Becoming
a New Person---Lk19:1-10[i]
This
Friday, yesterday and today are the three days on which we celebrate three
different parts of Christian life: on All Saints day we celebrated our brothers
and sisters who have already finished their earthly journey and now are with
God in Heaven; on All souls day, we celebrated our brothers and sisters who are
still in Purgatory waiting for their purification; today we celebrate our journey of Christian life in this
world. Heaven, Purgatory and this
world belong to the same Church, and we
call this the communion of saints as God's children.
Today's gospel tells us about becoming a new person in the grace of Jesus Christ
in this world.
1. Jesus calls Zacchaeus' name
Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector and a wealthy
man. Normally if a person has a good job and he is rich, a lot people will come
to surround him. Wealth makes people
feel honorable and proud. But because Zacchaeus collected tax for the Romans,
his fellow Jewish people always looked
down on him. He had a life of
wealth, but was lonely and without friends. The tax collectors were considered
to be public sinners.
In the gospel, Jesus Christ came to their town.
Zacchaeus also wanted to see this famous Jesus. As he was short in stature, he
climbed a sycamore tree in order to see Jesus. Jesus looked up and said to him:" Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for
today I must stay at your house." This was a big shock for Zacchaeus. His
native people looked down on him, but Jesus looked up and called his
name. Zacchaeus just wanted to see Jesus , but Jesus chose to go to his
home.
Today, when you come to church, it may just be for
your Christian duty, or you may want to ask God for some special blessings. But
Jesus Christ will also tell you, "John, Peter, Theresa... today, I must
stay at your house." In your daily
life, you may also have some problems, some people might also misunderstand
you, even look down on you and maybe you
feel no one cares about you. Turn to Jesus Christ, Jesus cares about you, he looks up to you, Jesus wants to stay with you. With Jesus Christ in your
life, in your family, you will have a new life like Zacchaeus.
2. A New Person
The Grace of God transformed Zacchaeus. This public
sinner became a new follower of Jesus Christ.
A new person in faith always has a new life of treating others and one's
possessions with respect. The Grace of God filled Zacchaeus, he told 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." His reaction was just what Jesus Christ
invited the rich young person to do but he walked away from Jesus. The Joy of
God filled his life. In the past,
Zachaeus used the material things to fill his heart, now, that he has Jesus
Christ, he discovered real joy and satisfaction. With Jesus Christ, Zacchaeus realized
that all his belongings are just instruments to love.
Zacchaeus became a new person in Jesus Christ. Jesus
was very happy to announced:" 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."
Today, Jesus Christ also comes to your house to
renew your life. What shall you do? Are you a new person, or still an old
person?
3. Jesus' way of love
Today's gospel reminds as about some of the actions
of our Pope Francis, especially when he mentioned about the homosexuality, the
abortion and the divorced people. Pope Francis did not criticize these kind of
people, but choose to approach them. It is just what Jesus did in today's
gospel. It is not because one person is
perfect then Jesus called him or her, it is because Jesus called him or her in
order him or her to become perfect. This is how God saves our sinner; this
is the Christian faith.
Today, Jesus also comes to you and wants to stay
with you. In the Grace of God, Jesus wants you to become a new person, a person
of God's child, a person choosing to love. Today, the salvation of God has come
to you.
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