WEBVTT 00:00:13.320 --> 00:00:16.019 Welcome to Hub City Vineyard. To get connected 00:00:16.019 --> 00:00:20.059 or to give online, go to connect .hcv .church 00:00:20.059 --> 00:00:23.839 or give .hcv .church. If at any point during 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:26.000 this message you feel called to make a change 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:30.920 in your life, text CHANGEME to 9700. Thank you 00:00:30.920 --> 00:00:34.719 and enjoy the message. So good to see you. So 00:00:34.719 --> 00:00:36.479 glad you're here. If you're joining us from home 00:00:36.479 --> 00:00:39.700 or at HHC, thank you for welcoming us into your 00:00:39.700 --> 00:00:42.479 space. Many of you don't know how special you 00:00:42.479 --> 00:00:45.039 are. You got to see our announcements. The Sky 00:00:45.039 --> 00:00:47.799 Bible's working. Our first gathering didn't have 00:00:47.799 --> 00:00:52.020 any of it. No technology. Everyone was so sad 00:00:52.020 --> 00:00:54.960 and just depressed. I'm just kidding. It was 00:00:54.960 --> 00:00:58.119 an incredible time. But it's always good to have 00:00:58.119 --> 00:01:00.479 words to sing to, and it's always good to have 00:01:00.479 --> 00:01:03.740 announcements. But this morning, I want to open 00:01:03.740 --> 00:01:06.840 with a simple phrase, and I want to challenge 00:01:06.840 --> 00:01:09.400 all of us to commit it to memory and practice 00:01:09.400 --> 00:01:12.140 it while you're driving in your car, while you're 00:01:12.140 --> 00:01:14.840 getting a shower in the morning. But more importantly, 00:01:14.980 --> 00:01:17.840 before you walk into school, before you walk 00:01:17.840 --> 00:01:21.500 into work, I want you to repeat these three simple 00:01:21.500 --> 00:01:25.200 words to yourself over and over again. Are you 00:01:25.200 --> 00:01:33.209 ready to hear them? Come and see. Come. And see, 00:01:33.370 --> 00:01:38.489 let's all say it together. Come and see. See, 00:01:38.549 --> 00:01:42.469 we're keeping it simple today. Come and see was 00:01:42.469 --> 00:01:46.530 Jesus's invitation to Andrew and John, two of 00:01:46.530 --> 00:01:49.329 John the Baptist's disciples that we can read 00:01:49.329 --> 00:01:52.409 all about in the gospel of John chapter one. 00:01:52.870 --> 00:01:56.469 John the Baptist had just baptized Jesus and 00:01:56.469 --> 00:01:59.930 told these two men that Jesus was the Messiah. 00:02:00.599 --> 00:02:04.120 So they began to follow him. When Jesus noticed 00:02:04.120 --> 00:02:08.180 these two men walking behind him, he turned to 00:02:08.180 --> 00:02:12.300 them with a question. And Jesus' question, what 00:02:12.300 --> 00:02:18.780 do you want? What do you want? Wasn't just for 00:02:18.780 --> 00:02:23.199 Andrew and John, it's for all of us. He asked 00:02:23.199 --> 00:02:26.039 us to reflect on our desires and our motivations. 00:02:27.979 --> 00:02:31.740 See, what are you genuinely seeking by following 00:02:31.740 --> 00:02:35.379 Jesus? And when we are clear about what we're 00:02:35.379 --> 00:02:39.319 after, our hearts are then open to receive what 00:02:39.319 --> 00:02:42.740 Jesus offers. Andrew and John wanted to know 00:02:42.740 --> 00:02:46.060 if Jesus was truly the Messiah. They accepted 00:02:46.060 --> 00:02:50.840 his invitation to come and see, and they found 00:02:50.840 --> 00:02:54.680 their answer. And it changed their lives forever. 00:02:55.500 --> 00:03:00.039 Jesus' invitation still stands today. He asked 00:03:00.039 --> 00:03:03.599 each of us, as he did Andrew and John, to come 00:03:03.599 --> 00:03:07.599 and see for ourselves and then to decide whether 00:03:07.599 --> 00:03:11.099 to follow him. See, following Jesus isn't just 00:03:11.099 --> 00:03:15.840 a one -time decision. It's a daily choice. Following 00:03:15.840 --> 00:03:19.780 Jesus becomes our life. It becomes our mission 00:03:19.780 --> 00:03:23.800 as Jesus challenges us to invite others. into 00:03:23.800 --> 00:03:27.139 this abundant life that we now live. Now, of 00:03:27.139 --> 00:03:29.139 course, there are always going to be people within 00:03:29.139 --> 00:03:32.819 our sphere of influence that questions our decision 00:03:32.819 --> 00:03:36.060 to follow Jesus, that questions our decision 00:03:36.060 --> 00:03:40.000 to become a part of the church. Just like Nathaniel 00:03:40.000 --> 00:03:43.800 questioned Philip when Philip told him that Jesus 00:03:43.800 --> 00:03:46.979 was from Nazareth, Nathaniel said, can anything 00:03:46.979 --> 00:03:51.280 good come from Nazareth? Can anything good come 00:03:51.280 --> 00:03:54.740 out of the church? Are there really good people 00:03:54.740 --> 00:03:59.819 in the church? And though this is said in our 00:03:59.819 --> 00:04:03.360 community quite often, I believe our response 00:04:03.360 --> 00:04:06.939 shouldn't be to argue. It shouldn't be to correct 00:04:06.939 --> 00:04:14.139 them. It should be simple. Come and see. Join 00:04:14.139 --> 00:04:17.959 me on a Sunday. Come as you are. No dress code 00:04:17.959 --> 00:04:22.110 required. No judgment. you will be welcomed. 00:04:23.310 --> 00:04:26.129 Okay, well, where do you go to church? What are 00:04:26.129 --> 00:04:28.750 the times? Well, I go to the Hub City Vineyard. 00:04:28.790 --> 00:04:32.689 Wait, did you say vineyard? Is this a wine tasting 00:04:32.689 --> 00:04:35.790 church or something? What kind of a church is 00:04:35.790 --> 00:04:39.529 this? Well, it's a hippie church. Hippie church? 00:04:40.310 --> 00:04:42.470 Are you in some kind of a cult or something? 00:04:42.569 --> 00:04:44.629 Like, do you want me to call someone for you? 00:04:45.389 --> 00:04:48.850 No, no, no, I don't need help. I had an encounter 00:04:48.850 --> 00:04:51.949 with Jesus, and now I'm simply inviting you to 00:04:51.949 --> 00:04:56.550 do the same, to come and see. Now, you may have 00:04:56.550 --> 00:05:00.129 heard in our announcements that today, just like 00:05:00.129 --> 00:05:03.230 every first Sunday of the month, is Start With 00:05:03.230 --> 00:05:06.029 Why. And if you don't know why we are called 00:05:06.029 --> 00:05:08.529 the Hippie Church, you can join me directly after 00:05:08.529 --> 00:05:12.129 this gathering at the Welcome Hub, and I'll tell 00:05:12.129 --> 00:05:17.029 you all about our community of faith. This morning, 00:05:17.069 --> 00:05:20.589 we are kicking off our Easter series, The Unexpected, 00:05:20.589 --> 00:05:25.470 by discussing an unexpected invitation Jesus 00:05:25.470 --> 00:05:29.610 extended to a man named Zacchaeus in Luke chapter 00:05:29.610 --> 00:05:32.970 19. And over the coming weeks, we're going to 00:05:32.970 --> 00:05:37.829 be looking at unexpected traits of Jesus, events 00:05:37.829 --> 00:05:41.620 that happened in Jesus' life. and assignments 00:05:41.620 --> 00:05:45.879 that Jesus gave that were unexpected throughout 00:05:45.879 --> 00:05:50.060 the month of April. I want to begin by reading 00:05:50.060 --> 00:05:53.000 in Luke chapter 19, verses 1 through 3, which 00:05:53.000 --> 00:05:57.160 reads, Jesus entered Jericho and made his way 00:05:57.160 --> 00:06:00.519 through the town. There was a man there named 00:06:00.519 --> 00:06:04.240 Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in 00:06:04.240 --> 00:06:11.769 the region, and he had become very rich. Jesus. 00:06:11.769 --> 00:06:16.610 See, Zacchaeus wanted to see who Jesus was. He 00:06:16.610 --> 00:06:20.870 was curious. He was interested. Maybe he had 00:06:20.870 --> 00:06:24.430 heard about Matthew, the tax collector's invitation 00:06:24.430 --> 00:06:28.209 to follow him. Maybe he had heard about all the 00:06:28.209 --> 00:06:31.529 signs, the wonders, and the miracles. See, I'm 00:06:31.529 --> 00:06:34.709 willing to guess that Zacchaeus knew just enough 00:06:34.709 --> 00:06:38.800 about Jesus that he wanted to get a glimpse of 00:06:38.800 --> 00:06:44.180 this radical traveling teacher who was spending 00:06:44.180 --> 00:06:51.000 time with people just like him. With people just 00:06:51.000 --> 00:06:54.660 like him, the outcasts, the forgotten, those 00:06:54.660 --> 00:06:59.579 cast off by society, which leads us to our first 00:06:59.579 --> 00:07:01.279 thought this morning. You see, unfortunately, 00:07:01.439 --> 00:07:08.040 sin produces shame. Sin produces shame. Again, 00:07:08.139 --> 00:07:11.560 back to Luke 19, 1 through 4. Jesus entered Jericho 00:07:11.560 --> 00:07:14.079 and made his way through the town. There was 00:07:14.079 --> 00:07:16.480 a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief. 00:07:16.639 --> 00:07:19.939 Everyone say chief. Tax collector in the region. 00:07:20.199 --> 00:07:23.560 And he had become very rich. See, quite often 00:07:23.560 --> 00:07:25.980 when this story is taught, everyone focuses on 00:07:25.980 --> 00:07:31.459 how small or short Zacchaeus was. When in reality, 00:07:31.620 --> 00:07:36.389 the title chief tax collector is not found anywhere 00:07:36.389 --> 00:07:41.410 else in the Bible, except in this context, which 00:07:41.410 --> 00:07:44.769 means Zacchaeus was probably in charge of tax 00:07:44.769 --> 00:07:48.649 collection for the entire region. He wasn't just 00:07:48.649 --> 00:07:53.089 collecting for a town, but an entire region that 00:07:53.089 --> 00:07:56.990 he would then send off to the government in Rome. 00:07:57.209 --> 00:08:01.269 And notice what it says about Zacchaeus. He had 00:08:01.269 --> 00:08:06.959 become Very rich. Which again reinforces that 00:08:06.959 --> 00:08:10.759 Zacchaeus, he was a thief. And he was only focused 00:08:10.759 --> 00:08:15.379 on himself. He had become rich by taking or stealing 00:08:15.379 --> 00:08:18.939 money from his own people. Right? A tax collector 00:08:18.939 --> 00:08:22.779 could tax everything they wanted to on a common 00:08:22.779 --> 00:08:25.259 person. They could tax their food. They could 00:08:25.259 --> 00:08:27.899 tax their animals. They could tax their carts. 00:08:28.160 --> 00:08:31.120 They could tax their homes. They could tax anything 00:08:31.120 --> 00:08:36.159 they wanted. And because of this, Zacchaeus was 00:08:36.159 --> 00:08:39.220 an outcast. He wasn't accepted by the people. 00:08:39.340 --> 00:08:44.600 He wasn't accepted into the temple. He was forgotten. 00:08:45.299 --> 00:08:49.639 But let's continue. Zacchaeus tried to get a 00:08:49.639 --> 00:08:53.200 look at Jesus, but he was too short. to see over 00:08:53.200 --> 00:08:56.200 the crowd. And notice, yes, he was too short, 00:08:56.299 --> 00:08:59.600 but more importantly, the focus of Zacchaeus 00:08:59.600 --> 00:09:01.960 should be that he was a chief tax collector and 00:09:01.960 --> 00:09:06.740 that he was very, very rich. So he ran ahead 00:09:06.740 --> 00:09:10.919 and he climbed a sycamore fig tree beside the 00:09:10.919 --> 00:09:14.679 road for Jesus was going to pass that way. And 00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:17.460 I find it interesting that Zacchaeus climbed 00:09:17.460 --> 00:09:22.879 a sycamore fig tree. Because if we travel all 00:09:22.879 --> 00:09:25.220 the way back to the first book of the Bible, 00:09:25.399 --> 00:09:29.360 we will discover that fig leaves off of a tree 00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:33.960 have a very deep connection to this story. Adam 00:09:33.960 --> 00:09:37.200 and Eve had just eaten from the apple from the 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:39.580 tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And this 00:09:39.580 --> 00:09:42.419 is what we read in Genesis 3, 7 through 8. At 00:09:42.419 --> 00:09:46.429 that moment, their eyes were opened. And they 00:09:46.429 --> 00:09:49.710 suddenly felt shame at their nakedness, so they 00:09:49.710 --> 00:09:51.789 sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. 00:09:52.909 --> 00:09:55.750 Adam and Eve, of course, felt naked for the first 00:09:55.750 --> 00:10:00.490 time because they now recognized their sin. They 00:10:00.490 --> 00:10:04.090 now saw their mistakes, their bad choices, that 00:10:04.090 --> 00:10:07.409 they were living, in fact, in sin. They weren't 00:10:07.409 --> 00:10:10.409 obedient to what God had told them. And when 00:10:10.409 --> 00:10:12.730 sin came into the world, there, of course, is 00:10:12.730 --> 00:10:16.460 shame. And where there is shame, there's the 00:10:16.460 --> 00:10:20.679 human nature within us to hide. Right? It's a 00:10:20.679 --> 00:10:24.360 fight or flight mentality that's inside of us. 00:10:24.480 --> 00:10:29.039 And for many people, when living with shame and 00:10:29.039 --> 00:10:34.659 guilt, they choose to hide. Let's continue. When 00:10:34.659 --> 00:10:37.799 the cool evening breezes were blowing, the man 00:10:37.799 --> 00:10:40.240 and his wife heard the Lord God walking about 00:10:40.240 --> 00:10:51.309 in the garden. So they hid. Adam and Eve were 00:10:51.309 --> 00:10:58.210 hiding in a tree. Who does that sound like? Now 00:10:58.210 --> 00:11:02.909 back to Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus hid from Jesus in 00:11:02.909 --> 00:11:07.090 a sycamore fig tree. Zacchaeus wanted to see 00:11:07.090 --> 00:11:12.169 Jesus without being seen by Jesus. He was curious. 00:11:12.970 --> 00:11:16.269 But something inside of him told him he needed 00:11:16.269 --> 00:11:20.809 to what? He needed to hide. Zacchaeus knew that 00:11:20.809 --> 00:11:24.629 he had sinned. He knew that he was stealing and 00:11:24.629 --> 00:11:27.309 thieving from the people, that he was an outcast. 00:11:28.070 --> 00:11:31.789 But I'm willing to bet that he wasn't so sure 00:11:31.789 --> 00:11:36.009 about this Jesus either. And I get it. Listen, 00:11:36.230 --> 00:11:39.500 if you don't know Jesus, And maybe you're gathered 00:11:39.500 --> 00:11:43.019 here or you're watching online. Our natural instinct 00:11:43.019 --> 00:11:47.940 is to hide. Is to put on a mask. Is to pretend 00:11:47.940 --> 00:11:51.460 that everything is okay. Because Jesus, Jesus 00:11:51.460 --> 00:11:54.139 can be overwhelming. I mean, we can literally 00:11:54.139 --> 00:11:57.620 walk into a worship gathering and begin weeping 00:11:57.620 --> 00:12:01.240 for no particular reason. We can walk into a 00:12:01.240 --> 00:12:03.899 worship gathering, be convicted, and fall to 00:12:03.899 --> 00:12:07.629 our knees. We can... gather together and sing 00:12:07.629 --> 00:12:10.549 and worship and begin to laugh and cry at the 00:12:10.549 --> 00:12:14.970 same time. Jesus can be overwhelming, especially 00:12:14.970 --> 00:12:18.789 when it comes to our past. Because when we think 00:12:18.789 --> 00:12:22.409 about the mistakes and the choices, many of us 00:12:22.409 --> 00:12:26.269 carry around a lot of guilt and shame. And is 00:12:26.269 --> 00:12:28.909 Jesus, is Jesus really just going to forgive 00:12:28.909 --> 00:12:35.980 me? Yes. Yes, he will. Look at Romans. 619 from 00:12:35.980 --> 00:12:39.460 Eugene Peterson's message, paraphrase, I'm using 00:12:39.460 --> 00:12:42.399 this freedom language because it's easy to picture. 00:12:43.100 --> 00:12:46.139 You can readily recall, can't you, how at one 00:12:46.139 --> 00:12:48.419 time, the more you did just what you felt like 00:12:48.419 --> 00:12:50.980 doing, not caring about others, not caring about 00:12:50.980 --> 00:12:53.879 God, the worse your life became and the less 00:12:53.879 --> 00:12:57.919 freedom you had. And how much different is it 00:12:57.919 --> 00:13:00.820 now that you live in God's freedom? Your life's 00:13:00.820 --> 00:13:05.899 healed and expansive. in holiness. Zacchaeus 00:13:05.899 --> 00:13:10.200 wanted to see without being seen, which leads 00:13:10.200 --> 00:13:14.720 us to our next thought. Jesus calls us by name. 00:13:15.480 --> 00:13:18.039 Let's continue with our story, Luke 19, 5 through 00:13:18.039 --> 00:13:21.539 6. When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus 00:13:21.539 --> 00:13:25.059 and called him by name. Zacchaeus! He said, quick, 00:13:25.179 --> 00:13:28.600 come down. I must be a guest in your home today. 00:13:29.320 --> 00:13:32.179 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus 00:13:32.179 --> 00:13:37.440 to his house in great excitement and joy. I love 00:13:37.440 --> 00:13:40.840 how Jesus stops, looks up through the branches 00:13:40.840 --> 00:13:45.340 of the tree and calls Zacchaeus by name. This 00:13:45.340 --> 00:13:48.700 is probably the first time in a very long time 00:13:48.700 --> 00:13:53.259 that Zacchaeus heard his name being spoken. See, 00:13:53.340 --> 00:13:57.240 Zacchaeus instead would have heard thief, traitor. 00:13:58.350 --> 00:14:05.990 Trash. No good. Scum. But Jesus is radical. And 00:14:05.990 --> 00:14:10.590 Jesus speaks his name because his name means 00:14:10.590 --> 00:14:16.990 something. Zacchaeus actually means pure and 00:14:16.990 --> 00:14:23.330 innocent. Pure and innocent. And dare I say, 00:14:23.549 --> 00:14:30.399 your name means something. Personal name means 00:14:30.399 --> 00:14:35.240 more to you than you would ever know. And the 00:14:35.240 --> 00:14:38.460 audacity of Jesus to walk up to a tree, look 00:14:38.460 --> 00:14:41.820 up to the most hated man in town, and then call 00:14:41.820 --> 00:14:44.820 him by name, inviting him to come out of the 00:14:44.820 --> 00:14:48.080 tree. Now, don't get me wrong. Zacchaeus was 00:14:48.080 --> 00:14:50.620 probably initially fearful of the crowd because 00:14:50.620 --> 00:14:52.580 there was a crowd following Jesus. They were 00:14:52.580 --> 00:14:56.139 gathered with him. And he was probably fearful 00:14:56.139 --> 00:15:00.710 that someone would hurt him. But Jesus sees Zacchaeus 00:15:00.710 --> 00:15:03.970 for not what he has done, but for what he can 00:15:03.970 --> 00:15:08.970 become. He sees past the mistakes. And Jesus 00:15:08.970 --> 00:15:13.049 speaks his real name. And then he begins to peel 00:15:13.049 --> 00:15:18.350 back the different layers of fig leaves that 00:15:18.350 --> 00:15:23.330 Zacchaeus had been covering himself with. Jesus 00:15:23.330 --> 00:15:28.440 then decides. to invite himself over for dinner. 00:15:29.919 --> 00:15:32.659 It was time for Zacchaeus to come out of the 00:15:32.659 --> 00:15:36.279 hiding, to get rid of the leaves and to experience 00:15:36.279 --> 00:15:41.220 abundant life. And someone gathered here this 00:15:41.220 --> 00:15:43.820 morning, someone watching online, you need to 00:15:43.820 --> 00:15:48.259 hear this today. Jesus doesn't fixate on your 00:15:48.259 --> 00:15:53.940 past. He focuses on your potential. The past 00:15:53.940 --> 00:16:00.159 is gone. But the future is bright. Jesus sees 00:16:00.159 --> 00:16:04.139 us. He calls us by name. And then he says, I 00:16:04.139 --> 00:16:08.159 see your potential. Let's spend some time together. 00:16:09.759 --> 00:16:13.720 Who would we become if we simply stop trying 00:16:13.720 --> 00:16:17.919 to do it our way? If we get out of the way and 00:16:17.919 --> 00:16:22.500 actually begin to follow the way of Jesus? And 00:16:22.500 --> 00:16:27.340 church, hear me. He calls you. By name. See, 00:16:27.419 --> 00:16:30.980 when Jesus sees sin, he doesn't run from it. 00:16:31.259 --> 00:16:33.519 He's not afraid of it. He doesn't ignore it. 00:16:33.580 --> 00:16:37.480 You know what Jesus does? He calls it out. And 00:16:37.480 --> 00:16:39.519 unfortunately, that's why so many people hide. 00:16:40.379 --> 00:16:43.440 Because they don't want to be called out. But 00:16:43.440 --> 00:16:47.679 notice the urgency in the invitation. Right? 00:16:47.720 --> 00:16:51.340 He says, Zacchaeus, get down here. Right away. 00:16:51.919 --> 00:16:55.460 The NIV translation writes, Come down immediately. 00:16:57.759 --> 00:17:01.639 Like, get out of that tree. Now, notice Jesus 00:17:01.639 --> 00:17:04.579 doesn't say, come down when you're good and ready. 00:17:05.420 --> 00:17:10.200 Take your time. Jesus doesn't say, come down 00:17:10.200 --> 00:17:14.799 when you stop stealing money from people. Jesus 00:17:14.799 --> 00:17:17.779 doesn't say, go ahead and fix your mess, Zacchaeus, 00:17:17.880 --> 00:17:22.319 then you and I can hang out. Jesus says, get 00:17:22.319 --> 00:17:26.400 out of the tree. I'm coming to your house for 00:17:26.400 --> 00:17:32.359 dinner. Now, we don't naturally do this as people. 00:17:33.660 --> 00:17:36.240 We don't feel comfortable inviting ourselves 00:17:36.240 --> 00:17:40.440 to dinner at someone's house. Dare I say maybe 00:17:40.440 --> 00:17:45.059 we should start. Because I believe we don't invite 00:17:45.059 --> 00:17:47.140 ourselves to dinner at someone's house because 00:17:47.140 --> 00:17:49.720 then we might actually have to be honest about 00:17:49.720 --> 00:17:52.730 it. who we are and who our life is, and we might 00:17:52.730 --> 00:17:55.250 have to open up and get rid of some of them fig 00:17:55.250 --> 00:18:00.529 leaves. Because, see, Jesus, he doesn't want 00:18:00.529 --> 00:18:04.390 us to fake it. Jesus is interested in all of 00:18:04.390 --> 00:18:08.430 us. He wants to meet us in our mess immediately. 00:18:09.609 --> 00:18:14.029 And notice, Zacchaeus welcomed Jesus with what? 00:18:14.509 --> 00:18:24.849 Joy and excitement. Joy and excitement. So this 00:18:24.849 --> 00:18:30.210 morning, ask yourself, are you full of joy and 00:18:30.210 --> 00:18:34.670 excitement? Which leads us to our next thought. 00:18:34.730 --> 00:18:39.349 Jesus, he spends time with the outcast. But notice 00:18:39.349 --> 00:18:41.910 the response of the crowd, Luke 19, 7. But the 00:18:41.910 --> 00:18:45.309 people, they were mad. They were angry. They 00:18:45.309 --> 00:18:48.849 were displeased, it says. He is gone to be the 00:18:48.849 --> 00:18:53.829 guest of a notorious sinner. They grumbled. And 00:18:53.829 --> 00:18:56.309 the other translation says they muttered. They 00:18:56.309 --> 00:19:03.190 mutter, mutter, mutter. While we find Zacchaeus 00:19:03.190 --> 00:19:06.490 full of joy and excitement. So Zacchaeus, he's 00:19:06.490 --> 00:19:08.970 full of joy and excitement. The crowd, they get 00:19:08.970 --> 00:19:12.289 angry, jealous, and frustrated because this man 00:19:12.289 --> 00:19:16.809 of God is now hanging out with an outcast. This 00:19:16.809 --> 00:19:22.710 man that is scum and is a thief. If this man 00:19:22.710 --> 00:19:25.930 of God was really from God, he would know who 00:19:25.930 --> 00:19:29.829 he was. Sounds familiar because we read this 00:19:29.829 --> 00:19:32.430 in Matthew 9 -11. But when the Pharisees saw 00:19:32.430 --> 00:19:35.150 this, they asked his disciples, why does your 00:19:35.150 --> 00:19:40.450 teacher eat with such scum? See, my question 00:19:40.450 --> 00:19:45.109 to you this morning is, how do you respond? How 00:19:45.109 --> 00:19:49.529 do we respond? Do we consistently look at people 00:19:49.529 --> 00:19:53.089 for who they are in God's eyes? Or do we look 00:19:53.089 --> 00:19:56.569 at people through their sin, their mess, and 00:19:56.569 --> 00:19:59.089 their struggles? Because I know I've been in 00:19:59.089 --> 00:20:01.849 conversations where people describe others because 00:20:01.849 --> 00:20:05.630 of their addictions or their divorce or their 00:20:05.630 --> 00:20:11.730 abuse. But Jesus looks past all of that and he 00:20:11.730 --> 00:20:14.579 challenges us to do the same. Because, see, we 00:20:14.579 --> 00:20:17.680 have to be careful not to misrepresent Jesus 00:20:17.680 --> 00:20:21.140 to others. What does Jesus look at? He looks 00:20:21.140 --> 00:20:25.220 at the potential, not the past. The crowd knew 00:20:25.220 --> 00:20:30.480 Zacchaeus by name, but called him by his sin. 00:20:32.079 --> 00:20:36.240 The crowd knew Zacchaeus by name, but called 00:20:36.240 --> 00:20:39.640 him by his sin. When Jesus knew all about his 00:20:39.640 --> 00:20:44.859 sin, but calls him by his name. God sees our 00:20:44.859 --> 00:20:48.839 potential, and God desires that we reach out 00:20:48.839 --> 00:20:53.279 to people just as they are, which leads us to 00:20:53.279 --> 00:20:56.720 our next thought. See, radical love leads to 00:20:56.720 --> 00:21:00.019 radical repentance. Continuing in our story, 00:21:00.099 --> 00:21:02.759 Luke 19, 8 through 9, meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood 00:21:02.759 --> 00:21:06.180 before the Lord and said, I will give half my 00:21:06.180 --> 00:21:08.339 wealth to the poor Lord, and if I've cheated 00:21:08.339 --> 00:21:10.859 people on their taxes, I will give them back 00:21:10.859 --> 00:21:16.069 four times as much. Jesus responded, salvation 00:21:16.069 --> 00:21:18.329 has come to this house today for this man has 00:21:18.329 --> 00:21:24.509 shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. So 00:21:24.509 --> 00:21:26.089 for those of you in a relationship with Jesus 00:21:26.089 --> 00:21:29.630 this morning, I want you to rewind. I want you 00:21:29.630 --> 00:21:33.970 to go back in time when you met Jesus for the 00:21:33.970 --> 00:21:39.529 first time. How did you respond when Jesus called 00:21:39.529 --> 00:21:45.279 you by name? Zacchaeus. He gave away half of 00:21:45.279 --> 00:21:49.660 his wealth and more because he wanted to repay 00:21:49.660 --> 00:21:52.299 anything that he had stolen four times as much. 00:21:52.380 --> 00:21:58.180 His life was changed. And we much remember Zacchaeus, 00:21:58.339 --> 00:22:02.259 he was only focused on wealth and power. That's 00:22:02.259 --> 00:22:04.539 why he did what he did, chief tax collector. 00:22:04.700 --> 00:22:07.720 But when he meets Jesus, what is it? Radical 00:22:07.720 --> 00:22:14.089 change. He gives it all away. Why? Because actions 00:22:14.089 --> 00:22:17.869 speak louder than words. Don't tell me what you 00:22:17.869 --> 00:22:20.329 did 10 years ago. Tell me what you're doing now. 00:22:23.990 --> 00:22:27.710 This was Zacchaeus' response to radical love. 00:22:28.269 --> 00:22:33.069 And notice, Jesus says, salvation came to that 00:22:33.069 --> 00:22:39.390 house. Where are you today? What did you bring 00:22:39.390 --> 00:22:43.920 into this gathering? For many of us, we carry 00:22:43.920 --> 00:22:46.819 through those doors stress and anxiety from a 00:22:46.819 --> 00:22:50.440 crazy week. Some of you may have walked in just 00:22:50.440 --> 00:22:55.299 feeling lonely and forgotten. Some of you may 00:22:55.299 --> 00:22:57.359 be at the end of your rope feeling empty. You 00:22:57.359 --> 00:23:00.180 can't give anymore. Maybe you're here and you're 00:23:00.180 --> 00:23:02.519 addicted. Maybe you're here and you're questioning 00:23:02.519 --> 00:23:08.299 life. Listen, Jesus is inviting you, calling 00:23:08.299 --> 00:23:12.740 you by name. just like he did Zacchaeus, to come, 00:23:13.000 --> 00:23:17.220 to get rid of the fig leaves and reveal your 00:23:17.220 --> 00:23:21.160 true self. And listen, I just want to be honest 00:23:21.160 --> 00:23:23.819 with you. We're closing with worship at the end 00:23:23.819 --> 00:23:28.500 of this gathering. God already highlighted that 00:23:28.500 --> 00:23:30.339 to my heart, and I've already shared it and planned 00:23:30.339 --> 00:23:35.279 it with the team. But some of you, as I was sharing 00:23:35.279 --> 00:23:38.339 that list, you just felt it in your heart. You 00:23:38.339 --> 00:23:41.609 felt the pain. And I want to challenge you when 00:23:41.609 --> 00:23:45.890 we worship, get up here. You say, Chris, well, 00:23:45.930 --> 00:23:47.650 why do I have to come forward? Because that's 00:23:47.650 --> 00:23:50.490 a step of faith. Some of you need to bring all 00:23:50.490 --> 00:23:53.450 that garbage that you're calling yourself, that 00:23:53.450 --> 00:23:55.049 you're naming yourself, that you're grabbing 00:23:55.049 --> 00:23:56.730 a hold of, and you need to lay it down at the 00:23:56.730 --> 00:24:02.269 feet of Jesus and experience true freedom. And 00:24:02.269 --> 00:24:08.130 that's a choice for you to make. But it's a choice 00:24:08.130 --> 00:24:11.140 of experiencing. abundant life, 2 Corinthians 00:24:11.140 --> 00:24:14.240 7 .10, for the kind of sorrow God wants us to 00:24:14.240 --> 00:24:18.380 experience leads us away from sin and results 00:24:18.380 --> 00:24:21.500 in salvation. There's no regret for that kind 00:24:21.500 --> 00:24:26.220 of sorrow, that kind of conviction. That's hope. 00:24:26.900 --> 00:24:30.859 But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results 00:24:30.859 --> 00:24:34.200 in spiritual death. And friends, we don't want 00:24:34.200 --> 00:24:38.119 to walk into that, which leads us to our final 00:24:38.119 --> 00:24:42.759 thought. See, if we were able to ask Jesus a 00:24:42.759 --> 00:24:45.619 question, a simple question, what is your mission? 00:24:46.240 --> 00:24:48.359 I believe he would answer it with these simple 00:24:48.359 --> 00:24:54.059 words. I came for the lost. Jesus came for the 00:24:54.059 --> 00:24:57.240 lost, Luke 19 .10. For the Son of Man came to 00:24:57.240 --> 00:25:01.500 seek and save those who are lost. And I've read 00:25:01.500 --> 00:25:04.759 this story time and time and time again. And 00:25:04.759 --> 00:25:07.640 I've often thought those words that Jesus spoke 00:25:07.640 --> 00:25:10.559 were just kind of the end of the story. It was 00:25:10.559 --> 00:25:12.940 the closing to this encounter that he had with 00:25:12.940 --> 00:25:15.420 Zacchaeus. But now as I read it this week, I 00:25:15.420 --> 00:25:19.819 believe they mean so much more. This church is 00:25:19.819 --> 00:25:22.599 Jesus trying to communicate to us his mission. 00:25:23.079 --> 00:25:26.700 Why he came to this earth and what we are now 00:25:26.700 --> 00:25:31.400 called to do. Jesus came to seek, to pursue, 00:25:31.539 --> 00:25:37.019 to search for the one that is lost. And friends, 00:25:37.039 --> 00:25:39.880 if you're in a relationship with Jesus, we're 00:25:39.880 --> 00:25:43.279 called to do the same. We're called to pursue 00:25:43.279 --> 00:25:46.240 relationships with people that are outcasts, 00:25:46.240 --> 00:25:49.359 that are forgotten within our society. How do 00:25:49.359 --> 00:25:52.819 I know that? Well, Luke 5 .31, Jesus said, healthy 00:25:52.819 --> 00:25:55.480 people, they don't need a doctor. Sick people 00:25:55.480 --> 00:25:58.619 do. I have come to call not those who think they're 00:25:58.619 --> 00:26:00.480 righteous, but those who know they're sinners 00:26:00.480 --> 00:26:09.140 and need to repent. So this morning, who do you 00:26:09.140 --> 00:26:13.119 more relate to in this story? Do you relate more 00:26:13.119 --> 00:26:16.279 to the crowd and you get upset and frustrated 00:26:16.279 --> 00:26:19.779 because of second chances? Or do you relate more 00:26:19.779 --> 00:26:24.180 to Jesus and desire to see more and more people 00:26:24.180 --> 00:26:29.220 come home? And welcomed into the kingdom. Which 00:26:29.220 --> 00:26:33.859 leads us to our simple action steps. Come and 00:26:33.859 --> 00:26:42.259 see. Come and see. Who has God put on your heart 00:26:42.259 --> 00:26:46.759 this morning? Who has God laid a burden on you 00:26:46.759 --> 00:26:49.680 to invite and include within our community of 00:26:49.680 --> 00:26:53.220 faith? John 1, 45 -46. Philip went to look for 00:26:53.220 --> 00:26:55.079 Nathanael and told him, we have found the very 00:26:55.079 --> 00:26:57.700 person Moses and the prophets wrote about. His 00:26:57.700 --> 00:27:01.339 name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth. 00:27:01.619 --> 00:27:06.319 Nazareth? Can anything good come from Nazareth? 00:27:06.380 --> 00:27:10.920 Can anything good come out of the church? Come 00:27:10.920 --> 00:27:19.700 and see. for yourself. Who has God put on your 00:27:19.700 --> 00:27:22.920 heart? And this morning, when you leave here, 00:27:23.059 --> 00:27:26.240 as many of you know, Easter is two short weeks 00:27:26.240 --> 00:27:29.799 away. When you leave here, you will be given 00:27:29.799 --> 00:27:35.839 a little Jesus with Easter invite cards. And 00:27:35.839 --> 00:27:38.880 I want to challenge you that whoever it is God 00:27:38.880 --> 00:27:43.289 put on your heart, Will you put a card in their 00:27:43.289 --> 00:27:50.349 hand? Will you invite them to come and see? Come 00:27:50.349 --> 00:27:53.930 and see. And for those of you that wonder, why 00:27:53.930 --> 00:27:55.890 would I do that, Chris? What is the point of 00:27:55.890 --> 00:27:58.329 it? I want to take you to another story, another 00:27:58.329 --> 00:28:01.430 encounter that a person had in John chapter 4, 00:28:01.549 --> 00:28:05.910 the woman at the well. And this is what we read 00:28:05.910 --> 00:28:09.630 in verses 28 to 30. The woman left her water 00:28:09.630 --> 00:28:11.650 jar beside the well and ran back to the village, 00:28:11.670 --> 00:28:14.390 telling everyone, notice what she said, come 00:28:14.390 --> 00:28:19.490 and see. A man who told me everything I ever 00:28:19.490 --> 00:28:25.950 did. She removed the fig leaves. Could he possibly 00:28:25.950 --> 00:28:29.869 be the Messiah? So notice what happened. After 00:28:29.869 --> 00:28:34.069 she shared three simple words, come and see, 00:28:34.230 --> 00:28:38.980 the people came streaming. from the village to 00:28:38.980 --> 00:28:44.700 see him. Who has God put on your heart? Which 00:28:44.700 --> 00:28:48.200 leads us to our next step, pray. Luke chapter 00:28:48.200 --> 00:28:50.359 10, verses one through three, the Lord now chose 00:28:50.359 --> 00:28:54.619 72 other disciples and sent them ahead in pairs 00:28:54.619 --> 00:28:57.500 to all the towns and places he planned to visit. 00:28:58.079 --> 00:29:01.240 These were his instructions to them. The harvest 00:29:01.240 --> 00:29:05.960 is great, but the workers are few. Notice what 00:29:05.960 --> 00:29:08.670 he told them, pray. To the Lord who is in charge 00:29:08.670 --> 00:29:10.869 of the harvest, ask him to send more workers 00:29:10.869 --> 00:29:17.710 into the fields. Now go. Pray. Pray for the workers 00:29:17.710 --> 00:29:21.450 to go out and to share the good news. I want 00:29:21.450 --> 00:29:22.930 you to pause for a minute. I want you to look 00:29:22.930 --> 00:29:25.769 to your left. I want you to look to the right. 00:29:26.910 --> 00:29:30.210 I want you to look behind you. I want you to 00:29:30.210 --> 00:29:34.490 look in front of you. Now chances are you saw 00:29:34.490 --> 00:29:38.910 a bunch of dirt bags. And for those of you that 00:29:38.910 --> 00:29:40.970 don't understand why I just called you a dirtbag, 00:29:41.089 --> 00:29:49.509 you can listen to last week's talk. But all I 00:29:49.509 --> 00:29:51.170 want you to do is, I want you to think about 00:29:51.170 --> 00:29:53.509 all those faces you just saw, and I want you 00:29:53.509 --> 00:29:57.569 to begin to pray for them to go. Because they 00:29:57.569 --> 00:30:03.640 are the workers. We are the workers. And we've 00:30:03.640 --> 00:30:06.119 been given this opportunity to share this good 00:30:06.119 --> 00:30:10.720 news that God has put inside of us. But we need 00:30:10.720 --> 00:30:15.940 to pray bold prayers of faith. And remember, 00:30:16.039 --> 00:30:19.160 you don't have to be intimidated. You don't have 00:30:19.160 --> 00:30:22.019 to argue your faith. You don't have to learn 00:30:22.019 --> 00:30:24.779 apologetics. You don't even have to read through 00:30:24.779 --> 00:30:28.200 the Bible. You can share three simple words. 00:30:28.559 --> 00:30:37.519 Come and see. Come and see, which leads us to 00:30:37.519 --> 00:30:39.960 our next step. But sometimes God wants us to 00:30:39.960 --> 00:30:43.480 invest. Don't be selfish. Don't try to impress 00:30:43.480 --> 00:30:45.299 others. Be humble. Thinking of others is better 00:30:45.299 --> 00:30:47.180 than yourselves. Don't look out only for your 00:30:47.180 --> 00:30:49.160 own interests, but take an interest in others 00:30:49.160 --> 00:30:53.500 too. See, sometimes God gives us opportunities 00:30:53.500 --> 00:30:57.119 to serve others before we share with them, before 00:30:57.119 --> 00:31:00.789 we invite them to come and see. And maybe those 00:31:00.789 --> 00:31:03.410 individuals just need someone to listen to them. 00:31:04.309 --> 00:31:08.869 Maybe a person, right, just needs to be encouraged. 00:31:10.230 --> 00:31:12.230 Maybe God will give us an opportunity to get 00:31:12.230 --> 00:31:16.109 our hands dirty and help someone move. Maybe 00:31:16.109 --> 00:31:20.950 God wants us to cook a meal for someone or a 00:31:20.950 --> 00:31:24.690 family. Maybe God wants us to share a meal by 00:31:24.690 --> 00:31:27.049 inviting ourselves to someone's house for dinner. 00:31:29.519 --> 00:31:32.099 But we have to be willing to invest in others. 00:31:33.339 --> 00:31:37.000 And quite often when we invest in others, then 00:31:37.000 --> 00:31:41.460 that conversation opens up for us to say, come 00:31:41.460 --> 00:31:47.200 and see. Which leads us to our final step. Church, 00:31:47.200 --> 00:31:50.059 you've got to invite. When Jesus came by, he 00:31:50.059 --> 00:31:51.920 looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. 00:31:52.000 --> 00:31:54.380 Zacchaeus, he said, quick, come down. I must 00:31:54.380 --> 00:31:56.720 be a guest in your home today. Zacchaeus noticed 00:31:56.720 --> 00:32:00.220 the response, quickly came down. and took Jesus 00:32:00.220 --> 00:32:05.140 to his house in great excitement and joy. Even 00:32:05.140 --> 00:32:07.359 when he invited himself to dinner, Jesus invited 00:32:07.359 --> 00:32:10.039 himself to dinner, and Zacchaeus is still excited. 00:32:11.299 --> 00:32:15.180 Back to John 1, 45 to 46, Philip went to look 00:32:15.180 --> 00:32:18.660 for Nathanael and told him, we found him. We 00:32:18.660 --> 00:32:22.619 found the Messiah. His name is Jesus. Can anything 00:32:22.619 --> 00:32:33.380 good come from Nazareth? Come and see. Come and 00:32:33.380 --> 00:32:46.440 see. Come and see. Three simple words that could 00:32:46.440 --> 00:32:51.559 change someone's life for eternity. Did everyone 00:32:51.559 --> 00:32:56.579 hear that? Three simple words that could change 00:32:56.579 --> 00:33:02.119 someone's life for eternity. And some of you 00:33:02.119 --> 00:33:03.599 are thinking, well, is it really that urgent? 00:33:05.339 --> 00:33:08.819 Yes. It's really that urgent. And many of you 00:33:08.819 --> 00:33:12.400 know we have a series coming up in May to follow 00:33:12.400 --> 00:33:16.299 up our Easter series called Inked. And Red, I 00:33:16.299 --> 00:33:17.960 did this during our first gathering. Come up 00:33:17.960 --> 00:33:21.140 here, Red. Red has this tattoo on his forearm 00:33:21.140 --> 00:33:24.420 that I want him to show you real quick. And if 00:33:24.420 --> 00:33:29.079 you look at his forearm, there's a clock. And 00:33:29.079 --> 00:33:36.190 notice it's all... Because when it's all zeros, 00:33:36.210 --> 00:33:41.650 that clock has stopped. But we have the opportunity 00:33:41.650 --> 00:33:45.769 by inviting people to come and see that their 00:33:45.769 --> 00:33:49.529 clock won't stop at death, but they will live 00:33:49.529 --> 00:33:57.869 on for eternity. Is it urgent? Yes, it's life. 00:33:59.210 --> 00:34:04.869 Or death? Are you willing to share three simple 00:34:04.869 --> 00:34:11.590 words with others? Come and see. Will you stand 00:34:11.590 --> 00:34:19.230 with me? Now listen. We're about to worship. 00:34:20.250 --> 00:34:22.369 We're about to sing. And I believe that God's 00:34:22.369 --> 00:34:25.489 going to download people into your heart as you 00:34:25.489 --> 00:34:29.289 worship. But also, for those of you that brought 00:34:29.289 --> 00:34:32.650 something into this place, this is your opportunity 00:34:32.650 --> 00:34:37.090 to experience freedom. And sometimes it takes 00:34:37.090 --> 00:34:40.010 a step of faith. Now there were several words 00:34:40.010 --> 00:34:41.710 of knowledge that I want to share with you before 00:34:41.710 --> 00:34:43.849 we sing because I want you to get up here and 00:34:43.849 --> 00:34:45.789 give prayer if this is you from our prayer team. 00:34:46.429 --> 00:34:48.829 You have nerve damage that extends from your 00:34:48.829 --> 00:34:52.090 calf to your toes, creating numbness or tingling. 00:34:52.809 --> 00:34:57.460 You have tennis elbow in your right arm. You 00:34:57.460 --> 00:35:00.280 have pain in the back of your neck, two to three 00:35:00.280 --> 00:35:05.340 inches below your head. The lower left side of 00:35:05.340 --> 00:35:09.440 your stomach, you have pain. You have a growth 00:35:09.440 --> 00:35:13.880 on the lower part of your abdomen. Your right 00:35:13.880 --> 00:35:17.480 leg in your hamstring, you're experiencing tightness 00:35:17.480 --> 00:35:22.260 and pain. And maybe you're here and you're broken 00:35:22.260 --> 00:35:24.920 hearted because someone in your family betrayed 00:35:24.920 --> 00:35:28.980 you. If any of those are you, as we worship, 00:35:29.159 --> 00:35:33.280 come and experience Jesus and get some freedom. 00:35:33.340 --> 00:35:37.639 Amen? So Holy Spirit, move in this place. Change 00:35:37.639 --> 00:35:42.300 us. Make us more like your Son as we sing together. 00:35:57.869 --> 00:35:58.469 it out.