I want to invite you to use your imagination with me for a few minutes here.
Because obviously, ancient Palestine, 2,000 years ago,
in the time of Jesus is very different from what we see around Cyberport.
Jericho was a large, prosperous city built by King Herod.
So when the Romans came in and occupied Palestine,
Caesar gave King Herod the city.
And he built this massive city called Jericho,
about a mile from the Jericho that you remember from the Old Testament.
Basically, it evolved as like a royal estate
with grand palaces and these beautiful pools fit for a king.
And a beautiful garden city also developed alongside of it.
Because it was in a warm climate, which is nice for you guys from cold winters,
it was actually established as the winter capital of Judea.
So the king would go there during the winter months
and have his wonderful palace and rule from there.
The political importance and wealth of Jericho
would have made it a very attractive place for tax collectors,
like we read today.
And that wealth would also draw in, I would say, beggars and people in need.
Because that was also a place where they could basically make their living by begging.
For those of you guys who have also maybe thought through
the development of cities and infrastructure,
water is essential to civilization.
And a lot of Jericho's success was owed to the fact that they built these ducks
and these different water channels to bring in water from the springs around the city.
So all of these things made it very much an oasis of greenery,
as you'll see in this photo behind you.
And this is just a photo from one of the tells,
like a mound looking into over Jericho,
a lush place.
And the next photo is a sycamore tree,
a very common tree in Palestine,
growing to about 20 to 25 feet,
something that you could easily climb up onto
if you had some ability.
So when you look at this next photo,
this artist's reconstruction of Jericho,
I just want you to visualize with me for a minute
what it might have been to be like Jesus of Nazareth,
this famous rabbi, this famous teacher,
this famous savior and messiah,
entering into this city for his only recorded visit to Jericho.
With crowds of people gathering about,
there's this buzz going on.
And outside,
outside the city,
there was this blind man,
laying by the roadside,
calling out,
Son of David,
have mercy on me.
There's people following,
there's crowds,
he's persistent,
even they tell him to be quiet.
He's like,
Son of David,
have mercy on me.
And as Jesus slowly makes his way into the city,
and the crowds are following,
there's a short, wealthy man called Zacchaeus.
Can't really see,
so he makes his way up to this tree,
peers around,
looking for Jesus,
looking into the crowd.
There's a buzz happening.
You know,
when Jesus is out and about,
when the crowds are there,
there's almost a sense of anticipation.
Something's happening.
Something's gonna happen.
Jesus is gonna do something amazing.
We're in this series on Advent,
which celebrates how Jesus came to us.
And it really gives us a chance to think about this question.
Well,
if Jesus really came to us 2,000 years ago,
what do we do with that fact?
Does it even mean anything to me?
So today,
I wanna take us through these two episodes
that we just read from Scripture.
And I wanna show you how these two figures,
the blind beggar on one hand,
the wealthy tax collector on the other hand,
situated in completely different places of the city,
both physically and economically and socially,
how these two figures had encounters with Jesus
that actually left them completely changed.
At the same time,
I also wanna show us
how these stories translate to us.
2,000 years later,
how do we make room for Jesus' company,
his presence with us
in 21st century Hong Kong?
If you notice in your Scripture reading,
the reading actually spans two chapters.
And the blind beggar story is in chapter 18,
and the Zacchaeus story starts at chapter 19.
So just as a preliminary point,
I want you to just remember,
this division is maybe understandable
if you consider Jesus' actual entry into Jericho
as the key event.
But actually,
these two episodes,
and I think why it's important for us
to read them together
is because they actually form a pair.
They actually can be read together
and complement each other.
And that's how I wanna walk us through this.
And just be reminded,
even when you're studying
and you're reading the Scripture on your own
at home tonight,
when you're rereading the Bible,
don't be sort of sucked into
just the chapter and verse divisions.
I think we've said this before,
but it's worth repeating.
I don't think the chapter and verse numbers,
I don't think they're divinely inspired.
They're more like a guide for you.
So when you're reading,
just be mindful of that.
Read the entire context
in your own study as well.
Let's take it from the top of that story then
with Bartimaeus, the blind beggar.
And in these two episodes,
I want us to see,
I think God wants us to see
that they are both outcasts.
Both of them are outcasts.
And what do I mean by outcast?
I think an outcast is simply
anyone who is refused
or perhaps restricted
from full acceptance into society.
The blind man,
and we know his name is Bartimaeus
from Mark's Gospel,
he obviously is an outcast,
I think,
because of his blindness.
And in that day,
that blindness basically stops you
from full participation in society.
And he's been relegated to begging
on the dirty roadside.
And if you notice what he says to Jesus,
he says what?
Let me recover my sight.
And we can't be positive about this,
but it's quite probable
that Bartimaeus had his sight at one point.
And for whatever reason,
maybe sickness or some other cause,
he lost that sight.
So Bartimaeus may even have known
what it was like to have sight
before he lost it.
And not only is he now physically brought low,
begging by the roadside,
you know, when he's calling out for Jesus,
he's calling out for help,
the people around him,
what do they do?
They basically tell him to shut up.
Right?
Because he's just causing a disturbance.
This beggar is just causing a disturbance
and stopping us from seeing
this massive Messiah,
this rabbi,
this famous person.
And we learned last week from Alfie
that a common perception in this time
was that sickness was often connected with sin.
Maybe it was a result of the person's sin
that caused his sickness,
that caused his infirmity.
So there may have been something like that
also weighing in the mind of Bartimaeus
and the people.
That's where Bartimaeus is
in life at that point.
Now, Zacchaeus was at the opposite end
of the spectrum, right?
The title of chief tax collector,
this is the only place it appears
in the New Testament.
But given that Jericho
was a major toll collection point
in a trade route,
it would have made sense
for there to be a chief tax collector there,
overseeing a bunch of other tax collectors.
It would have been a very logistical place
to gather taxes.
But what we can be certain about, I think,
is that Zacchaeus was loaded.
He was filthy rich,
if you want to use another term.
This man had wealth.
However, despite his prosperity,
he was despised by the average Jew.
Why?
Because as a Jewish person,
he symbolized the authority
of the Roman government
who had come to conquer and oppress
and basically take our money.
And he was an instrument of that.
He was a symbol of that.
The story says that the people
started grumbling
because they considered Zacchaeus
to be a sinner.
But Jesus still went to stay with them.
Tax collectors in the day
were known to overcharge
and basically line their own pockets
to get more money for themselves
and not just collecting
for the government.
So there were probably people
who were angry
over that sense of corruption
and perhaps jealous
over his immense wealth.
One commentator thinks
that Zacchaeus' house
was probably one of the finest
in Jericho
because of his position.
And I imagine maybe
if that was in Hong Kong today,
he would have had a nice,
nice, beautiful house
on the peak.
Zacchaeus probably had
his circle of friends,
his elite friends
and tax collecting colleagues.
But at the end of the day,
I think it would have been
very clear
that he was scorned
by the average person.
He was probably aware
of his reputation.
Wildly successful
in monetary wealth,
but despised
by the average person.
like Bartimaeus,
Zacchaeus
was also an outcast.
It's clear that
both of these men
recognized that something
wasn't right in their lives.
Their situations in life
didn't really line up
with the ideal.
They had this ideal.
I mean,
there should be acceptance.
There should be friendship.
There should be community.
But somehow,
they were outcasts.
For Bartimaeus,
we know that his blindness
was something
that burdened him.
Or he wouldn't have
called out so persistently
for healing.
Even when people
told him to be quiet.
Zacchaeus's inner turmoil,
it's not explicitly
stated in the text,
I think,
but I think when you look
at what he's doing,
it's something clear.
We get a clue
about his convictions.
We see that he actually
tried to climb
this sycamore tree
to get a glimpse of Jesus.
And in that culture,
it would have been
very undignified behavior
for a grown man
to climb a tree.
And so there's something more,
I think,
we see in the subtext.
Something more.
It wasn't just curiosity
that spurred Zacchaeus
to look,
to climb.
There was something
deeper that he was
really seeking.
So,
fast forward with me
about 2,000 years now
to Hong Kong,
to Watermark,
to these seats right now
that you're sitting in,
to the lives,
your own lives,
the lives of the people
around you.
Think about this
for a moment.
Who are the outcasts
of society?
Maybe your mind
just went to
the homeless people
down in St. Barnabas
that some of us
have been serving.
Or the working girls
and pimps down
on Lockhart Road
in the red light district.
Or the refugees
and asylum seekers
that you see around
in Hong Kong.
Or maybe the many
domestic helpers
that may be abused
or exploited
and often treated
as second-class citizens
in this world-class city.
If those people
came to mind,
well,
you're not wrong.
I think you're
absolutely correct
in maybe thinking
about these people.
Those are the obvious
examples, right?
But let's dig a little
deeper here.
Because if the issue
of being an outcast
is actually fundamentally
about finding
full acceptance
in our society,
in our communities,
amongst our peers,
then I think we're
actually all in danger
of being outcasts.
Or at least
every one of us
has a part within us
that is outcast.
You know,
we spend so much
of our lives
creating and following
all these standards.
Whether we create
them ourselves
or we see them
around us,
all these standards
that act as dividing walls,
separating the good
and the bad,
the elite
and the average,
the acceptable
and the unacceptable.
But the truth is
there are aspects
of your life
that always fall short
of these standards,
right?
And if these things,
if they were all exposed
and brought to the forefront,
you would become
an outcast in some way.
Maybe you already
feel that way.
Or if you're like
Bartimaeus,
maybe you had your sight
and you lose something
like that and boom,
everything is lost.
Outcast.
These are the parts
of our lives
that we're not proud of.
The things you do
and think that you would
never come close
to posting on Facebook.
You know?
When I whip out my phone
and I have my Facebook app,
now they always ask me
at the top
in the status update,
what's on your mind
right now?
And there's things
I would never type
on that impressed post.
Right?
It's that bad photo
that someone tagged you in,
you know,
when the angle
is coming up like this.
Right?
You hate that photo
because the double chin
is right there.
Right?
I got that.
You know what I'm talking
about, right?
And you just can't
click untag fast enough
because it's a bad
portrayal of you.
That double chin
is no good.
And I mean,
we joke about that
and that's a funny example,
but I think there's,
there is a sense
of being outcast
based on our physical beauty,
isn't there?
When you compare yourself
to a magazine cover,
there are outcasts
wrestling with their appearance.
What about relationships?
What about broken relationships
and things that seem
to have scarred us
seem to taint our lives?
What about sex
and drug addictions?
There was an article
in CNN about a year ago,
I'm sure many of you guys
read about,
read this,
it was written
by a British banker
who basically literally,
he literally wrote
the headline was,
Leaving Hong Kong
Saved My Life
Because of the Drug Culture.
And like Jericho,
this is a wealthy city,
a trade hub,
a finance hub,
with plenty of opportunities
for honest
and dishonest gain.
Have you done anything
in this city
that you're ashamed of?
I have.
And even if we're not
obvious outcasts,
there is part of us
that is anxious,
I believe,
and even terrified
of becoming an outcast.
And I think that's why
we band together
and we gossip
about other people
and we bully other people
and we scorn them
and we make fun of them.
That's why this us
versus them mentality
is so powerful
because sometimes
it's easier
to demonize
and make someone
an enemy,
right?
To make myself
feel better.
And I wonder
if some of us,
even when we think
about being made fun
and bullied,
how much some of us
maybe are still
carrying around baggage
from being bullied
when we were kids.
So we go around
with these masks,
we save face,
we pretend that
everything is perfectly fine,
even maybe on a Sunday
for worship service
because we've got to
bring our Sunday best,
right?
We've got to make sure
everything's perfectly fine.
I want to take us
back to Jericho again.
Bartimaeus and Zacchaeus
understand that things
aren't right in their lives
and they're looking
for the one
who can change that.
For Bartimaeus,
although the crowd
introduces Jesus
as Jesus of Nazareth,
he instantly identifies him
as Jesus,
son of David.
A son of David
is actually a title
for the Messiah
who was supposed
to come and save the Jews.
So as he cries out again
despite being rebuked
by the people around him
to be quiet,
he is showing
some measure
of recognition
that Jesus is special.
He has this faith
to ask Jesus
for a miracle.
Jesus,
son of David,
help me recover
my sight.
And Jesus meets
Bartimaeus
in his deepest brokenness,
in his blindness.
For Zacchaeus,
I love what Jesus does
in his situation
because there's no indication
that Zacchaeus
had any intention
to call out to Jesus.
He was just kind of lurking
above in that tree,
in that Christmas tree
if you want to visualize it.
He was just lurking,
kind of looking,
but something was stirring
in him.
And in a crowd of people
where there was probably
a hundred things
vying for Jesus' attention,
a hundred things around him,
there's a buzz, right?
He's a celebrity.
There's a crowd.
He looks up at this stranger
and he calls Zacchaeus
by name.
Jesus knows Zacchaeus' name.
He sees Zacchaeus.
And when he declares
that he needs to enter
into this man's home
as his guest,
he is associating himself
with Zacchaeus
in a very personal,
intimate way.
way.
For Zacchaeus,
on his part,
we see that he received
Jesus gladly.
And that word in Greek
is literally rejoicing.
And it's interesting
because the word rejoicing
is used a number of times
in Luke,
in this gospel,
where Luke is trying
to describe someone
who has faith.
He's expressing faith
and he has that faith
in Jesus.
There's this genuine joy
within Zacchaeus
as he receives Jesus
into his home.
He's a changed man
because the Messiah
has come into his life
and Jesus' declaration
that he came
to seek and save the lost,
I think that indicates
that Zacchaeus
knew that he was lost.
He knew things weren't right.
And for Bartimaeus,
Jesus told him,
your faith
has made you well.
That's what we read.
It made him well.
And that Greek word
for made you well
is actually
translated
saved.
So we see that
even in the text
there may be actually
more than one aspect
of his restoration here.
Not only
is he physically healed
his sight,
but there's some aspect
of a spiritual salvation there.
And it may not have been
abundantly clear
to these two men
that there was
a spiritual dimension
of being saved,
but it's really clear
that they were no longer
outcasts in their society.
So fast forward again
to today
in this room.
When we apply that
to ourselves today,
I think it's clear
that we're all
spiritual outcasts.
Like what I was saying before,
the ultimate problem
isn't really being
an outcast
in this society
on a horizontal level.
It's being an outcast
because God created us
to be in this loving
relationship with him.
But day after day,
I find myself
forgetting him
and turning away from him,
whether consciously
or unconsciously.
God calls that
broken relationship,
that turning away from him,
one way we describe that
is sin.
And he sent his son,
Jesus,
to seek and save us,
the lost.
I think one of the reasons
why the stories
of Bartimaeus
and Zacchaeus
are actually told together
is because it's clear
that those of us
who are rich
and prosperous
like Zacchaeus
are actually
no better
than that blind beggar.
I don't know
the last time
you thought of yourself
as a blind beggar.
That's not one thing
that comes up
in my mind
when I wake up
every morning.
I'm just a spiritually
blind beggar.
So we need a savior
because we can't
save ourselves.
We can't be perfect.
I can't be perfect.
I've tried.
It doesn't work.
I mess up daily.
I fall short daily.
We need forgiveness.
We need unconditional love
and acceptance.
And when we receive
that gift
from the God
who created us,
we are outcast
no more.
We receive
a completely new life
and identity
as a child of God.
That's
who we were created
to be.
Children of God.
I was
just this past week
I was walking
to the MTR
and saw this little boy
maybe around
five years old
and he was
kind of just
stumbling.
Not really stumbling
but he wasn't
walking too steadily.
He was just
calling out
Baba!
And that
means basically
dad!
Dad!
So I was kind of
taken aback
and I just
looked around
to see what was
going on.
And I think
I saw his dad
who was maybe
on the other side
maybe this far away
kind of walking
ahead of him
and it was
clear that
seemed clear at least
that maybe his dad
wasn't very happy
with him
so he was kind of
walking ahead
and only occasionally
looking back.
I know that's
kind of a small
illustration
but it just
hit me at that
point when I was
thinking about it
like
why don't I
call out
to my father
with that kind
of desperation
and that simplicity?
My heavenly father.
And he's not
quite
I don't think
our heavenly father
is like that dad
like a
kind of
he was being
kind of a jerk
I think.
our heavenly father
isn't like that.
But why
why don't I
call out to him
like that?
Like I went
I went through school
I grew up
I wear like
a nice pair of slacks
and shirt now
and I think
I've got it
figured out.
Right?
I don't know
sometimes what I'm
doing in
these nice clothes
I think maybe
I should be
wearing a onesie
or my school
uniform right?
Because that would
actually be a reminder
that in relation
to my heavenly father
I'm always a child
and I need to
come with him
come to him
with that
simplicity
just like that
little boy did.
But somehow
along the way
I thought I grew up
and I became mature
and I fear
sometimes
that I look at God
and I treat him
as an equal.
I say dad
I've grown up now
give me my inheritance
I want to sort
things out now
myself.
And that's not
the way our heavenly
father wants.
I think some of us
in this room
are like Bartimaeus.
We want to call
out to Jesus
because we know
we need him
and if that's you
today
I encourage you
be bold
and call out
to him
because our heavenly
father is not
like that father
that I saw
on the street.
He's not running
away from us
he never runs
out on us.
there's healing
to be found
through faith
in Jesus Christ.
But the truth is
I think many more
of us
are more like
Zacchaeus.
Right?
You know
we're watching
we're observing
we suspect
something's going on
we're kind of
too cool for school
I always sat
in the back row
of lectures
because I thought
I was awesome.
Right?
Only the nerds
sat in the front row
no offense
because they were
asking questions
right?
And you're just like
oh stop asking
another question
I want to get
out of class.
But we suspect
something big
is going on.
You know
Jesus is here
there's a buzz
but we're not
quite sure
how to approach
it right?
Maybe we don't
think Jesus
is really
that special.
Maybe we don't
think that Jesus
could really
love us
based on what
we've done
the things
we've thought
the things
we've done
the people
we've hurt
I don't know
the depths
of your heart
and mind
I know some
of you pretty
well but I
don't really
know
the very
depths of it
you might not
even know
yourself
and thankfully
I don't need
to because
I'm not
your savior
but I want
you to know
that Jesus
sees
every one
of you
in this room
right now
those of you
in the back
whom I can
barely see
well I see
Millen
but I don't
see you
clearly
people around
you might not
see you clearly
but Jesus
sees you
and he actually
calls each
and every one
of you
in this room
by name
Zacchaeus
calls you
by name
and this
might be
uncomfortable
for some
of you
but just
take a moment
right now
to reflect
on the fact
that God
sees the depths
of your heart
the depths
of your mind
he knows
every bit
of fear
anxiety
brokenness
sin
evil
that's in
your life
and despite
that he
still
wants to
love you
he still
wants to
forgive you
he still
wants to
love you
unconditionally
he's God
you may be
on that
sycamore tree
just peering
around
not really
knowing what's
going on
but he knows
you're there
and he wants
to meet you
exactly
where you're
at
no more
no less
so just be
honest about
yourself
because God
knows already
this is the
amazing message
of Advent
we see it
now even
more clearly
than Bartimaeus
because we know
Jesus came as a
baby as we've
been singing
this morning
Bartimaeus and
Zacchaeus had a
glimpse of that
but we see the
whole picture
God
the creator
of the universe
infinite
transcendent
eternal
unbound
by time
chooses to
enter
into our
world
into our
lives
into history
as a human
to bring us
back to him
someone told me
once
and I always
remember
the closest
analogy he can
think of
is
is like if
you and I
decided we love
ants
so much
that we decided
to become an
ant
so that we
can communicate
with them
that we could
talk to them
we could walk
alongside them
so that they
knew that we
identified
with them
maybe cockroaches
instead of ants
depending on your
view of humanity
right
what God
did in Advent
is infinitely
greater than that
I fear
sometimes
I just
treat Jesus
as some
maybe glorified
superhero
like Superman
I just call him
when I need help
and he comes
to me
no
this is
God
that sentence
we repeated
this morning
God
with us
he is
with us
God
is with us
and he came
to us
so that we
can be
unconditionally
loved and
accepted
come back
to Jericho
one last
time
with me
because the
critical element
of this story
is how
Bartimaeus
and Zacchaeus
responded
to Jesus
because when
we experience
how amazing
it is
that God
came to us
when we
experience
this love
this grace
this unconditional
acceptance
the inevitable
response
is active
it's generous
it's radical
it's a radical
love
and generosity
that comes
with that
the blind
beggar
Bartimaeus
regained his
sight
and began
following
Jesus
the text
said
glorifying
God
is what
the Bible
says
and what
happens
when all
the people
saw
his glorifying
of God
this miracle
they gave
praise to
God
you see
that
as he
glorified
God
it pointed
the people
around him
to the
one that
deserved
glory
not that
I'm amazing
now
I can see
I can do
all these
things
now
it was
the one
who gave
me
sight
he
deserves
the glory
Zacchaeus'
response
is astounding
half of
his possessions
he gives
to the
poor
and
fourfold
repayment
for anyone
that he
had cheated
before
now if you
look into
this under
the Mosaic
law
the law
of Moses
if a thief
voluntarily
confessed
his crime
he only
had to
restore
what he
took
plus 20%
on top
of that
so a
fifth
that was
sort of
the repayment
the restitution
if he
stole
something
that he
could not
restore
then he
had to
pay
fourfold
the value
of that
so you see
Zacchaeus
probably
could have
at least
quibbled
and argued
I can
just pay
back
20%
on top
of what
I cheated
but no
his instant
reaction
is I'm
going to
pay back
fourfold
to anyone
who I
may have
cheated
and you see
what happens
there
when grace
touches your
life
when something
as amazing
as Jesus
comes into
your life
and shows
that he
is all
you need
you don't
quibble
about things
like that
you don't
quibble
about money
and what you
owe
and what you
don't owe
radically
generous
fourfold
anyone
he had
cheated
the money
just didn't
matter
anymore
to Zacchaeus
and if
he was
struggling
maybe
with
finding
his
identity
in
his
wealth
then
surely
it
demonstrates
that
having
a
relationship
with
Jesus
changed
everything
and in
giving
specifically
to the
poor
as we
read in
the text
I think
Zacchaeus
there's a
hint that
he also
begins
to see
the
outcasts
around him
the
outcasts
of society
when
Jesus
comes into
our lives
we begin
following
him
I think
our
response
is also
to begin
seeing
the
things
he
sees
caring
about
the
things
he
cares
about
we
really
start
to
care
about
the
outcasts
whether
they're
rich
or
poor
we
care
about
the
people
who
are
marginalized
and
oppressed
we
care
about
social
justice
because
God
has
a
heart
of
justice
and
mercy
for
the
poor
we
want
to see
and
experience
God
and
we
want
other
people
to do
the
same
just
like
Bartimaeus
did
above
all
we
don't
have
to
walk
around
wearing
these
masks
anymore
because
when
God
the
one
who
created
you
the
one
who
determines
what
has
value
and
does
not
have
value
when
he
accepts
you
and
when
he
loves
you
don't
have
to
walk
around
pretending
anymore
you
don't
have
to
keep
faking
it
you
can
put
down
that
mask
and be
real
and
there's
no
basis
for you
to
judge
others
anymore
because you
don't need
to compare
yourself
with them
we're
just
on a
spiritual
journey
together
and
we're
just
trying
to
become
more
and
more
like
Jesus
I
just
want
to
invite
the
band
to
come
back
up
right
now
and
feel
free
to
start
playing
and
the
question
I
want
to
leave
with
you
is
very
simple
let's
take
a
minute
to
reflect
on
that
what's
your
response
to
Jesus
calling
you
and
coming
into
your
life
this
Advent
season
for
some
of you
maybe
Zacchaeus
is
your
example
and
your
response
is to
give
half
your
possessions
to
the
poor
I
don't
know
that's
between
you
and
God
but
what
is
your
response
it's
Advent
Jesus
is
coming
he's
calling
he
wants
you
to
know
that
he
loves
you
no
matter
what's
in
your
heart
right
now
you
don't
have
to
be
an
outcast
anymore
you
don't
have
to
be
afraid
or
anxious
about
becoming
an
outcast
you
can
be
a
child
of
God
your
heavenly
father
so
what's
your
response
idol
doesn grades
that
could
be
lifted
our
way
or
partir
or
he
is
different
Certainly
we
can
with
Mang
those
things
we
know
together
We
can
change
these
to
damn
them
It's
that
you
can
enjoy