Devotion for the Saturday of the Second Week in Advent

Theme for the week: love

Devotion for the saturday of the second Week in Advent (Day 14)

Reading: Luke 19:1–10 (NRSV)

¹ He entered Jericho and was passing through it. ² A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. ³ He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. ⁴ So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. ⁵ When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” ⁶ So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. ⁷ All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.” ⁸ Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.” ⁹ Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰ For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”

REFLECTION:

What greater love is there than to seek out, pay attention to and save the lost? What greater love is there than to dine with an outcast? This story about Zacchaeus is one that shows how love and respect transform. Jesus shows love and attention to Zacchaeus, who then reforms his business practices and becomes a charitable giver.

Zacchaeus would have been one of the last people anyone would have invited to a dinner party, and certainly no one would have even considered going to dinner at this house. No one even wanted to be seen hanging around with a tax collector, much less dining with one. If you had dinner with Zacchaeus, everyone would think that you were his buddy, and that you were every bit as much of a sinner as he was.

Even today, our dinner invitations are typically to people we are comfortable with and who are part of our social circle. Seldom do we reach beyond our comfort zone when issuing invitations. Yet think of how reaching out might transform someone’s life, or at least transform your relationship with that person. How might an invitation to dine be a sign of respect?

I have had a couple of occasions in my life when extending a dinner invitation to someone has changed the relationship. Breaking bread with someone is a powerful message of respect. At one point in my AT&T career, I was part of a union-management joint planning team. The joint planning started out with a great deal of hostility and “Us-Them” thinking. One of the turning points in the joint work was a Christmas dinner party at my house, to which I invited both the management team and the union leadership in my organization. The union leaders told me, later, that it was the first time that anyone in management had invited them into their home. Invitations to dine at home and breaking bread together demonstrate respect, as well as convey a message of warmth and care.

What relationship might you transform with an invitation to break bread? To whom might you show respect and care, by reaching out with an invitation?

PRAYER:

Pray that Jesus’ love might be a transforming force in your life. Pray that Jesus’ love might help you to reach out to someone who seems to be unlovable. Pray about whom you might invite to break bread with you. Amen