused massive amounts of harm. All of the mental gymnastics that me or you may try to perform, doesn’t change the fact that God’s grace is also meant for the very people we despise. People, who we may have good reasons to dislike.
I mean, yes, all of us are complicit in systems of oppression, that’s the very nature of living in an interconnected world, that thrives on economic exploitation. But let’s be real, there’s is some difference between having to shop through a major corporation because said corporation has a virtual monopoly on products and in some places is the only place to shop, and actually being the CEO of said corporation. And yet, the idea that God would still bestow grace and forgiveness on the owner of the major corporation, leaves many of us understandably feeling angry. It’s unfair and it feels unjust.
Part of the feeling of uneasiness with the Zacchaeus story can be attributed to how we view repentance. I have to admit, I am not impressed when Zacchaeus says that he will give half of his wealth to the poor and IF he defrauded people of anything he would pay them back four times the amount. I view his statement not only with skepticism but I feel unsatisfied.
In a society where punishment is viewed as synonymous with justice and as a necessary precondition before any form of forgiveness is offered, and where calling other people out has become a daily activity. Zacchaeus’ act of repentance seems lacking. It's not good enough. We want more. We don’t want him to just try and make right his past wrongs, but we want him to suffer. Giving half of his belongings is not enough, he needs to be destitute and poor. He needs to face the very same abuse he perpetrated on others.
And this desire for the one doing wrong to suffer, is understandable and it is part of the system of empire and domination that Jesus seeks to overturn. You see, Jesus’ call to overturn and reject the values of a society steeped in violence and oppression, isn’t only directed at those we consider to be “bad people,” but it is directed at us, at the “good guys,” at the ones on the right side of history. When we confuse justice with punishment and violence, we are reinforcing the values of the empire.
We aren’t turning the world upside down we are just exchanging the face of the oppressor while keeping the underlying system of violence in place.
Here's the thing: I don’t want to negate the importance of true repentance. Some Christians preach an understanding of repentance where you just say a few words, all is forgiven, and then we can move on. I’m not arguing for that. But what I am saying is that while it’s understandable to want those who hurt us and those we consider evil to “get what’s coming to them” and we often use violent imagery and words to describe what we think should happen, God’s values are different.
Jesus goes to Zacchaeus, who is most likely despised by members of the crowd, for good reason, hears his repentance and accepts it. Now Zacchaeus still needs to act. And judging by the language he uses, “if I have defrauded anyone” he could probably spend a little more time reflecting on the harm he has caused.
But Jesus still affirms him as a child of Abraham. Our understanding of what “real” repentance looks like, often mimic’s the dominant society’s desire for punishment and violence. But Jesus' response is the difference between restorative justice and retribution. Restorative justice seeks healing, for all involved in systems of harm-both the victims and perpetrators. The harm the victims experienced is acknowledged and uplifted and the perpetrator still needs to make restitution of some kind and refrain from causing further harm, but there is a possibility for the perpetrator to be welcomed back into community
I also want to acknowledge that another reason why we might feel uncomfortable with Jesus’ act of radical grace towards Zacchaeus is because we have been exposed to some horrible theology regarding salvation. For example, in many western Christian contexts, the notion of salvation and grace is highly individualized.
Salvation is only about the individual, and so, yeah it seems unfair that someone can perform some horrific actions or be a major participant in a system of oppression and all they need to do is say a few words, God forgives them and they are good. But that idea of an individualized salvation, isn’t necessarily how the gospels portray it. Even in this story, salvation is not an individual affair. Jesus says that salvation comes not only to Zacchaeus but to his household. And as a rich person-his household probably included a lot of people.
And what if we expand that notion of salvation-to include the community, the larger society? You see, God offering Zacchaeus forgiveness and grace, doesn’t just bring individual healing to Zacchaeus but it has the potential to impact a whole community. When people who have been embedded into institutions of repression, not only leave that institution but also renounce it and seek to rectify the harm they caused, it’s another step towards the fall of that institution and it offers the possibility for society to heal.
Sometimes, in the name of justice, we seek to destroy those who cause harm and by doing so, we continue the cycle of injustice, violence, and oppression. But God doesn’t seek to replicate the systems of harm, but to eradicate them. And in order to do so, we might have to do some things that make us uncomfortable. We might have to include and welcome people we’d rather not. We might have to let go of our fantasies of revenge and advocate for repentance and restitution followed by restoration and redemption.
And again, let me be clear, I don’t believe in a God of cheap grace who says, “well you can do the most horrible things, but if you ask for forgiveness before you die, you get to go to heaven.” Reducing salvation to an individual avoiding hell is a very shallow view of repentance and grace. I am not asking us to believe in cheap grace.
But I am asking us to reflect deeply on the values we espouse. To examine whether we are inadvertently or not, replicating the values of the empire, rather than that of the kingdom of God.
I am asking us to think about the world we want to create. Because if we are seeking a world built on justice and equity, it will mean dismantling the status quo. It will mean acknowledging that our notion of justice is often warped by revenge and violence and that when Jesus rejects the values of empire, he is asking us to do the same. He is not only talking to the people we don’t like but to us.
Image: White wall with shadows. Text: When we confuse justice with punishment and violence, we are reinforcing the values of the empire. We aren’t turning the world upside down we are just exchanging the face of the oppressor while keeping the underlying system of violence in place.