Pastor's Blog – March 13, 2019
“Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through.
2
A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy.
3
He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd.
4
So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.
5
When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him,
“Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.”
6
So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.”
Luke 19:1–6
NIV
You receive word that Jesus is coming to your house today! You discover that He is on His way and will be there in the hour. Would you be ready to receive Him? What would you want Him to see or not see? Would you be ready to give Him a tour through your home? Are there any rooms that you would rather clean up first? Would He feel comfortable to stay with you?
Asking Jesus into your life is inviting Him to move into the home of your heart. We don’t invite Him to visit but to stay with us. Our appetites, the things we watch and do all have weight into His willingness to stay with us. Jesus does NOT negotiate with sin, nor will He remain in a place that is not surrendered to His righteousness.
Keeping your home in a way that is welcoming to visitors takes effort and work. It’s not about what you have but how clean and livable you are able to maintain it. Jesus takes us right where we are. Not one of us came to Him perfect and without sin and bondage in our lives. The key is in that when He became our Savior, He also became our Lord. The Lordship of Christ is the most challenging part of serving Him.
Trusting Jesus with our Salvation is easy, trusting Him with everything else is a commitment and sacrifice. He is good and He has us in His best interest, but to have Him remain in our lives means we have to surrender every room of our home to Him. It is in our willingness to eat and live in a way that He is comfortable in our home. What we read, watch, build and do is relevant to Him. Our relationships, our finances, even our dreams and goals need to be submitted to His Lordship.
Behold, Jesus is knocking at the door of our hearts. He wants to come in and He will if we invite Him. Yet the only way He will stay is if we give Him the “Title” to our home and allow Him to bring order to the chaos of our lives! His grace is sufficient and His capableness is apparent. Give Him the reigns: As He said to Zacchaeus, “I have come to save that which was lost.” (Luke 6).
Have a blessed week!
Pastor Eric
