A Fresh Start

Today's scripture is from Luke 19:1-10. As Jesus continues on the road to Jerusalem, teaching and healing as he goes, he comes to Jericho. There a crowd gathers to see him. In that crowd is a man named Zacchaeus. The scripture says that Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector, and very wealthy. Zacchaeus was also short so, in order to see Jesus, he had to climb a tree. Jesus sees Zacchaeus sitting in the midst of the foliage and calls him out. Jesus tells him that he's coming over to Zacchaeus' house to spend the night. The crowd gets very upset because Zacchaeus made his living by cheating them, by collecting more taxes than the people really owed. They are angry that Jesus is spending his time with the likes of him. But Zacchaeus has a conversion experience due to his encounter with Jesus. He publicly promises to give half of what he owns to the poor, and to pay back 4 times as much to the people he's cheated.
So...who is Zacchaeus today? The bailed-out bankers? The Wall Street weasels? The ponzi-scheme practitioners? Do we think they deserve a fresh start? The crowds around Jesus didn't think Zacchaeus merited Jesus' attention, yet it was Jesus' attention that turned Zacchaeus' life around...and had great positive impact on the lives of those in his community.
The last verse of this scripture says, "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." Are there ways in which you are lost in your life? You may not be unscrupulously wealthy like Zacchaeus, but there are many other ways of being lost. The story of Zacchaeus tells us that, no matter how lost you are, or how you are lost, Jesus is looking for you. Jesus can find you even if you're hiding up in a tree, or down in your basement, or deep in a bottle. And Jesus offers what we all need most: a fresh start. A chance to wipe the slate clean, to make amends and to have all be forgiven, to go forward into a new life with Jesus as our guide. Will you take Jesus up on his offer? Will you welcome him into your home? Will you stop lying and cheating your way through life and get honest with yourself, with others, and with Jesus about what your true priorities are? Will you, like Zacchaeus, be willing to change your priorities? If the answer is "yes", then you have already received your fresh start. Thanks be to God who gives us the victory in Jesus Christ.