and to contemplate the big
questions of life, about what is
important. For me redundancy was
such a ‘turning point’ for others it
can be the wonder (as well as the
awesome responsibility) of
becoming a parent or grandparent;
for others it can be bereavement or
illness or retirement. Such
milestones in our lives can cause us
‘take stock’, especially in relation to
God and His Son, Jesus Christ.
In the Church in South Barrow we
have a significant number of
Baptisms each year; in the baptism
service we acknowledge Jesus
Christ as the ‘source of all being
and life, the One for whom we
exist’. In a nutshell, this is key to
finding true purpose and meaning
in life - as a man called Zacchaeus
discovered almost 2000 years ago
and as countless others have
discovered since.
A desire
Zacchaeus was a wealthy man and
apparently lacked nothing that
money could buy. He had the
status of being a chief tax-collector
with people working under him and
had no doubt been promoted
many times. He had success, but at
a cost. Tax collectors (in those
days!) had a reputation for
corruption and collaborating with
the occupying Roman power. Thus,
he was ostracised and unpopular,
and was known locally as a ‘sinner’.
His parents had called him
Zacchaeus meaning “the righteous
one” - but now perhaps he had no
time from God. However, despite
all his money and success there
was still something amiss in
Zacchaeus’ life. When he heard
Jesus was in town “he wanted to
see who Jesus was”. His desire to
see Jesus was not just out of
curiosity, Zacchaeus realised he
had a need.
A difficulty
But like many who seek Jesus he
ran into difficulty. For some it is a
sceptical friend, a bad habit or a
secret ambition. For Zacchaeus it
was a practical problem - he was
small and unable to see Jesus.
However, he quickly overcame his
problem by scrambling into a tree
where he could see Jesus but
remain unseen by Him (keeping a
‘safe’ distance!). However,
Zacchaeus did not realise that you
cannot hide from Jesus. Jesus
insists that anonymous
acquaintances should give way to
close encounters!
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