Distortions
Dear Church Family,
This past Sunday we continued our series Distortions: Naming the Things That Keep People From the Real Jesus, and this week we looked at one of the most damaging distortions of all: the belief that some people are beyond God's grace.
Using the story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19, we were reminded that Jesus specializes in seeking out the people others have written off. Zacchaeus wasn't just a curious man in a tree. He was a tax collector, a cheat, and someone despised by nearly everyone around him. Yet before Zacchaeus changed anything about his life, Jesus stopped, called him by name, and chose to spend time with him.
The message centered on a powerful truth: grace always comes before change. Jesus did not wait for Zacchaeus to clean up his life before extending love and friendship. Instead, it was the kindness and grace of Christ that produced genuine transformation. As followers of Jesus, we are called to do the same. We can love and accept people without approving of everything in their lives, trusting God to do the work of changing hearts.
We also saw that real repentance produces real action. After encountering Jesus, Zacchaeus immediately began making things right. His generosity and restitution did not earn his salvation; they revealed that his heart had been changed. As Scripture reminds us, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and the new has come."
Another important reminder from the message was that no one is beyond redemption. Jesus declared that He came "to seek and to save the lost." No matter how far someone has wandered, how many mistakes they have made, or how impossible their situation may seem, God's grace is still reaching toward them.
Finally, we were challenged to see people the way Jesus sees them. While the crowd saw a label, Jesus saw a person. While others saw a sinner, Jesus saw someone worth pursuing. The same challenge remains for us today. There are "Zacchaeuses" all around us, people longing to be seen, known, and loved.
May we walk through this week with eyes open to those around us, extending the grace we have received and remembering that no one is too far gone for the transforming love of Jesus.
- Pastor Jerry Ausbrook