Apr 2-8, 2023

“Joey” Alan Le, Ph.D.

Luke 19:1–10

19:2 A CHIEF TAX COLLECTOR. A man in his position collected sales and customs taxes from the collectors under him. Given this role, Zacchaeus could have become rich without cheating (Keener Lk 19:16–18). Yet, it seems that he knew cheating was a part of the system (19:8). If you looked closely at your company or system, would you find yourself a participant in unjust and unethical practices?

19:2 WAS RICH. Although Luke does not explicitly say that Zacchaeus’ wealth was accumulated through the exploitation of others, many readers infer that the wealth was undoubtedly the result of “legal” but callous exploitation of his own people through inflated tax rates (Coleman 1685). If wealth is obtained legally, does it mean that it is always right/just?

19:3 BUT ON ACCOUNT OF THE CROWD HE COULD NOT…SEE WHO JESUS WAS. On the one hand, Zacchaeus likely could not see Jesus because of his physical stature. He was too short. But he likely could not see Jesus because of his social standing. The crowd despised him, and so they did not allow him to see Jesus. As a sellout to the Romans, a foreign occupational force, they did not believe he deserved to see Jesus. And while they may not have actively obstructed his view, neither did they display any sensitivity or compassion to give him room. Can you call out some Christian behaviors and attitudes that get in the way of a person meeting Jesus?

19:4 SO HE RAN AHEAD AND CLIMBED A SYCAMORE TREE. Luke may have been presenting Zacchaeus’ undignified run and climb as an illustration of Jesus’ teaching that unless people become like little children, they cannot enter the kingdom of God (Lk 18:17) (Walvoord et al. 252). What other practices can we do to exercise childlike faith?

19:5 ZACCHAEUS, HURRY AND COME DOWN. Did Jesus accept Zacchaeus before he changed his lifestyle, or after? Can we do the same?

19:5 HE LOOKED UP. Jesus was able to see through the layers of greed, corruption, and contempt and see a person who yearned to be made whole (Wright 223). What helps you look past people’s rough exteriors and see the humanity in them?

19:5 FOR I MUST STAY AT YOUR HOUSE. The Greek verb for “must” indicates that it is necessary for Jesus to stay at Zacchaeus’ home. Jesus invites himself over because it is part of his divine mission “to seek out and to save the lost” (Barram Missional Economics: 127). What people or groups do you have a heart and compassion for?

19:6 WAS HAPPY TO WELCOME HIM. Why was Zacchaeus so happy to welcome Jesus into his home?

19:7 ALL WHO SAW IT. It was not just the elite Pharisees who derided the tax collector as a sinner, regular Jews did too.

19:7 BEGAN TO GRUMBLE. In what ways does Jesus violate our own senses of propriety, godliness, and social inclusion/exclusion? When do we also find ourselves scandalized by Jesus' embrace of others? How might we too join Jesus as he ignores both fine clothes and short stature and look Zacchaeus directly in the face? (Yong 226)

19:7 THE GUEST. To stay in such a person’s home was tantamount to sharing in his sin (Marshall 697). What are some helpful ways you’ve found to befriend non-Christians while staying true to your own faith?

19:7 ONE WHO IS A SINNER. Professionally and economically, Zacchaeus holds a high status. However, socially and religiously, he has a very low status. His wealth may have come from his exploitation of his own people through taxation. Colluding with the Romans, Zacchaeus fleeced his fellow Jews. Everything that makes Zacchaeus important and privileged also leads his Jewish community to regard him as an outsider—a sinner worthy of exclusion (Barram Missional Economics: 127). Does having power and privilege always result in happiness and contentment?

19:8 ZACCHAEUS STOOD THERE AND SAID TO THE LORD. Apparently, Zacchaeus overheard the complaints. So he stood still and told Jesus in the presence of all that he was going to give half his possessions to the poor (Earle 313). He publicly wanted the people to know that his time with Jesus had changed his life (Walvoord et al. 252). How important do you think it is to publicly repent of your sins? How important is it to publicly apologize to the people you have hurt?

19:8 “LOOK, HALF OF MY POSSESSIONS, LORD, I WILL GIVE TO THE POOR. Repentance here isn’t just a change of heart; as in Judaism in general, repentance involves restoration, and making amends (Wright 223). How often has your spiritual repentance taken tangible and social form?

The amount to be given in charity was well beyond the normal requirement; 20% of one’s possessions or (in subsequent years) of one’s income was a recognized figure among the rabbis (Marshall 697). What do you think moved Zacchaeus from simply hosting Jesus at his house…to giving up his privileges to benefit the poor and restore all that he had stolen?

19:8 AND IF I HAVE DEFRAUDED ANYONE OF ANYTHING, I WILL PAY BACK FOUR TIMES AS MUCH. His promise to make restitution recognizes that his white-collar crime is just as serious as other kinds of theft (Ex 22:1–4). His restitution goes beyond Pharisaic law, which required fourfold or fivefold restitution only for stolen oxen and sheep, only if he slaughtered or sold it, and only if a sufficient number of people witnessed the act (Keener Lk 19:16–18). How do you think Zacchaeus could have practically gone about making reparations? Does it matter if reparations are impractical or inconvenient or if the results are unpredictable?

19:9 SALVATION HAS COME TO THIS HOUSE. Prior to his encounter with Jesus, Zacchaeus was lost, just like all the other lost characters of Lk 15-19 (e.g. the lost sheep, coin, brothers, manager, Pharisees, rich man, etc.). How is Zacchaeus found? He is found because both he and Jesus were seeking each other. Zacchaeus acted like a child eagerly awaiting his chance to see Jesus (19:3-4), and Jesus was on a mission to seek and save the lost (19:5, 10). Zacchaeus participated actively in the process of being found and saved. In your own story, what part did you play in being found and being saved? Are there actions you have left undone?

Jesus’ words did not imply that the act of giving to the poor had saved Zacchaeus, but that his change in lifestyle evidenced his right relationship before God (Walvoord et al. 252). What was your biggest lifestyle change when you started following Christ? Or what are the hardest parts about living rightly/justly?

By the time Zacchaeus made fourfold restitution with those he had defrauded, we can imagine he would have lost nearly all his great wealth. Does Zacchaeus care that he might lose all his money? No. He has found something more valuable. ‘Today I have to stay at your house’ becomes ‘Today salvation has come to this house’; where Jesus is, there salvation is to be found, for those who accept him as master and reorder their lives accordingly (Wright 223). In your experience, is having Jesus worth losing everything else?

When we first began the Subversive Witness series, how willing were you to leverage and give up your privilege for the sake of the kingdom of God, on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being most willing)? How willing are you now?

Reparations

One of the most radical shifts in behavior that require a transformed imagination is the call for reparations.

Accepting responsibility for past wrongs is always a challenge. Many people are loath to admit that contemporary social structures and privilege, coupled with widespread inaction, enable them and others to benefit from inequities, past and present. It is easy to defend with statements like “It wasn’t me—I wasn’t there” and “I’m not the problem” (Barram "Reparations" 80).

How have Americans discussed and enacted tangible, restorative actions in response to stolen Indigenous land, chattel slavery, or other past systemic sins? What reasons do people give to make reparations seem impossible?

Jubilee (Lev 25)

Scriptural texts like Leviticus 25, the Jubilee legislation, teach that beneficiaries of an economic system are inextricably connected to those who suffer at the hands of that system (Barram "Reparations" 83). Economically, we are all connected. No one can legitimately claim to be uninvolved and beyond responsibility. The entire community should take proactive responsibility for the material well-being – past, present, and future – of each of its members. Addressing the past is a prerequisite for a just future (Barram "Reparations" 84). How can Christians translate God’s vision of Jubilee to today?

Zacchaeus

Zacchaeus took responsibility for himself, for past injustices, and present inequities (Barram "Reparations" 85). He knew he exploited the poor and understood that merely saying, “I'm sorry, Lord. I’m a sinner; please forgive me,” while retaining the wealth he had acquired fraudulently, would have been insufficient (Gilliard 128). He understood that his sins had created communal trauma and constructed a perpetual underclass. He knew that his economic exploitation harmed more individuals than the people he directly extorted. Zacchaeus acknowledged that the depraved system of tax collection generated oppressive patterns of debt, poverty, and abuse that had to be atoned for. Spiritual maturity takes into account the collective impact our sin has on our neighbors (Gilliard 129). How do you feel about taking responsibility for the suffering that your predecessors or higher-ups have caused?

For Zacchaeus, repentance and reconciliation required reparations. Zacchaeus paid a steep price to atone for the social impact of the systemic sin he supervised and engaged in. As a fruit of his repentance, Zacchaeus committed to doing his part to end the generational cycles of poverty and trauma his sins created and exacerbated, and he did so by enacting economic transformation within the community he robbed (Gilliard 129). How can you begin to end poverty and heal trauma in your community?

Zacchaeus is a model disciple who faces and makes restitution for the past, not because doing so is straightforward, convenient, or readily practical, but because doing so reflects the character, values, and actions of a compassionate and just God (Barram "Reparations" 86).

People with influence, power, and privilege find it difficult to commit to reparations and restitution. As such, it takes a certain childlikeness to have faith that reparations are best for all, including oneself.