Sermon at the 15th Sunday of Trinity. 13th of September 2026, St Crucis Lutheran

 

The Gardener and the Ground

A Sermon on Genesis 2:4b–9, 15

Before we say anything about this passage, I want us simply to be still for a moment.

Not because there is anything magical about silence, but because sometimes we need to become quiet before we can really listen.

So, if you are comfortable, close your eyes for a moment.

Put your feet firmly on the floor.

Feel the ground underneath you.

Feel the weight of your body. You are here. You are breathing. You are alive.

Now take a slow, deep breath in.

Hold it for a moment.

And slowly breathe out.

We often take breathing for granted. We don’t even think about it. We simply breathe.

And yet, in the biblical imagination, breath is never merely breath. It is a gift.

Genesis tells us that God formed the human being from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.

Dust and breath.

That is us.

We are wonderfully made—and we are made from the earth.

We are fragile, dependent, and completely unable to give ourselves life.

And perhaps that is a good place for us to begin.

Because this ancient story is not simply giving us information about how the world began. It is inviting us to remember who we are, where we come from, and what God has entrusted to us.

So, for the next few minutes, I don’t want to give you a lecture about Genesis.

I simply want us to listen together.

Perhaps, somewhere in these words, the Gardener may speak to you.

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1. Dust and Breath

Listen to what Genesis says:

“The Lord God formed the human being from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the human being became a living being.”

I love the earthiness of this picture.

God doesn’t simply speak and suddenly there is a human being standing there.

God forms.

God shapes.

God gets God’s hands into the soil.

And the word used for the ground is adamah.

From the adamah, the ground, God forms the adam, the human being.

There is something deeply humbling about that.

We spend so much of our lives trying to prove that we are important.

We want to be successful.

We want to be respected.

We want people to remember us.

We want to feel that our lives matter.

And then Genesis quietly reminds us:

You are dust.

Not worthless dust.

Not meaningless dust.

But dust that God has lovingly formed.

You belong to the earth.

You are part of God’s creation.

Your body, with all its strengths and weaknesses, belongs to this good creation.

And then God breathes.

That is the beautiful part.

The dust becomes alive because God gives life.

Your life is not something you have created for yourself.

It is something you have received.

Every breath is a gift.

Every morning you wake up is a gift.

Every ordinary day is a gift.

And perhaps some of us need to hear that today.

Because there are days when we feel very much like dust.

We feel tired.

We feel discouraged.

We feel as though we are falling apart.

Sometimes life has a way of reminding us just how fragile we really are.

And Genesis says:

You may be dust, but you are dust into which God has breathed life.

You are not forgotten.

You are not abandoned.

You don’t have to perform for God.

You don’t have to prove yourself worthy of God’s attention.

You simply receive.

Breathe.

Receive the life God gives.

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2. God Plants a Garden

Then the story takes us somewhere beautiful.

Genesis says:

“The Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the human being whom he had formed.”

Notice that.

God plants a garden.

God could have created a palace.

God could have created an empire.

God could have created a monument.

Instead, God plants a garden.

There is something wonderfully gentle about that image.

A garden takes time.

A garden needs patience.

You plant something, and then you wait.

You water it.

You protect it.

You pull out the weeds.

You watch the seasons change.

You cannot force a garden to grow by shouting at it.

And perhaps that tells us something about God.

The God of Genesis is not only powerful.

God is also patient.

God is a gardener.

And look at what God puts in the garden:

Trees that are beautiful to look at.

Trees that provide food.

And in the middle of the garden, the tree of life.

Before there is any command about what the human must not do, the Bible first tells us about what God has given.

Beauty.

Food.

Life.

Abundance.

That matters.

Because we so easily become obsessed with what we don’t have.

We look at the one thing missing from our lives and forget about the many things God has already placed around us.

We notice the unanswered prayer and forget the prayers that have been answered.

We notice the difficulty and forget the people who love us.

We notice what has gone wrong and overlook the small signs of grace that are still there.

Sometimes we are standing in a garden and living as though we are in a desert.

So perhaps today God is inviting us simply to look again.

Look around you.

Look at the person sitting beside you.

Look at the light coming through the windows.

Listen to the voices around you.

Think about the people who have loved you.

Think about the ordinary things that sustain you.

Food.

Shelter.

Friendship.

A cup of coffee.

A conversation.

A child’s laughter.

A familiar hymn.

A quiet moment.

These things can seem so ordinary that we hardly notice them.

But perhaps they are small green shoots of grace.

God is still planting.

God is still providing.

God is still giving life.

The question is:

Can we see it?

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3. We Are Placed Here for a Purpose

And then we come to verse 15:

“The Lord God took the human being and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.”

This is where the story becomes very personal.

God doesn’t simply make the human being and leave him wondering what to do.

God gives him a place.

And God gives him something to care for.

The Hebrew words behind “till” and “keep” are rich.

Avodah carries the sense of work, service, even worship.

Shamar means to keep, watch over, guard, protect.

So the picture is not of a human being standing over creation as its master.

It is much more like a gardener caring for something that belongs to God.

That changes the way we think about our lives.

Perhaps our calling is not primarily about becoming important.

Perhaps it is about becoming faithful.

We live in a world that constantly tells us that greatness means having more.

More influence.

More money.

More recognition.

More followers.

More success.

But Genesis gives us another picture.

The first human being is not given an empire.

He is given a garden.

A piece of God’s creation to tend.

To care for.

To protect.

And maybe your garden is much smaller than you think.

For one person, it may be a family.

For another, it may be a workplace.

For another, a congregation.

For another, a neighbour who needs kindness.

For someone else, it may simply be the care of their own heart and soul.

And all of these things matter to God.

If you are a parent and you are exhausted from caring for your children, that ordinary work matters.

The meals you prepare.

The stories you read.

The patience you sometimes have to find when you think you have none left.

That can be avodah.

Holy service.

If you go to work every day, perhaps your calling is not simply the job description on your contract.

Perhaps it is the way you treat people.

Your honesty.

Your patience.

Your willingness to help someone who is struggling.

That can be shamar.

Keeping.

Guarding.

Caring.

If you are an artist, perhaps your work is one way of reflecting the beauty of the Gardener.

If you are elderly and your physical strength is no longer what it once was, your life has not lost its purpose.

Your prayers matter.

Your stories matter.

Your presence matters.

You may be tending the garden in ways you don’t even realise.

And perhaps some of us need to hear this very clearly:

You do not have to be famous to have a meaningful life.

You do not have to change the whole world.

You don’t have to accomplish something extraordinary every day.

God may simply be asking you to faithfully tend the little patch of ground that has been placed in your care.

Your family.

Your friendships.

Your work.

Your church.

Your neighbourhood.

Your own heart.

That is enough.

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4. The Gardener Is Still Here

And perhaps this is where the Gospel begins to touch the story.

Because we know something the people who first heard Genesis did not yet know.

We know the story of another garden.

We know that human beings failed to care for God’s garden.

We know about sin.

We know about brokenness.

We know what happens when we try to take God’s place.

But we also know that God did not abandon us.

The Gardener kept coming.

And eventually, God came among us in Jesus.

Jesus entered our dust.

Jesus breathed our air.

Jesus walked our roads.

Jesus touched our wounds.

Jesus entered our suffering.

And even when we turned away from God, God did not turn away from us.

The Gardener came looking for us.

So perhaps this passage is not simply telling us what we should do.

It is reminding us who God is.

The God who forms us.

The God who breathes life into us.

The God who plants.

The God who provides.

The God who entrusts.

And the God who comes looking for us when we are lost.

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5. A Moment to Listen

So, as we come toward the end of this sermon, I don’t want to give you another list of things you need to remember.

Instead, I want to give you a moment.

A moment to listen.

In a little while, I am going to be quiet.

And perhaps that will feel uncomfortable.

We are not very good at silence anymore.

We are used to filling every empty space with something.

Words.

Music.

Phones.

News.

Conversation.

But for one minute, let’s leave the space empty.

And ask yourself:

Where has God planted me?

What has God entrusted to my care?

What in my life needs tending?

What needs protecting?

Where do I need God’s breath today?

Don’t worry about finding the perfect answer.

Just listen.

Perhaps there is a person God brings to your mind.

Perhaps there is a situation.

Perhaps there is something in your own heart that needs attention.

Perhaps you simply need to hear again that you are loved.

So let us be quiet.

Let us breathe.

Let us remember the ground beneath our feet.

And let us listen for the Gardener.

[Pause for approximately one minute.]

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Conclusion

We began with dust.

We spoke about breath.

We looked at a garden.

And we remembered our calling.

Dust.

Breath.

Garden.

Vocation.

That is who we are.

We are creatures of the earth, sustained by the breath of God.

And we have been given something precious to tend.

So when you leave this place today, don’t imagine that the important part of worship ends when the service ends.

Your garden is waiting.

Someone may need your patience.

Someone may need your forgiveness.

Someone may need your encouragement.

Something in your own life may need tending.

Some part of God’s creation may need your care.

Go and tend it.

Go and keep it.

Go and serve.

And when you become tired, remember:

The garden does not belong to you.

It belongs to God.

And you are not tending it alone.

The Gardener is with you.

So feel the ground beneath your feet.

Take a breath.

Receive the life God gives.

And then go back into the garden.

Amen.

Benediction

Go now as people who have been formed from the earth and filled with God’s breath.

Go into the places where God has planted you.

Tend what has been entrusted to you.

Protect what is precious.

Serve those around you.

And remember that the Gardener goes with you.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.

A Night Blessing for the Seekers of Unity. In English and Portuguese.

 Blessed bee the unity seekers, for they will be the true Body of Christ.

With care, love, and gentleness — and just a pinch of irony

May the Lord bless you and keep you, you who seek unity
with such earnest, beautiful, and occasionally exhausting determination.

May you rejoice before the Lord with all your might —
with harps, lyres, timbrels, sistrums, and cymbals,
as David's whole assembly did —
and may your neighbors forgive the noise,
for unity, it turns out, is seldom quiet.

May you rejoice always, as Paul insists,
pray without ceasing,
and give thanks in all circumstances —
even in the circumstances of that committee meeting,
that family dinner,
that thread you should not have read.

And may you remember the guest who stays for dinner.

Zacchaeus climbed a tree just to see —
small of stature, large of hope —
and Jesus, looking up, did not say
"Come down and we shall discuss your position on the matter."
He said: "Come down. I'm eating at your house tonight."

So may unity find you the way salvation found Zacchaeus:
not as a program, a policy, or a five-point plan,
but as a guest who invites himself in,
eats your food,
meets your questionable friends,
and somehow — gently, ironically, gloriously —
leaves your house holier than he found it.

May you seek unity not by winning the argument
but by setting the table.
May you be found, like Zacchaeus, up a tree of your own anxiety,
and may Christ look up and call you down to dinner.

And when you grumble — as the crowd did, as we all do —
that he has gone to be the guest of that sort of person,
may you hear the quiet answer:
Today salvation has come to this house too.

Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks.
And leave a chair empty for the guest who stays.

Amen. And good night — sleep in heavenly, if slightly ironic, peace.

Bem-aventurados os que buscam a unidade, pois eles serão o verdadeiro Corpo de Cristo.

Com cuidado, amor e gentileza — e uma pitada de ironia

Que o Senhor te abençoe e te guarde, você que busca a unidade
com uma determinação tão sincera, tão bela e, ocasionalmente, tão cansativa.

Que você se regozije diante do Senhor com todas as suas forças —
com harpas, liras, tamborins, sistros e címbalos,
como fez toda a assembleia de Davi —
e que seus vizinhos perdoem o barulho,
pois a unidade, ao que parece, raramente é silenciosa.

Que você se regozije sempre, como Paulo insiste,
ore sem cessar,
e dê graças em todas as circunstâncias —
inclusive nas circunstâncias daquela reunião de comissão,
daquele jantar de família,
daquele comentário que você não deveria ter lido.

E que você se lembre do hóspede que fica para o jantar.

Zaqueu subiu numa árvore só para ver —
pequeno de estatura, grande de esperança —
e Jesus, olhando para cima, não disse:
"Desça e discutiremos sua posição sobre o assunto."
Ele disse: "Desça. Hoje vou jantar na sua casa."

Que a unidade te encontre como a salvação encontrou Zaqueu:
não como um programa, uma política ou um plano de cinco pontos,
mas como um hóspede que se convida sozinho,
come da sua comida,
conhece seus amigos duvidosos
e, de algum modo — gentil, ironicamente, gloriosamente —
deixa sua casa mais santa do que a encontrou.

Que você busque a unidade não vencendo a discussão,
mas pondo a mesa.
Que você seja encontrado, como Zaqueu, numa árvore da sua própria ansiedade,
e que Cristo olhe para cima e te chame para descer e jantar.

E quando você murmurar — como a multidão murmurou, como todos nós murmuramos —
que ele foi hóspede de gente daquele tipo,
que você ouça a resposta silenciosa:
Hoje a salvação chegou também a esta casa.

Regozijem-se sempre. Orem sem cessar. Deem graças.
E deixem uma cadeira vazia para o hóspede que fica.

Amém. E boa noite — durma em paz celestial, ainda que levemente irônica.

 

Church blessing with irony on Government control try. In English and Portuguese

A Pastoral Blessing (with a Wink and a Nod)

Given in the Spirit of Grace, Governance, and the Gentle Art of Not Throwing Stones

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Beloved of the Most High, you who sit in pews and fill out forms in triplicate,

May the Lord, who keeps meticulous records, look upon your paperwork and find it mostly in order. May your covenants with the government be as ironclad as His covenant with you—though we all know who actually keeps Their promises. Blessed are you who dot every 'i' and cross every 't,' for you shall inherit the tax deduction.

For it is written in the book of the law that the Ammonites and Moabites were forbidden from entering the assembly of God, "even to the tenth generation" (Nehemiah 13:2). But oh, how we love a good loophole! For we are not saved by genealogy, nor by census data, nor by the cleanliness of our attendance rolls. We are saved by the One who was made "a curse for us" (Galatians 3:13)—and if He can turn a curse into a blessing, surely He can turn your annual audit into a mere suggestion.

This is the gentle irony of our faith: that the King of Kings became a Guest of Sinners. And speaking of guests, let us recall Last Sunday’s sermon on the wee little man in the sycamore tree (Luke 19:1-10). Zacchaeus, that vertically challenged collector of imperial coin, who was more acquainted with interest rates than with righteousness. Jesus looked up and said, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today." Not, "Clean your house first." Not, "Get your receipts in order." Not, "Submit to a background check." But simply, "I'm coming to dinner."

And so, dear church, in a world that demands we earn our keep and prove our worth, may you find the holy audacity to come down from your lofty perches of self-justification. May you be as swift to pay back fourfold as Zacchaeus was—but only when the Spirit nudges, not when the IRS demands.

May the church organization that keeps all its obligations remember that its first obligation is not to Caesar, but to the One who ate with outcasts. May we be loving and gentle, not because we are naturally so, but because we have been hosted by a Grace that stays for dinner—and never leaves.

So go forth, gentle souls. Pay your taxes, but trust in the Treasury of Heaven. Keep your records, but know you are written in the Lamb's Book of Life—no photocopies required. And when the government asks for your pound of flesh, smile sweetly and remember: He already paid the ultimate price.

And for heaven's sake, if Jesus invites Himself to your house today, don't ask Him for His ID. Just set an extra plate.

In the name of the Father, who keeps the books; the Son, who paid the balance; and the Holy Spirit, who audits our hearts with terrifying mercy.

Amen. (And may your coffee hour be longer than your committee meeting.)

Uma Bênção Pastoral (com uma piscadela e um Aceno)

Dada no Espírito da Graça, da Governança e da Gentil Arte de Não Atirar Pedras

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Amados do Altíssimo, vós que vos sentais nos bancos da igreja e preencheis formulários em três vias,

Que o Senhor, que mantém registros meticulosos, olhe para vossa papelada e a encontre razoavelmente em ordem. Que vossos convênios com o governo sejam tão sólidos quanto o convênio Dele convosco — embora todos nós saibamos quem realmente cumpre Suas promessas. Bem-aventurados sois vós que colocais cada ponto nos 'is' e cada traço nos 'tis', porque herdareis a dedução fiscal.

Porque está escrito na lei que os amonitas e os moabitas foram proibidos de entrar na assembleia de Deus, "até a décima geração" (Neemias 13:2). Mas oh, como amamos uma boa brecha! Pois não somos salvos pela genealogia, nem pelos dados do censo, nem pela limpeza das nossas listas de frequência. Somos salvos por Aquele que se fez "maldição por nós" (Gálatas 3:13) — e se Ele pode transformar maldição em bênção, certamente pode transformar vossa auditoria anual em mera sugestão.

Eis a doce ironia da nossa fé: que o Rei dos Reis se tornou Hóspede dos Pecadores. E falando em hóspedes, recordemos o sermão de domingo passado sobre o homenzinho na figueira-brava (Lucas 19.1-10). Zaqueu, aquele publicano de estatura reduzida e colecionador de moedas imperiais, mais familiarizado com taxas de juros do que com justiça. Jesus levantou os olhos e disse: "Zaqueu, desce depressa, porque hoje me convém pousar em tua casa." Não: "Limpa tua casa primeiro." Não: "Coloca teus recibos em ordem." Não: "Submete-te a uma verificação de antecedentes." Mas simplesmente: "Eu vou jantar aí."

E assim, querida igreja, num mundo que exige que mereçamos nosso lugar e provemos nosso valor, que tenhais a santa audácia de descer de vossos altos poleiros de autojustificação. Que sejais tão rápidos em restituir quatro vezes mais quanto Zaqueu foi — mas somente quando o Espírito soprar, não quando a Receita Federal exigir.

Que a organização eclesiástica que cumpre todas as suas obrigações se lembre de que sua primeira obrigação não é com César, mas com Aquele que comeu com excluídos. Que sejamos amorosos e gentis, não porque sejamos naturalmente assim, mas porque fomos hospedados por uma Graça que fica para o jantar — e nunca vai embora.

Portanto, ide em frente, almas gentis. Pagai vossos impostos, mas confiai no Tesouro do Céu. Guardai vossos registros, mas sabei que estais escritos no Livro da Vida do Cordeiro — sem necessidade de cópias autenticadas. E quando o governo pedir vossa carne e sangue, sorri docemente e lembrai: Ele já pagou o preço final.

E, pelo amor de Deus, se Jesus se convidar para vossa casa hoje, não peçais a identidade Dele. Apenas ponham um prato extra.

Em nome do Pai, que mantém os livros; do Filho, que quitou a dívida; e do Espírito Santo, que audita nossos corações com misericórdia aterrorizante.

Amém. (E que vosso café comunitário dure mais que a reunião da comissão.)

 

 

A Blessing for the Night in English and Portuguese

"The Guest Who Stays for Dinner"

— A Night Blessing from the Gardens of KuGompo and Qonce

May the quiet that settles over the gardens of KuGompo, and the soft rustle of the leaves in the blossomed trees of Qonce, be a lullaby to your restless heart tonight.

Listen. The night does not come to silence you, but to hold you.

For the verses of the day have found their home in you:
“Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.” (Psalm 32:10)
And so, may you lay your head down not on a pillow of worry, but on the very chest of that steadfast love. The sorrows that chased you today—the heavy thoughts, the tired bones, the words left unsaid—they have no authority here. Tonight, you are surrounded. Enclosed. Wrapped in a mercy you do not have to earn.

And because you are surrounded, you can smile.
Yes, smile. For the Lord has a sense of humor, and He has written you into a story far more gracious than your mistakes.

Do you remember the sermon? The Guest who came to dinner? Zacchaeus, up in that sycamore tree, all elbows and eagerness, expecting a scolding but receiving a summons. And the Lord said, “I must stay at your house today.” Not a quick visit. Not a passing glance. He stays. He unpacks His bags. He pulls up a chair to the table of your life—even the messy parts, even the parts you try to hide in the branches.

And tonight, you are that house. You are that dinner table.

So in the spirit of that blessed Guest—the One who stays for dinner—I bless you with a holy stubbornness: the stubbornness to let Him linger. Let Him clear the plates. Let Him pour the wine of His Spirit. Let Him laugh with you over the burnt bits and the undercooked hopes, and let Him say, “It is well. It is more than well. It is grace.”

And the final word is not the failure of the day.
The final word is the benediction from the River of Life:

“The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all the saints.” (Revelation 22:21)

Not a distant grace. Not a yesterday-grace. But the grace that is with you—the grace that is right here, in the soil of KuGompo, in the blooms of Qonce, in the dust on your feet, and in the quiet breath you are taking right now.

So may you sleep not like a warrior who fought all day, but like a child who is held.
May you wake tomorrow with a good humor for life—the kind that knows the ending is already written in laughter and in love.

And may the Guest who stays for dinner be the first One you greet in the morning.

Amen. Sleep well, beloved. The garden is safe. The Table is ready. And you are home.

"O Hóspede que Fica para o Jantar"

— Uma Bênção Noturna dos Jardins de KuGompo e Qonce

Que o silêncio que se instala sobre os jardins de KuGompo, e o suave sussurro das folhas nas árvores floridas de Qonce, sejam uma canção de ninar para o seu coração inquieto nesta noite.

Escute. A noite não vem para silenciar você, mas para te abraçar.

Pois as palavras do dia encontraram morada em você:
"Muitas são as dores do ímpio, mas a bondade do Senhor cerca aquele que nele confia." (Salmos 32:10)
E assim, que você deite a cabeça não sobre um travesseiro de preocupações, mas sobre o próprio peito desse amor que nunca falha. As tristezas que te perseguiram hoje — os pensamentos pesados, os ossos cansados, as palavras não ditas — elas não têm autoridade aqui. Esta noite, você está cercado. Envolvido. Embrulhado em uma misericórdia que você não precisa merecer.

E porque você está cercado, você pode sorrir.
Sim, sorria. Pois o Senhor tem senso de humor, e Ele te escreveu em uma história muito mais graciosa do que os seus erros.

Você se lembra do sermão? O Convidado que veio para o jantar? Zaqueu, lá em cima naquela sicômoro, todo cotovelos e ansiedade, esperando uma bronca e recebendo um convite. E o Senhor disse: "Preciso ficar na sua casa hoje." Não é uma visita rápida. Não é um olhar passageiro. Ele fica. Ele desfaz as malas. Ele puxa uma cadeira para a mesa da sua vida — até as partes bagunçadas, até aquelas que você tenta esconder entre os galhos.

E esta noite, você é aquela casa. Você é aquela mesa de jantar.

Então, no espírito daquele Convidado bendito — Aquele que fica para o jantar — eu te abençoo com uma santa teimosia: a teimosia de deixá-lo demorar. Deixá-lo limpar os pratos. Deixá-lo derramar o vinho do Seu Espírito. Deixá-lo rir com você sobre os pedaços queimados e as esperanças malcozidas, e deixá-lo dizer: "Está tudo bem. É mais que bem. É graça."

E a palavra final não é o fracasso do dia.
A palavra final é a bênção que vem do Rio da Vida:

"A graça do Senhor Jesus seja com todos os santos." (Apocalipse 22:21)

Não uma graça distante. Não uma graça de ontem. Mas a graça que está com você — a graça que está bem aqui, na terra de KuGompo, nas flores de Qonce, na poeira nos seus pés, e na respiração tranquila que você está fazendo agora.

Então, que você durma não como um guerreiro que lutou o dia inteiro, mas como uma criança que está sendo abraçada.
Que você acorde amanhã com bom humor para a vida — daquele tipo que já sabe que o final está escrito em riso e em amor.

E que o Convidado que fica para o jantar seja o primeiro a te cumprimentar de manhã.

Amém. Durma bem, amado(a). O jardim está seguro. A Mesa está posta. E você está em casa.

 

Sermon for the 14th Sunday after Trinity, 6th of September 2026 - St. Johns Lutheran Church - Qonce

 

THE GUEST WHO STAYS FOR DINNER

A Sermon on Luke 19:1–10

·       A Listening-Centered Homily 

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Introduction: Let’s Listen to the Story

Before we begin, I want to invite you to do something a little different.

For a few moments, you don’t need to look at me.

You can close your eyes, if you are comfortable doing that. You can look down at your hands. You can simply let your eyes rest somewhere in this church.

And imagine that we are not here.

Imagine that we are standing in a dusty street in Jericho.

It is crowded. People are talking. Children are running around. Everyone is trying to get close to Jesus.

Some people want to hear him.

Some are curious.

Some are simply wondering what all the fuss is about.

And you are there in the middle of the crowd.

You are not a disciple.

You are not a Pharisee.

You are not an important person.

You are simply a person from the town.

And then you notice something strange.

There is a man sitting in a tree.

Zacchaeus.

Everyone knows Zacchaeus.

He is wealthy. He is the chief tax collector. He has money, influence and power.

But he is not exactly popular.

In fact, many people in that crowd probably wish he wasn’t there.

But Zacchaeus wants to see Jesus.

So he has climbed a tree.

And now…

listen.

Listen to the noise of the crowd.

Listen to the murmuring.

And then imagine the moment when Jesus stops.

The crowd stops with him.

Jesus looks up.

And speaks.

Not to the crowd.

Not to the religious leaders.

Not even to his disciples.

He speaks to the man sitting alone in the tree.

“Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, because today I must stay at your house.”

Let us listen to the Word of the Lord.

Luke 19:1–10.

(Read the text slowly.)

19 Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. ² A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. ³ He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. ⁴ So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

⁵ When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” ⁶ So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

⁷ All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”

⁸ But 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.”

⁹ Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰ For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

 

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1. The Tree: Where Are You Hiding?

Let’s begin with the tree.

Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus.

But perhaps he didn’t want Jesus to see him.

There is a difference.

He found the perfect place.

High enough to see everything.

Far enough away not to get involved.

The tree gave him a certain kind of safety.

He could watch Jesus without being noticed.

And perhaps we do something similar.

We have our own trees.

Sometimes we hide behind busyness.

Behind work.

Behind responsibilities.

Behind money.

Behind achievements.

Behind the image we have carefully built of ourselves.

Sometimes we hide behind being “fine.”

And sometimes, strangely enough, we can even hide behind religion.

We come to church.

We sing.

We pray.

We know the right words.

But we still keep Jesus at a safe distance.

We want to see him.

We just don’t necessarily want him to see us.

So imagine Zacchaeus for a moment.

Sitting there in the tree.

Don’t do anything.

Just stay there.

Where is your tree?

[Silence]

Perhaps an answer comes to you.

Perhaps it doesn’t.

That’s okay.

We don’t need to force it.

But notice something beautiful about this story.

Zacchaeus thought he was looking for Jesus.

But when Jesus finally found him, Zacchaeus discovered that Jesus had been looking for him all along.

Zacchaeus climbed the tree to see Jesus.

Jesus stopped beneath the tree to find Zacchaeus.

The Gospel is not simply about our search for God.

It is about God coming to find us.

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2. The Name: Jesus Calls Him by Name

Now listen again.

Jesus looks up.

And says:

“Zacchaeus.”

He doesn’t say:

“Hey, tax collector.”

He doesn’t say:

“You sinner, come down.”

He doesn’t begin with a lecture.

He says:

“Zacchaeus.”

His name.

The name his mother gave him.

The name he carried as a child.

The name that remained even after he became wealthy, powerful and despised.

Zacchaeus.

It is as if Jesus is saying:

“I know who you are.”

And perhaps even more importantly:

“I still see you as a person.”

That matters.

Because we have a terrible habit of reducing people to their mistakes.

“He’s an alcoholic.”

“She is difficult.”

“He’s that politician.”

“She is that troublemaker.”

“He did that.”

“She said that.”

We turn people into labels.

Jesus doesn’t.

Jesus sees the person.

And Jesus calls him by name.

So listen for a moment.

In the middle of all the voices in your life — the voice of guilt, the voice of criticism, the voice of expectations, the voice of failure, even that harsh voice inside your own head —

listen.

Perhaps Christ is calling your name.

Not your position.

Not your reputation.

Not your failures.

Not your achievements.

Your name.

[Silence]

And listen to what Jesus says next:

“Hurry and come down, because today I must stay at your house.”

Jesus doesn’t say,

“Perhaps I’ll visit sometime.”

He doesn’t say,

“Get your life in order and then we’ll talk.”

He says:

“Today I must stay at your house.”

Jesus doesn’t want simply to pass through Zacchaeus’ life.

He wants to enter it.

He wants to sit at the table.

He wants to stay.

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3. The Grumbling: Who Is Speaking Inside Your Head?

Now listen to another sound.

The crowd.

Luke tells us that they all began to grumble:

“He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”

All of them.

Isn’t that interesting?

Jesus finds someone who is lost.

And the first response of the crowd is to complain.

Because grace can be uncomfortable.

Especially when grace is given to someone we don’t think deserves it.

And perhaps that is why we need to listen carefully to the grumbling.

Because sometimes that crowd is not only outside the story.

Sometimes it is inside us.

It is the voice that says:

“I would never do something like that.”

“He deserves what he gets.”

“She should pay for what she did.”

“After everything he’s done, he still gets grace?”

“I’m not as bad as him.”

That voice knows how to compare.

It loves dividing the world into “us” and “them.”

And above all, it loves the idea that grace should be given to people who deserve it.

But there is a problem with that.

If grace were only given to people who deserved it…

it wouldn’t be grace.

So listen again.

What is the grumbling voice inside you saying?

[Silence]

Jesus doesn’t argue with the crowd.

He doesn’t waste time defending his reputation.

He simply goes into Zacchaeus’ house.

And that is remarkable.

Jesus doesn’t wait for Zacchaeus to put his life in order before entering.

He enters.

And it is because Jesus enters that Zacchaeus begins to change.

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4. The Transformation: Grace Changes the Way We Live

Now we come to something we must not miss.

Zacchaeus comes down from the tree.

He welcomes Jesus with joy.

And then something happens.

Zacchaeus begins talking about money.

But now he talks about money in a completely different way.

He says:

“Look, Lord! I give half of my possessions to the poor. And if I have cheated anybody, I will pay back four times the amount.”

Notice the order.

First comes Jesus.

Then comes transformation.

First comes grace.

Then comes a new way of living.

Zacchaeus isn’t trying to buy Jesus’ love.

He has already received it.

Jesus has already seen him.

Called him.

Entered his house.

Sat at his table.

And now Zacchaeus’ life begins to respond to that grace.

Grace opens his hands.

The man who once accumulated begins to give.

The man who may have built his life around money begins using it to repair what he has damaged.

His encounter with Jesus reaches into his wallet, his relationships, his conscience and his past.

Because grace never stays safely inside the church.

Grace follows us home.

It reaches Monday morning.

It reaches our bank accounts.

It reaches our families.

It reaches the people we have hurt.

It reaches the people who have hurt us.

It changes the way we treat people.

Zacchaeus comes down from the tree as one person.

And he begins to live as someone new.

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5. The House: Who Is Really the Host?

And then Jesus says those beautiful words:

“Today salvation has come to this house.”

Not because Zacchaeus has suddenly become perfect.

Not because he has managed to fix everything.

But because Jesus has entered the house.

Salvation has come because Christ has come.

And perhaps there is a question here for us today:

Is Jesus simply a guest in your life?

Or is he the host?

Because perhaps we have invited Jesus into certain rooms of our lives.

“Jesus, bless my family.”

But don’t touch my resentment.

“Jesus, take care of my faith.”

But don’t ask too much of me.

“Jesus, be with me.”

But please don’t rearrange the furniture.

Zacchaeus discovers that when Jesus comes into the house, Jesus begins to change the house.

Not by destroying it.

Not by humiliating him.

But by putting things back where they belong.

And perhaps that is what Christ wants to do with us.

Not to destroy who we are.

But to free us to become who we were created to be.

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Conclusion: The Table Is Ready

So perhaps we should end where we began.

Back in that street in Jericho.

The crowd.

The noise.

Zacchaeus in the tree.

Jesus walking by.

And then…

Jesus stops.

He looks up.

And calls:

“Zacchaeus.”

Maybe that is the word we need to hear today.

Because the Gospel does not begin with:

“Come down and get your life together.”

It begins with:

“I see you.”

“I know you.”

“I call you by name.”

“And I want to stay with you.”

And yes, Jesus changes us.

But transformation begins with presence.

It begins with grace.

It begins with Christ entering the house.

In a few moments, we will stand.

We will sing.

And we will gather around the Lord’s Table.

And it is important to remember:

We do not come because we are worthy.

We do not come because we have finally put our lives in order.

We do not come because we are better than the people outside.

We come because Christ invites us.

It is his table.

It is his house.

And he still calls people by name.

People who are tired.

People who are carrying guilt.

People who have been hiding.

People who feel like outsiders.

People who wonder whether they still belong.

People who have made mistakes.

People who are trying to begin again.

People like Zacchaeus.

People like us.

So perhaps today Christ is saying:

“Come down from the tree.”

You don’t have to hide anymore.

“Come.”

The table is ready.

And when Christ enters the house,

the house is never quite the same again.

Amen.