He Knows Your Name
The Gospel is simple. We theologian types love to make it complex and then re-discover the greatest truths when we see it from a child's perspective.
Last week, I hung out for about an hour with my old children's pastor Jim Robinson. Not describing him as old...just myself. As he gave me a tour of the new kids wing at Cottage Hill Baptist Church, he paused at the mural of Zacchaeus and said, "This is my favorite story to share with pre-schoolers...because Jesus knew his name."
Luke records the event. "And when Jesus came to the the place he looked up and said to him, 'Zacchaeus...'"
We have made the story about a little man in a tree, about a rich man turned philanthropist, and about a sinner transformed. But at its core, the story is about Jesus. The God of the Universe. Who knew the name of a small man in Jericho. They had never met. Jesus had not asked the town mayor about him. But Jesus knew his name.
Jesus knows your name. Doesn't matter who your parents are, what your family is like, where you live, or how many people like you. Jesus knows your name. When we listen to the Gospel from the perspective of a child, we rediscover some of its most profound truths. I guess Jesus was right when he talked about becoming like a little child to enter his kingdom.
posted by Heather Z @ 6:31 AM
2 comments
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2 Comments:
Awesome! I am so happy the HE knows my name!
While I completely agree with the sentiment of your blog post, I find it odd that Jim would make a leap into the supernatural so quickly.
Jesus could have easily turned to someone in the crowd and said, "What's the name of that fellow in that tree? I'd like to say something to him" ... and this information was simply omitted from the text by the author because it was too much ancillary information to share.
Jesus was in perfect union with the Father, who instructed him as to where to go, with whom to speak, what to say, and how to be the most powerful witness a human could be.
Jesus, the Christ died for our sins, but the real story here seems to be that the Father knows our names and is glorified through His Son, the Christ who shed his omnipotence, omnipresence, and omniscience to walk this earth as Jesus. Whatever powers Jesus had, he received from his heavenly Father as needed.
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