I Spy

The Rev. Joseph Winston

November 4, 2007

Sermon

Grace and peace are gifts for you from God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.1
Waldo is an ionic sort of chap that looks easy to pick out from the rest of the
crowd. From his red and white stocking cap covering his neatly trimmed brown
hair to his matching red and white sweater over his lanky body, there is something
that shouts out to everyone, “Waldo does not belong here!” And if you really knew
Waldo, that exclamation would be completely true. Waldo is not from this place.
He is out seeing the world. In all of his trips around the globe, he has never told
us exactly why he is always wearing the exact same hat, sweater, blue pants and
brown shoes. Maybe he is a seasoned explorer and travels light. Perhaps he is a
poor student and that is all the clothes that he has. You know, it really does not
matter to Waldo’s true friends. We enjoy the mail that we get from him and enjoy
1
Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians
1:2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, Philemon 1:3

1
the challenge of finding him with his walking cane in the photographs that he
sends back to us.
No one would ever think that Zacchaeus stood out in a crowd. Or as we say
in today’s politically correct language, he was truly vertically challenged. In order
to see over the crowd and find Jesus, Zacchaeus needed to climb up a tree and
look down on the scene below. Now author of Luke does not tell us anything other
than the type of tree that Zacchaeus used to peer down on all the different people
surrounding Jesus. Despite this fact, we do know quite a lot about this specific
species. The sycamore or fig tree in the Middle East has long been valued for
its fruit, wood, and the amount of shade that it casts on the ground. A mature
sycamore tree is very large. It is up to eighteen feet wide and sixty feet high.
Somewhere inside of this possibly massive tree, Zacchaeus gazed out over the
mass of people and tried to find Jesus.
Unlike Waldo with his unique clothes that he always wears, it appears that
Jesus has more than one outfit and He is very difficult to pick out in a crowd.
Try as he might, Zacchaeus could not find Jesus. “Is it that one?,” he thought
to himself. “No; that cannot be right. That man all by himself looks like a great
rabbi. It must be him. I cannot believe that I was wrong again. I am certain this
time. Jesus must be that man over there with all the people around him.” No matter
how hard he tried, no matter whom he picked, Zacchaeus could not find Jesus.
When Jesus finally arrived at the tree that was holding Zacchaeus, He looked
up, called Zacchaeus by name, and said, “Come down quickly. I will be your guest
today.” Even though it has always been impolite to invite yourself over to someone

2
else’s house, Zacchaeus rapidly scurried down the tree and accepted Jesus’ offer
to come over.
What happens next in the story is very predicable. Everyone in the crowd is
upset because the great teacher of Israel is sitting down and eating with one of
the most hated enemies of the state. Zacchaeus is not just any ordinary Jew that
follows the law. He is one of the top executive officers of the Roman overlords and
his job of collecting taxes has made both Rome and him very wealthy. Even today,
it is difficult to think of such a shocking request. It would be like the pope spending
the night at Osama bin Laden’s house and giving Osama, a devote Muslim, Holy
Communion.
In order to appease the angry crowd, Zacchaeus tells them and Jesus a bald-
faced lie, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I give to the poor; and if I have
defrauded anyone of anything, I pay back four times as much (Luke 19:8).” There
are at least three reasons why we know that this statement by Zacchaeus is com-
pletely false. First, the name Zacchaeus is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew
name ‰‹† (ZKY), which means “the righteous one.” Everything that we know about
Zacchaeus tells us that he does not live up to his name. He works for the enemy.
That by itself is enough to tell us that Zacchaeus is polluted and gives us reason
to doubt everything that he says. In order to collect the taxes for the Romans, he
interacts with the ritually unclean. This too makes Zacchaeus an outcast and tells
us that he cannot be trusted. Zacchaeus’ wages come from his ability to make the
Jews pay more than is required by law. Either he tells his countrymen lies about
what they owe the Romans or he extorts his payments from his fellow Jews. Nei-

3
ther of these options makes us want to believe Zacchaeus. This brings us to the
next point. His occupation as chief tax collector makes it impossible for him to be
honest. He must turn a blind-eye to every one of his employees because they too
earn their living in the same way that he does. They all take a “little bit” more than
what is required and pass on a “small” portion onto him. Once again, we can see
that Zacchaeus not only condones behavior that is outside of God’s laws but he
also actively supports breaking God’s commandments. Finally, the narrator tells
us that Zacchaeus is rich. How can this be true if he really gives away one-half
of everything that he has? The reality is that he continues to take money from his
fellow Jews. This brings us back to the first point. He is not righteous. He cannot
be trusted. He is telling everyone a lie.
Then why does today’s Gospel lesson say something completely different?
It reads, “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 (Luke
19:8 NRSV).” The scholars have deliberately mistranslated all the verbs in the
presence tense into future tense. In this incorrect version, Zacchaeus will change
his behavior from now on because of his encounter with God.
We have allowed this error in the tense of the verbs by the translators of Luke,
the editors of the NSRV, and the rest of the scholastic community to stand because
we cannot believe the reality set before us in today’s Gospel lesson. Jesus comes
to people and accepts them in the midst of their lies.
The realization that Jesus comes to us, finds us, calls us, and loves us while
we are estranged from Him is the complete Gospel. When we use the correct

4
translation of the verbs to be in the present tense, all of these actions are plainly
illustrated in today’s Gospel lesson. Zacchaeus’ fame and fortune could not make
Jesus come to him. Instead, Jesus came to Zacchaeus because Jesus loved him.
Climbing up in the tree and playing the game of “Where’s Jesus?” did not point out
Jesus to Zacchaeus. The opposite occurred. Jesus identified himself to Zacchaeus.
When Jesus was under the tree Zacchaeus did not call out to Jesus, rather Jesus
reached out to Zacchaeus. Every behavior exhibited by Jesus shows His concern
for us. This love for you and I is unconditional. Even when we lie to Him, the One
who died for us, He will not abandon us.
What comes next in today’s Gospel shows us the totality of Christ’s com-
mitment to people like Zacchaeus. Jesus first tells Zacchaeus that, “salvation has
come to this house (Luke 19:9a).” In other words, everyone that is closely asso-
ciated with Zacchaeus has been touched by Jesus and made whole. Next, Jesus
declares that Zacchaeus is a son of Abraham (Luke 19:9b). This pronouncement
is much more than stating the obvious fact that Zacchaeus is a Jew. Jesus has re-
defined the relationships that make up a family. The prodigal son who hit the big
time has been welcomed into the family by the Son.
Search and find books such as “Where’s Waldo?” teach us that if just try hard
enough, we will be able to find Waldo no matter where he is hiding. All that we
need to do is to find a tall teenager carrying a walking cane with a red and white
knit hat wearing a red and white sweater, blue pants, and brown shoes. While this
method of looking for known attributes works reliably for Waldo, it fails miserably
when we apply the same method for Christians. By our own power, we can never

5
tell who follows Christ. Today’s Gospel proves this fact. No one in the crowd,
including the disciples of Christ, knew that the lost would be found. This fact was
revealed when Jesus told everyone that this sinner had been brought into God’s
family. Only then could everyone see that Jesus loved this man.
The ancient Church recognized the contradictory state that we all live in. At
one instance, we are called by Jesus to come and be with Him and at the next
moment, we say or do something that is opposite to what Jesus would either say or
do. Our state of confusion makes it impossible for us to sort out who we really are.
The only way that we can tell if we are loved by God is through an external decree
from God. In Zacchaeus’ case, the entire crowd heard Jesus say that the chief tax
collector had been accepted by God. In your case, the entire congregation listened
to the Word from the Holy Spirit that you are God’s child. A similar announcement
will be made at your death. At your funeral, the entire church will hear that you
are the member of Christ’s flock and that you have been saved by Him.
This is why the Lutheran tradition speaks of Christians as sinner-saints. We
all have done things in our lives that have been wrong, injured others, and hurt
ourselves. But at the same time, we are children of God. This paradox of rebellion
against God while being a loved member of God’s family lasts our entire life.
In the time between baptism and death, in the constant state of hating and
loving God, how can anyone determine if they really are saved? We, along with
the ancient Church, teach and believe that God sends normal, ordinary people
to deliver this lifesaving message to us. One of the individuals that fulfills this
role is known as the pastor. It is the pastor’s duty to give you this message. One

6
place it comes is in the Word of absolution when the pastor gives you the Word.
You are forgiven. Another place that we hear our salvation is when we gather
around the Lord’s Table. Here the Word comes in bread and wine and Jesus clearly
says, “Christ has come for you and He is present so that you may live.” The final
obligation of the pastor is to speak the Word confidently in the sermon and tell
you that God accepts you.
However, the pastor is not the only one who confirms that fact you are saved.
This Word of grace comes to you through ordinary people. Sometimes this mes-
sage might be brought be people who either actively or passively deny the faith.
When this happens, the delivery of the Word of acceptance will surprise them
since the messenger does not know where the Word is coming from. At other
times, God’s Word comes through other believers. Just like in the other cases,
God’s Message of salvation can come in either Word or deed. The peace that
comes with the realization of your worth to God could arrive in a letter from a
dear friend, a talk with someone you love, or from a complete stranger. The fact
is that God sends people to you so that God can remind you that God accepts you.
The knowledge that God has bought you at great price might come in a hug when
you are feeling down, it could be present in a gift from a friend, or it might arrive
in an infinite number of other ways. What is important is that you know that you
are saved.
Since the time of Christ, there have been Christians that seem to do a better
job than most other Christians at telling others about Jesus. The name that we
normally give these followers of Jesus is saint. In our tradition, saints can be either

7
living or dead because we know that everyone lives with the same ambiguities of
life. Sometimes the saints doubt the faith that has been given them and at other
times, the saints embrace the it with their entire existence.
We all know saints. A lesser-known example would be Zacchaeus. The Eastern
Church honors Zacchaeus as a saint. Tradition tells us that after Christ’s ascen-
sion into Heaven, Zacchaeus studied with Peter who then appointed Zacchaeus
as Bishop of Caesarea in Palestine. Zacchaeus is remembered for his ability to
preach. A well-known example of a saint is Saint Nicholas. He was born near 270
AD on the southern cost of Turkey. After his wealthy parents died, he gave all his
inheritance to the needy, the sick, and the suffering. He dedicated his entire life to
serving God and was made the Bishop of Myra. After being persecuted by Rome,
he attended the Council of Nicaea in 325 and died a few years later in Myra. The
church and the rest of the word still know of Saint Nicholas because of his concern
for the poor.
There are saints that the church does not officially identify. Dietrich Bonho-
effer, the Lutheran pastor and theologian, who actively fought against the Nazis
is often considered to be a saint but he is not officially recognized as one by the
church at large. Your parents and grandparents that brought you to the faith are
more examples of people who are saints. For others it might be their children who
are the best saints. These boys and girls with a simple trust in God often show us
how we are to live.
Some of us have lost saints that we have known personally and others of us
grieve for the saints that we will never meet in the life. Because all Christian

8
live together as One in the Body of Christ, we are separated only by place and
nothing else. We live here in this world and the dead live in the next. Despite
this undeniable fact, we believe and confess that all the saints, both living and
the dead, join together with us at the Lord’s Table. On this side of the table, we
cannot see the Lord with our eyes. He comes to us in the bread and the wine. In
the elements, He is truly present and we worship Him. On the other side of the
table, are all those believers who have gone before us. There in the Lord’s House
they no longer need bread and wine since they see the Risen Savior with their own
eyes. They too are praising the Lord with us.
Lord Jesus quickly come and bring us together so that we all may see your
face.
“The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.”2

2
Philippians 4:7.