Is It Really That Difficult?

 In so many instances our Lord approaches His Apostles with the message of His impending Passion, death and Resurrection.

But they never seem to get it!

In the Gospel of St. Mark, Chapter 9 we encounter Jesus on Mount Tabor, showing His glory to Peter, James and John as far as they could bear it.  Within that passage, St. Mark records, Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead.  St. Mark then continues to tell us, So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant.

After they met the other nine at the foot of the mountain (last week’s Gospel), and after the Lord heals the son of the man of too little faith, Jesus now teaches the whole ensemble of Apostles about that which is coming.

The Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him.  And after He is killed, He will rise on the third day.

And again, St. Mark records, But they did not understand this saying, and were afraid to ask Him.

In today’s Gospel (Mark 10:32-45), Jesus gets much more direct with His message, providing yet more detail.

We are taught, They were on the road to Jerusalem, and, Jesus was going before them; and they were amazed.  You see, at least some of them understood the danger that lay ahead in Jerusalem.  In John 11:8 we find The disciples said to Him, ‘Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are you going there again?’

It is into this tense environment that we find here in today’s Gospel Jesus speaking plainly.

We go to Jerusalem.  The Son of Man will be betrayed (one of you will turn on Me!) to the chief priests and scribes.  They will condemn Him to death and deliver Him to the Gentiles.  They will mock Him, scourge Him, spit upon Him, and kill Him.  And on the third day He will rise again.

Hear the detail in our Lord’s words to His Apostles!  He describes exactly what is about to transpire in just a few days.

And what is the response of those closest to Him to this devastating news?

Lord, grant us a place next to You in Heaven.

It’s yet another study in human nature.  These men have traveled with Jesus for three years.  They have been witnesses to countless healings, deliverance from demons, raisings from the dead.  In every instance when Jesus healed, He did so selflessly.  He routinely instructed those blessed with His intervention to tell no one.  Yet these same Apostles don’t seem to even hear His words about what is to happen next—even as the aforementioned Gospel of St. John reveals that they did have a rudimentary understanding.

Still being the Loving Lord that He is, He speaks gently to them.  Whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.  The Lord never says that which He does not back up with action, and He proves this saying when He girds Himself with a towel and washes the feet of His Apostles before the Last Supper (John 13:1-17).

We are not unlike these same Apostles.  We too don’t understand what God has exposed in simplicity.  He should say to us as well, Seeing you do not see, and hearing you do not understand.  In this passage from St. John, Jesus says plainly the hearts of this people have grown dull.

Lord, open our hearts to receive Your words.  Help us to hear your loving voice guiding us toward that place where we may be forever near to You.

It's Not My Fault

 Isn’t it funny how human nature is so very predictable?  When we find ourselves guilty of something, we obfuscate, we deny, we cover.

Today (Mark 9:17-31) we find Jesus returning from Mount Tabor with Peter, James and John after He permits them to witness His Transfiguration.

But as they descend from the mountain, there is trouble brewing.  St. Mark records when He came to the disciples (the remaining nine), He saw a great multitude around them, and scribes disputing with them.  Jesus immediately rushes to the defense of His own and asks the scribes, What are you discussing with them? 

It is at this point that a man from the crowd speaks.  Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit.  And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid.  So I spoke with Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.”

There are so very many things wrong with what this man just said! 

First, he opens calling the Lord Teacher.  In this there is no recognition of authority over evil spirits.  Being taught something doesn’t heal.  Why does the man not go immediately to Lord if he intends to show such faith?

Next, I brought You my son.  Remember the healing of the servant of the Centurion?  There was faith that was commended by our Lord.  ‘You don’t need to come to my home.  I’m not worthy.  Just say the word….’  No, here the man complains.  ‘I brought You my son—YOU weren’t here, so I tried the next best thing, asking Your disciples to help, but…. they couldn’t.’  Notice, it’s now the fault of the disciples that his son hasn’t received miraculous healing.

What is our Lord’s response to this assignment of blame?

O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? 

The word translated ‘faithless’ is the Greek apistos, which carries a much stronger meaning than ‘just’ unbelieving—it goes to calling the man a heathen.

Having said all of this, Jesus does not send the man away unfulfilled.  Bring him to Me.

In the interplay that follows, the man still, however, displays less faith than we might expect if he hoped to achieve his initial goal of the healing of his son.  If You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.

There’s an important word we just used—compassion!  Mercy!  The cry of the man has finally become Lord, have mercy!

Jesus does not yet immediately heal, but instead attempts to coax more faith from one who seems to be withholding it.  If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.

There it is:  belief!  This is what’s missing.  Had this kind of belief been present when you came to My disciples, perhaps your plea could have been answered then.  How many times has Jesus said Your faith has made you well!? 

Now the man understands.  Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!

Suddenly Jesus is no longer “Teacher”, now Jesus is “Lord!”  Now there is no blame of anyone else.  Now there is recognition that my faith is not all it needs to be.  Now there is an understanding that You love me and want fully to give to me the heartfelt request made for my child.  Now I will stop blaming others.  Now I will take that blame on myself, and with the most sincere heart and spoken plea, ask the blessing of Your healing ME (Help MY unbelief!), so that my prayer for my son can and will be heard.

There’s a lesson in here for all of us.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Words Have Meaning

 I know—I use this expression all the time.  But it’s a good expression.  It leads us to be inquisitive.  If we don’t fully understand a word, we should research and learn.  If we think we understand a word, we should dig deeper to see if there are other potential meanings that can teach us even more.

A couple of weeks ago we did Forgiveness Sunday Vespers, and in it we sang the Prokeimenon:

Turn not away from Your face from Your child, for I am afflicted.  Hear me speedily, draw near unto my soul, and deliver it!

Once upon a time I was participating in a combined Lenten Sunday Vespers choir rehearsal, and as we practiced this hymn, one of the men standing near me said, “I don’t like that!”  Asking what he meant, he replied, “It’s just not right to demand that God listens NOW.”

The quote may cause some to reflect on his concern, it may cause others to laugh.  If we pay attention to the hymns we offer during Divine services, we come to an understanding about such an issue.

At every Divine Liturgy, at the Anaphora, when your gifts are being offered to the Lord and just before we call upon the Holy Spirit to come and change these offerings into the very Body and Blood of our Lord, we sing a hymn that we’ll repeat on Palm Sunday that uses the word Hosanna! 

What does this word mean?  If we research the word in our Bible study tools, we find it to be of Hebrew origin, a compound word from the two: yasha and na, which mean save and now.

Here then we find that same “immediacy” as offered in the aforementioned Prokeimenon, hear me speedily. 

But the same urgency is applied in other prayers within the Church.  In one of the most beautiful hymns to the Mother of God we find the phrase make haste, for we all perish.  The words are preceded in the hymn with a plea for the Theotokos to have compassion on us, and they are followed by the recognition that we ask for her expeditious answer because of our many sins.

Are we placing too human demands for immediacy on God by praying in this way?

What does “haste” mean to the Timeless One?  Haste only has meaning to those bound by time.  It’s meaningless to God.

The prayers of this Great Fast season are crafted by the Church to help us understand the need for us to feel God’s presence near to us at all times.  They’re intended to open our minds to things we have within our grasp to change, so that we may more closely conform to the plans of the Lord for us.  I don’t know of a more positive message than this.  I can become closer to what God created me to be, if only….  If only I can hold my tongue.  If only I can hold my judgment.  If only I can release what I perceive to be my money, which was never mine in the first place.  If only I can love unconditionally.  If only I can see Christ in others.  If only I can forgive.  If only I can seek forgiveness, not sarcastically, but with all righteousness. 

There are too many if only’s to detail here.  I know too few of my own.  I’m not here to point out yours, for to do so would be judgmental on my part.  But I am here to encourage us—you, me, all of us– to listen to what the Church is telling us, and to try with all our being to understand her message.  Then, we will be filled with all the joy that this season was meant to bring to us, if only we were paying attention and using the opportunity to learn—from Her (the Church’s) words, and to ask for our Lord's help - NOW!

Simple Invitations

 In today’s Gospel reading (John 1:43-51), we learn a lot about how our Lord “grew” His Church, via the calling of the Apostles.

We as Orthodox Christians speak often about how it is that we might share this faith with others.  Some speak of plans to go outside the building with outreach programs.  Some speak about garnering attention via news articles or advertisements.  Some propose “door-to-door” evangelism.

While there’s nothing wrong with any plan to engage others in our faith, it’s most often the personal testimony of one of us whose faith has changed our life that speaks to someone who is seeking a change in their life.

In the verses preceding today’s Gospel, we find Jesus receiving baptism from St. John, who testifies, “This is the Son of God.”  From this, the Forerunner speaks with his disciples (these were John and Andrew) and says to them, Behold the Lamb of God.  St. John records this:  They heard him (St. John) speak, and they followed Jesus.  Our Lord confronts the two, asking What do you seek?  They don’t answer the question directly, but ask only, Rabbi, where are You staying?  And the first invitation from our Lord is given—Come and see.

As a result of this encounter with the Lord, Andrew goes to his brother Peter and testifies, We have found the Messiah!  John records that Andrew brought Peter to Jesus, who calls him by name and then gives him the new name, Cephas, or “a rock.”

On the following day Jesus goes to Galilee and finds Philip, to whom He issues a second invitation, Follow Me.  Philip then goes and finds Nathaniel, giving him essentially the same message that Andrew gave to Peter.  We know Nathaniel’s famous saying, Can anything good come out of Nazareth?  Now, it is Philip who issues the invitation, Come and see.

In a few brief and simple encounters, we find Peter, John, Andrew, and Nathaniel gathered into the fold of the ranks of the Apostles, all by two or three word invitations!  They come not by command, but voluntarily.  They come not coerced by things of the world, but by heartfelt longing for God to fulfill His promise to His people, a longing founded in their own pursuit of understanding Holy Scripture.

Note that these first five Apostles become bonded to our Lord not by door-to-door efforts, nor by advertising, nor by things worldly.  They come by personal testimony—first of the Forerunner, then of those sent by him, a founding that is confirmed by our Lord’s two invitation phrases: Follow Me and Come and see.

As we encounter people who need to find our Lord in their lives, what better pattern to adopt that that which is shown us by our Lord and His closest Apostles?

Jesus seals the attachment of Nathaniel when, brought by Philip to see the Lord, He says to Nathaniel, Behold, and Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit.  Nathaniel is confused about how Jesus knows him, to which the Lord replies, Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.  Nathaniel knowing where he was and how impossible it is that Jesus should know this confesses, Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!  It is a confession of faith not yet firmly rooted, which teaches us that in coming to the faith, there is no “instant formula” for accepting Holy Orthodoxy.  It takes Peter three more years with the Lord to confess, You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God, a confession similar to Nathaniel’s, but at that time one more firmly rooted in a faith that has been established on the rock of what has been witnessed about truly Who Jesus is.

Let us be inviting to all who seek to find their path to salvation in Holy Orthodoxy.  And let us offer to them the same heartfelt invitations.  Follow Him as we attempt to do.  And, with us, Come and see.

Glory to Jesus Christ!

Remembering His Holiness Patriarch Neofit

 After a long illness, His Holiness Patriarch Neofit fell asleep in the Lord this past Wednesday, 13Mar24.  May his memory be eternal!  Bog da Prosti!

The Holy Synod published the following statement:  “We call on all Orthodox Christians to address their sincere prayer together with the holy Orthodox Church to the all-merciful God to put to rest the soul of our dear Patriarch in the kingdom of God—in the celestial spheres of the righteous and place him among the chosen ones on the right, where with the heavenly hosts he will praise God in eternity with a pleasant voice.”

His Holiness’ health worsened late last year and he remained under medical care at the Military Medical Academy.  All who were familiar with his condition continued to pray for his health until this news shook us all.

Born Simeon Nikolov in Sofia on 15Oct45, His Holiness graduated from the Theological Seminary in Sofia.  His theological specialty (church singing) developed at the Moscow Theological Academy, from which he returned in 1973 when he taught and became conductor of the student choir at the Academy.

He was tonsured a monk in 1975 and given the name Neophyte by His Holiness Patriarch Maxim (of blessed memory) at the Troyan Monastery.

In 1989 he became rector of the Theological Academy, and two years later he became the first dean of the restored Theological Faculty at Sofia University, St. Kliment Ohridski.  Later he became the chief secretary of the Holy Synod and chairman of the board of trustees of the St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.

In 1994 he was canonically confirmed as Metropolitan of the Dorostol-Cherven Diocese.  When the diocese was divided in half, he headed the Ruse Diocese.

In 2008 he was bestowed the title “doctor honoris causa” of the Sofia University for overall contribution to the development of spirituality at Sofia University and for his active participation in the restoration of the Faculty of Theology.  Two years later he was awarded by the President of Bulgaria the “Order of St. Cyril and Methodius”, the award stating that is was given “for his particularly significant merits for the development of the Theological Academy “St. Kliment Ohridski”, for his contribution to the development of scientific and educational ties and relationships between Eastern and Western Christians and on the occasion of his 65th birthday.”

On 24Feb13, Neophyte was elected Patriarch of Bulgaria and Metropolitan of Sofia, and was enthroned on that same day in St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.

During his lifetime, His Holiness was known for being a tolerant and calm leader, and a zealous defender of Christian values, as well as for being an advocate for the introduction of “religion” in Bulgarian schools.

May His Holiness’ memory be eternal!  Bog da Prosti!

 

 

I Tremble at the Fearful Day of Judgment

Today’s Gospel (Mat 25:31-46) presents us with what our Lord gifts to us as prophecy related to His return, His ‘Second Coming.’

His words are clear.  There can be no misinterpretation. 

When the Son of Man comes in His glory…  Not “if”, but when.  Not this time in humility, but in His glory.  With all power.  With all authority.

And all the holy angels with Him… Jesus has been very careful to explain to His Apostles (and thru them to us) that His return will not be something that can be overlooked, misconstrued, or misrepresented.  During the week of the Publican and Pharisee in the Gospel readings from Mark Chapter 13 Jesus says to them if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘Look, He is there!’ do not believe it.  If each of us has a guardian angel, and the total population of the earth since creation is estimated to be over 100 billion, and there are additional other myriads of angels whom God has created for other purposes, then when Jesus returns with ALL the angels, it will indeed be something not to be misconstrued!

All the nations will be gathered before Him… Not some, all.  Not from today, but from all time.  All will stand for judgment.

He will separate them one from another… He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left… Sheep are docile animals, willing to follow their Shepherd unconditionally.  Goats are stubborn, independent, and not easily or willingly led.  It prompts the question to myself, “What can I do to change myself from being a goat to becoming a sheep?”

Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you blessed of My  Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world… This is the first mention of “King” - but it shows Jesus for Who He is, and it shows His ‘status’ at His return!  The description gives no relative size of the gatherings of sheep and goats.  Based on our Lord’s sayings (For many are called, but few are chosen…) we can imagine that there are far more goats than sheep!  To those whom the Lord calls the blessed of My Father, He speaks to the fact that the heavenly realms were created for this day, and have been in the ready from the foundation of the world, or more precisely, from the time of creation.

Counter to this blessing given to the sheep, the Lord says Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels… This ‘depart’ is different from others in scripture.  St. Simeon’s prayer uses the English word ‘depart’, but St. Simeon's 'depart' is different from the 'depart' in the Greek from Matthew 25.  St. Simeon's depart means ‘dismiss’.  In today's Gospel, with this depart there’s a finality with the word, which translates to ‘travel’ or ‘remove’.  In short, it carries the meaning of “Leave forever!”

 These will go away into everlasting punishment…  Here’s the proof of this absolute removal.  Like a figurative goat, these have been stubborn, refusing to be led by a loving Master, and in fact rejecting Him at every turn.  Removal from His eternal presence is the sentence for this cursed state.

But the righteous (will be received) into eternal life… Like the figurative sheep, these have always followed the Lord’s voice, and in showing their heartfelt desire to live accordingly, this is the blessing bestowed upon them.

Lord, as we together traverse the days of the Great Fast, let us seek to change our hearts to conform to Your Holy Will.  The Aposticha for this day says it all:  O Good Shepherd, deprive me not of a place at Your right hand in Your great mercy.

May this Great Fast lead us all ever toward the Kingdom, and placement at His right hand! 

Coming Home

 Today’s Gospel (Luke 15:11-32) is a gift from our Lord that paints a picture, an “icon”, of how much the Father truly loves us.

Stop for a moment and think of that love shown for you from your parents.  Some of us still live within that love.  Some of us had that love from one or the other parent for far too short a time.  Some of us have lived to ripe old ages and can now experience that love only in memories.

I fall into this later category.  The memories of packing up the old station wagon with five kids for a four hour trip, pretty much every second week remain with us.  That task might seem daunting, but there was never any reservation about making that trip leaving Friday night and returning after Church on Sunday.  It was always worth it to feel the warmth of the embraces when we arrived, the love in the conversation while we were there.  And it was well worth the education—mom and dad never stopped being teachers to us.

As we read today’s parable of the Prodigal, we can imagine in his mind the thoughts present as he left the Father.  “I’m going to go out and conquer the world!”, only to have this untamed bravado quickly quashed by the real world. 

It was not just that he didn’t prosper, the Prodigal allowed the temptations of the world to lay hold of him, to entice him into great sin, to sap all the positives taught to him by his Father and cause him to wallow in the mud with common swine, to literally come to a point of starvation as he fed animals that the Jews saw as unclean.

It was this complete collapse of the world around him that brought the Prodigal to that place where he finally could find true repentance.  And so he commits to “going home” - not to a Father any longer, for he sees himself as totally unworthy to be called by that title after how he has chosen to live away from that love.  He now looks to his Father as an employer—one who won’t have him feeding pigs, but who in return will treat him with some level of dignity.  He asks to be a servant of one whom he knows has respect even for those  who are His servants!

But the Father has other plans!  The Father is not caught off guard by the Prodigal’s return.  He is watching, waiting for him to come home.  And when His son does return, He allows him only enough time to offer his message of repentance, but the Father stops the son’s discourse short, not allowing him to ask to become a servant.  What do we find in the Father’s demeanor? 

First:  He’s My son!  Second:  I love him unconditionally.  Third: I prove that love with my running to meet him.  Fourth: I prove that love by embracing him.  Fifth:  I prove that love by kissing him.

When I go back to those long four hour drives, I’m reminded of the warmth of each and every arrival.  Both father and mother came out to meet us.  There were hugs exchanged between two parents and all seven of us exiting the car.  And it all ended with kisses all around before entering the house to celebrate.  There was no fatted calf, but there was feasting and much joy.

Today’s Parable is our Lord’s way of showing us truly how much the Father loves us.  In this world, a parent’s love is perhaps as close we can get to that of our heavenly Father.  And if we still (years later) can feel that parental love, the hugs, the kisses, and if all those memories are as vivid as they are, memories gifted by imperfect human love, how much more intense, more glorious, more wonderful is the love that our Lord shows us to be the definition of who the Father really is?

Let us all begin to prepare our repentant message to Him.  Lord knows we’re all on the path to meet Him soon.  All of us are on our way home.  And He, with all love, is waiting.

Publican and Pharisee

 Today’s Gospel (Luke 18:10-14) has our Lord directing our thoughts (and prayers) with another parable.

In all such instances, we should accept our Lord’s words as being indicative of real-life events, even when they are delivered as parables.  Why?  Because Christ’s teaching is not about nebulous events or people.  He crafts His words to change our hearts from being stony and cold to the place where we can find them molding to His will, and being warm to accepting Him into them.

Today’s parable, like most others, places two people into positions of being at odds with one another.  The Publican is a man hated by the average person on the street because he works for the government, those who are oppressors, occupiers of Israel.  The average Jew wants nothing more than to be freed from the clutches of the Roman Empire.  And the Publican is the Empire’s tie between their treasury and those who are subdued as subjects.

This is in part that which crafts the heart of the Publican towards his state of repentance.  He hates himself for what he is, which for all practical purposes is a traitor to his own people.  And so the Lord describes finding him in the Temple beating his breast in repentance, asking God for forgiveness.  For how many other sins we do not know—perhaps many (like me).  He is filled with such self-judgmentalism that Jesus says that he would not even lift his eyes to heaven.

The Pharisee, on the other hand, judged not himself, but rather the Publican.  Thank You for not making me like THAT man…

Jesus told us, Unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.

The Publican has heard this message and has taken it to heart.  He has found that place where he understands that his life is a disappointment to his Father, and he wants nothing more than to become a restored son.

The Pharisee doesn’t need a Father.  He is self-sufficient.  “I’m good!  There’s nothing wrong with me.”  And in these attitudes, Jesus proclaims that the Publican went away justified, while the Pharisee was not.

Saint Basil teaches that there are three states through which we can be pleasing to God.  In the first, we fear His punishment, making us acceptable in the state of slaves.  In the second, we are in the state of servants, working for wages, fulfilling orders for our own advantage and in so doing earning our wages.  The third state is that of children, and here we strive for the highest good.  A child—a mature child—does the will of the Father not for fear of being beaten, nor even to receive a reward from Him, but rather because the child knows that he is loved.  And in return, the child loves and honors the Father, convinced that all that is the Father’s is also his as well.

As we are led by the Church to enter this Great Fast, let us take to heart the messages of these Preparatory Sundays, using them to begin to conform ourselves to where the Lord calls us even before the Fast takes its own loving hold of us—for our own good!

 

What Exactly Did the Lord Receive?

 Today’s Gospel (Luke 19:1-10) is a kind of “unofficial” beginning to the Lenten Season.  It’s not a “Sunday After Pentecost.”  It’s not a “Sunday of the Triodion.”  So what IS it, exactly.

Think of it this way.  When you go to dine at a nice restaurant, you’re often asked if you’d like to order “an appetizer.”  The thought is that there is a kind of “small portion food” that will enhance your ability to eat more.

Zacchaeus Sunday is the “appetizer” for the Preparatory Sundays before the Great Fast.

What does it offer to make us hungry for more?

The short answer is DESIRE!

This is where we find Zacchaeus.  It’s obvious that he has heard about Jesus.  He has developed a curiosity about Him.  The curiosity appetizer has evolved into a hunger to be able just to SEE who this Man is.

But God, in His wisdom, made him too small to allow him to easily achieve his goal.  Worse, his position as a tax collector (and a chief of them at that) causes the people also crowding the streets to push poor Zacchaeus away.  Call it retribution for his holding authority over them with their taxes.

So Zacchaeus must exert himself.  It’s not a premeditated plan.  Jesus is coming.  If I don’t act now, I won’t see Him.  I’ll climb the tree and at least get a glimpse of who this Man is.

This is a more sincere display of desire for Christ than the Lord’s own people have shown throughout His ministry.  Knowing all things, including the content of Zacchaeus’ heart, the Lord calls to him.  Come down!  I need to stay with you this day.

Zacchaeus is overjoyed!  He simply wanted to see Jesus.  Now, the Lord has not only spoken with him, He will do so yet again within his house.  Jesus will meet his family.  He’ll be able to converse with the Lord.  What will he say?  How will this all come to a conclusion?

People in the crowd are appalled.  He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.  It is to this sentiment that this article’s title is dedicated.

When one might be accused of visiting with someone who is held in contempt by the crowds, there is an automatic expectation that the one being visited is “paying off” the one visiting.  “Come into my home, and I will give you something of great value.”  The crowd expects Zacchaeus to be somehow giving to the Lord—they expect some kind of corrupt motives to be at play.

And so the question:  In any encounter with the Lord, throughout all of Scripture, when is there a confrontation, Christ with another person, where Jesus leaves having “received” something?  When does the Lord go away with more than He had upon arrival?  What’s that?  Never, you say?

Let us suggest that in fact Jesus leaves today’s encounter with Zacchaeus with something that He did not arrive with—Zacchaeus’ repentant heart!  What value is there is this?  None, to any of the people in the crowd who decried the Lord’s visit.  For Jesus, He left knowing that there was rejoicing amongst the angels of God over this one sinner who repented.

Lord, visit me, as You did Zacchaeus, and give me his repentant heart.