Be Found
Vision & Mission • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Last week we talked about seeking and seeing what burdens God and asking Him to help us see and have a burden for what burdens Him.
This week look at the Be Found part of our vison and mission.
Vision Statement: Church on the Hill’s vision is to be a church where people are found in Christ, changed by His grace, known in an authentic community, and sent on mission to share the gospel and love of Jesus with the world.
Mission Statement: Be Found. Be Changed. Be Known. Now Go!
1 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 because he was short he could not see over 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. 7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” 8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
Set the stage for Zach: He was a chief tax collector. Zacchaeus would have had a lot of money and few friends. Here is why.
The Jews were subjugated by Rome, they paid taxes to the Roman Empire. Rome would employ Jews to collect taxes from their own people.
However, tax collectors would often collect extra for themselves.
So, the Jews weren’t fond of Jewish tax collectors. In fact, they considered them traitors. That’s why in the New Testament you typically see tax collectors mentioned alongside prostitutes and other sinners.
Zacchaeus was lost in two ways: he was lost to his community because of his sin, and he was lost to himself because of his greed.
But Jesus comes in and offers a grace that is both "free” and "costly”. It’s free to Zacchaeus, but it costs Jesus His reputation.
This is the heart of why "Be Found” is our first step.
1 Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through.
He was passing through.
2 A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy.
Not just a tax collector: He was the chief. Top Dog.
He’s an outcast, he’s viewed as a traitor, and he’s wealthy but spiritually bankrupt.
3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd.
It was not Zaccheus’ fault that he was “short” and could not see over the crowd. He did what he could to overcome his handicap by putting aside his dignity and climbing a tree.
In a spiritual sense, all of us are “short” for “all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). No one measures up to God’s high standards; we are all “too short” to enter into heaven.
The tragedy is, many lost people think they are “big.” They measure themselves by man’s standards—money, position, authority, popularity. They think they have everything when really they have nothing.
4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.
In the East, it is unusual for a man to run, especially a wealthy government official; yet Zaccheus ran down the street like a little child following a ice cream truck.
Jesus talks about needing a child like faith.
17 Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.”
Like a child he climbed a tree! Curiosity is certainly characteristic of most children, and Zaccheus was motivated by curiosity that day.
John Calvin wrote, “Curiosity and simplicity are a sort of preparation for faith.” This is often the case, and it was certainly true of Zaccheus.
Curios about: Why the big crowd? Who is this Jesus of Nazareth they are following? What am I missing?
Look at Zacchaeus. He’s up in that tree, and he thinks he’s just a spectator.
By nature, lost people do not seek the Saviour.
11 there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God.
When our first parents (Adam & Eve) sinned, they hid from God, but God came and sought them. When Jesus was ministering on earth, He sought out the lost; and today the Holy Spirit, through the church, is searching for lost sinners.
Zaccheus thought he was seeking Jesus, but Jesus was seeking him!
5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.”
Jesus stops the entire procession. Why? Because for Jesus, the crowd didn't matter, the soul in the tree did.
Jesus doesn't wait for Zacchaeus to get his act together or come down and apologize. Jesus initiates.
Note the word must. It was a mission-critical priority. For us to be the church God has called us to be, "Be Found” has to be more than a cute slogan.
6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.
Jesus invited Himself to Zaccheus’ house, and Zaccheus received Him joyfully.
Joy is one of the key themes in the Gospel of Luke, and the word is found over twenty times in one form or another.
Think about the joy in that house when Jesus sat down to eat! That’s the environment we want to create. We want to be a life-giving church where people can discover Jesus “Be Found” and begin a journey with Him.
7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”
Some people in the crowd were probably hoping to have Jesus as their own dinner guest.
Why chose this sinner instead of us? Because sinners were the reason he had come in the first place.
Advice as a pastor: Spend time with Leaders and Lost people.
8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
Under the Mosaic Law, if a thief voluntarily confessed his crime, he had to restore what he took, add one fifth to it, and bring a trespass offering to the Lord.
If he stole something he could not restore, he had to repay fourfold and if he was caught with the goods, he had to repay double.
Zaccheus did not complain over the terms of the Law; he offered to pay the highest price because his heart had truly been changed.
Having trusted the Saviour, he then gave evidence of his faith by promising to make restitution to those he had wronged.
9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.
Our culture is obsessed with 'finding yourself,' but the Bible says you’ll never find yourself until you are first found by Jesus.
We do not know how God had worked in the heart of Zaccheus to prepare him for this meeting with Jesus.
Was Levi (aka Matthew), the former tax collector one of his friends? Had he told Zaccheus about Jesus? Was he praying for Zaccheus? Had Zaccheus become weary of wealth and started yearning for something better?
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
*We need to be a church that creates space for the skeptic, the deconstructed, and the 'none.'
If we aren't a place where a Zacchaeus feels like he can climb a tree and see Jesus without being pelted by stones from the religious crowd, then we’ve failed.
“Be Found” is our declaration that no one is too far gone, no one is too 'messy,' and no one is outside the reach of the radical grace of Christ.
Closing: People matter to God, so they have to matter to us. When we say "Be Found,” we’re saying we’re going to be a church that invites, a church that welcomes, and a church that cheers when someone takes their first step toward faith.
We want to make it easy for you to bring your friends, your neighbors, and your coworkers because we know that one encounter with Jesus can change everything.
Let’s be a people who are known for our red carpet, not our closed doors.
Because when the lost are found, heaven throws a party. And I don't know about you, but I want to be part of that party!
