Do You Believe Renewal Is Possible?
a sermon on Luke 19.1-10
by David C. Mauldin
Westminster Presbyterian Church, Mobile, Alabama

I can never read the story of Zacchaeus without thinking of an incident that happened years ago in Sunday school. My last year of seminary, I was student pastor of a small church in Indiana. When I got there, there was no Sunday school, although there were about 8 children. The problem was they ranged from preschool through 8th grade. So with the help of a couple of volunteers, I started a one room Sunday school. Everyone was in the same big room. The older kids helped the younger ones learn. We sang. We learned Bible verses. We heard the story together, then broke into smaller groups for age-appropriate activities. One Sunday the lesson was on the scripture passage I just read—Jesus meets Zacchaeus. We were all in a big circle. We had just finished reading the passage. And one young man—he was in 8th grade, I think; a bright, thoughtful young man—he spoke up and said, “I don’t think that really happened.” For just a second, everyone was silent. One of the other teachers began to reprimand him. “You can’t question the Bible!” she told him. I interrupted. “Wait a minute,” I said. “He has something on his mind. Let’s hear it.” You see, I believe Christianity is true. And because it is true, we have nothing to fear from honest questions and inquiry. This could be, I felt, a decisive moment in the spiritual life of this young person. If he were told he simply had to believe what the Bible said, what the church said, or what the preacher said, and never raise questions or voice doubts, I think he would have given up on Christianity pretty quickly. But, if he was free to ask and explore, and he found confident answers, he might find something worth committing his life to. I confess I was a bit surprised. I am accustomed to people sharing questions and doubts. Usually they are about some miracle in the Bible, an attribute of God, or something like that. Is Jonah a parable or a historical figure? If God loves everyone, how can any be lost? Did Jesus really walk on water? Those kinds of questions. Nothing miraculous happens in the Zacchaeus story. Jesus goes to Jericho. He spots a man in a state of spiritual confusion. He eats with the man, and the man changes his life. Not much here strains our ability to believe. So I asked the young man, “Why don’t you believe it?” He answered, “Because it is too much like a pattern. Obviously we are supposed to follow Zacchaeus’s example. It seems more like a made-up example than something that would have really happened.” Do You Believe Renewal Is Possible? 2
I thought that was an insightful observation, but hardly a reason to doubt the account. So I asked him, “How many people in the world today are Christians?” “Millions, maybe a billion,” he said. “Yes, and if only one percent were truly committed and took their faith seriously, how many people would be devoted followers of Jesus Christ?” “Millions.” “Do you know any people like that?” “Sure.” “Who? Name some.” He named several members of the church. “OK, so 2,000 years after he walked the earth, Jesus commands a large and devout following. People change their ways because of him and base their lives on him. Yet you doubt he had the chrisma to change the life of one man whom he actually met face to face?” I think something connected for him. I hope it did. I went on to say he was right: Luke did include this story in his gospel because he saw something in it he wanted us to imitate, but that fact alone should not render it historically suspect. There are Christians today who share their life story and offer up the same kind of pattern. “If you have made some of the bad choices I made, now make the good choice I made for Jesus.” I think in the Zaccaheus account, we find two points being made. One is what the young man picked up on: Jesus changes our lives. We ought to be willing to bow before him with true repentance—the kind that makes amends and follows a new path. The other point has to do with the crowd’s reaction to Jesus’ invitation. When they saw Jesus going to Zacchaeus’s house, they complained that Jesus ought not associate with that kind of person. Jesus replied that he had come for exactly this kind of person. Luke wanted to defend both Jesus and the church that is supposed to follow his example. Now … here is something ironic. That young man had doubts about the Zacchaeus story. He did, however, believe Jesus could change lives. He had seen it. I was able to work back from that fact to the credibility of the story. In contrast, many people in the church believe what the gospel says about Zacchaeus, but they do not believe in changed lives. They do not believe renewal is possible. Not really. Not deep down. Not enough to take a chance on it. Not enough to act on faith. We all know that by the time we are 25 or 30 we are set in our ways. We are who we are, and although we can make minor changes, major renovation is impossible. Or is it? Do you believe Jesus can do for you what he did for Zacchaeus? A new heart, new priorities, a clean slate, fresh passion, transformed relationships, faith in place of doubt, a sense of God’s presence or at least his faithfulness—in short, a new life? Can Jesus make you a new creation? If you are a Christian already, can he take you to a new level? A new level of commitment? A new level of contentment? A new level of peace and joy? Do you believe in renewal? Do you believe Jesus can do it for you?
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Before you rush to answer yes, consider carefully. If you are going to say you believe in renewal, would you also say you are in some kind of a rut? It could be a spiritual rut. It could be your whole life. It could be a sort of vague discontent, as if you ought to be happy but you aren’t. It could be a lot of things. Most of us, if we are honest, know where we need growth and renewal. Maybe we don’t need a total life transformation, but we need something. We are not yet where God intends us to be in terms of holiness, of loving others, of knowing peace and joy, of being angry enough about evil and injustice to try to do something about it. The question we must answer truthfully is: Are we going to settle for good enough? We know Jesus Christ. We are secure in his grace. We are reasonably nice and respectable people. Is it enough? Or would that be like Zacchaeus saying, “Jesus, I am so glad you came to my house today. You are always welcome here. Please, don’t be a stranger. And, I want you to know you’ve made a difference in my life. From now on, I am going to be a lot less flagrant in ripping people off. Thank you so much.” There is danger here. Jesus does not allow patients to receive partial treatment. You go in for everything or nothing at all. Once he gets holds of you, he will not stop until you are like him. Painful changes may be necessary. The end result, however, is glorious. Never settle for anything less. Suppose, however, that you are satisfied with your life and your growth as a Christian. Ask yourself if you should be. Are you settling for too little? Can you even dream of a passion for God that shakes you to your core? A knot in your gut that feels like the beginning of true love? That spark—that fire—that cannot be controlled? You may not be an emotional person. I am not. I tend to be one of those steady-Neddy types, never too high, never too low. Yet I know a love for God that is in the heart and the head and the body, a powerful love that eclipses everything else. I long to know it more and to surrender more and more of my life to it. … I have always thought that the only good reason to be part of a church is: You love Jesus Christ and you know the church is his people. You cannot be the person he asks you to be by yourself. You need others because you have only been given some gifts, not all. God intended us to live in community. Church is important. I have always thought that Christians who were not part of a church family deprive themselves. Yes, they miss out on petty issues that arise, and they avoid responsibilities. But, they miss out on a lot of great stuff, and perhaps what they are really avoiding is their calling. God has something for them to do, and they are not doing all of it. People say you can be a Christian without church. That is true, in the same way you can be a football player without a team. You may be a skilled passer or a great runner, but to actually play football you need a team.
Do You Believe Renewal Is Possible?  4
Church is important. But, I have come to realize that it is possible to be part of a church and still deprive oneself. If you heart is not in your worship, if you are not using your gifts, if you are not caring for others and (equally as important) letting them care for you, then you can be here but still miss out on so much that God wants for you. I think it is difficult for us modern people in the Western world to live together in genuine community. We tend to think of church along the same lines as a social club. “I like these people. I like the activities.” And so on. But church really should be so much more. What makes a church different is baptism, and the calling God gives us. We are baptized, and God claims us. He says, “You are my beloved child. With you I am well pleased. Now here is what I want you to do …” We are defined—individually and collectively—by that action and those words. God’s hand is on us. That is a frightening thing. It is also a wonderful, exciting, and comforting thing. But it should shake us up and light a fire within. So here we are, together, people whom God has called. People whom God has gifted and sent out. How do we live this out? What is the difference between us and our non-Christian decent, respectable, middle-class neighbors? Where is the power? Where is the joy? Where is the quiet confidence that keeps on, day after day, despite discouragement? God has blessed us. We have some wonderful people in this church—devoted people, loving people—the kind of people a young person might name if asked, “Do you know anyone who lives for Jesus Christ?” We must not, however, be complacent and satisfied. God is working in us, and who knows what God might do through us if we are faithful and surrender to him? We all need renewal. We all need refreshment along the way. As we move toward our refresh and renew event at the end of February, we can start where renewal always begins: desire … hunger … a desire for God and a hunger for a life transformed by his grace. That, as Zacchaeus would tell you, is the only kind of life worth living. Renewal begins with a discontentment that says, “This is not enough. I want more. I want to give more of myself to God. I want to know him more fully.” Desire is the first step. The second step is believing renewal is possible. The third step is surrender. You pray and ask God to do something amazing with your life. You bow before him, ready to do whatever he wants. You surrender your ambitions and agendas to his. The fourth step is of course up to God. Time and again throughout history God’s people have humbled themselves and sought God. They have realized they are not who or where God wants them to be. So they turn to God with expectant hearts. And who knows what God will do?
Do You Believe Renewal Is Possible?  5
We do not control God. We cannot follow a formula or script for spiritual growth and new life. Those things are in God’s hands. I don’t want to press the story too hard because we find many different patterns in the gospels, but it was Jesus who approached Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus had a hunger, or at least an interest, so he went to observe Jesus. Jesus saw his need and came to him. That, I think, is characteristic of the way God’s sovereign grace and our freedom interact. We do what we can on our part, then we trust God to do whatever he is going to do. Almost always it is surprising and amazing and unexpected. We cannot renew ourselves or our church. We cannot gain new life for ourselves. We cannot make ourselves like Christ. But, by God’s grace, we can desire these things, and we can surrender ourselves to God in love. We can do the things God has put within our power—just as Zacchaeus gave away his ill-gotten wealth—and trust God to do everything for us that he has promised. I like the story of Zacchaeus. It reminds me that new life is possible. Amen. January 6, 2008 rev_mauldin@yahoo.com