Lectionary: Luke 19:1-10 and Luke 2:22-40
How are we to receive Christ?
It would be good to know how it is that we receive Him, because brothers and sisters, we do it every week. The Eucharist is the most tangible expression of us receiving Christ into our hearts, receiving Him bodily into us.
But I approach the chalice, and I am overwhelmed by the magnitude of such a thing. How can I possibly receive the King of all into myself? Where do I even begin the process of preparing myself for such a momentous thing, such a powerful thing?
What a blessing it is that today we have two examples of how we are to receive Christ. Both these examples are connected, in that they exemplify the way by which we begin preparing to receive our God into ourselves.
First, there is Saint Simeon. Born centuries before Christ, he is a translator, one of the many translators who undertook the monumental task of translating all of the Jewish scriptures into Greek. It just so happens that Simeon is translating the prophecy of Isaiah, and he comes upon a piece of Scripture that makes him resoundingly curious.
“Behold, a virgin shall conceive in the womb, and shall bring forth a Son” (Is 7:14)
This piece of Scripture makes Simeon curious because it is seemingly impossible. How could this be? How could a child be born of a woman who never knew a man? Such a miracle makes Simeon curious. Even skeptical. So Simeon goes to correct the word from “virgin” to simply “woman”. And in this very moment, an angel appears to Simeon to stop him.
The angel tells Simeon that God would reveal to him how this piece of Scripture is true. And the Lord accomplishes this by not letting Simeon die until it happens. And so Simeon lives, and he lives, far beyond the lifespan of a normal man. As he lives, he waits, he anticipates, still curious about how this miracle is going to transpire. Until one day, a woman does appear at the temple. A virgin. And in her arms: a child. Her child. Saint Simeon takes this child into his arms, flabbergasted and overcome. Because the child that he holds is not merely a child born of a virgin, but He is the very God that created Simeon, that created all things, the very same God that has sustained Simeon’s long life, so that Simeon might meet this God in the flesh, and bear him in his arms.
We also hear about Zacchaeus. Someone else who is curious to encounter Christ. He hears that Jesus is passing by and he is inspired by a curiosity to get close to Him, to see Him, to see what the fuss is all about. But, he’s small of stature. There are throngs of people surrounding Jesus, and Zacchaeus can’t quite get a good look at Him. And so, spurred on by this curiosity that is growing within him, Zacchaeus decides to climb a sycamore tree, to risk embarrassment, and comfort, and even safety, just to see this Person.
And rewarding that curiosity, Christ calls out to Zacchaeus, and He offers to join Zacchaeus in his house. And so Zacchaeus, by exercising his curiosity, now has this opportunity to welcome Christ himself into his home. And that encounter transforms his life. Once a tax collector, Zacchaeus now makes amends for his mistakes, and for his sins. He gives all that he can to the poor. And the Tradition of the Church tells us that Zacchaeus ultimately becomes an apostle of Christ, one of the 70. He dies peacefully as a bishop in Palestine.
So, we see these two people today, whose lives were miraculously transformed by Christ. And those transformations started from a place of curiosity. In every moment of our lives, God is reaching out to us. He’s seeking to be with us. He’s seeking to be near us, so that He may love us. And He instills within us this nagging curiosity to know Him. This undeniable pull to seek out meaning in our lives. There is this fundamental wanting for the creation to know the creator.
And we see today that this Grace of curiosity, this curiosity given to us by God Himself, is to be met with a choice. Beginning from a place of curiosity, Simeon chooses then to be patient, he chooses to see how this impossible miracle is to play out. The years pass by and Simeon still holds onto that curiosity so that he might ultimately receive the Lord in his arms.
And Zacchaeus, starting with that curiosity that God placed within him, chooses to pursue it, to climb that tree, to follow Christ. And so, brothers and sisters, as we look to Great Lent, we see a period of spiritual preparation and renewal that begins here: with curiosity. With seemingly chance encounters with Christ, that are really, and truly His persistent efforts to reveal Himself to us.
So, let us go forth today and choose to be curious!
For within every person that we encounter today, there is an opportunity to meet Christ, because within each and every person there is the presence of Christ within.. Even those who challenge us. Especially those whom we dislike, or fear, those whom we judge, even those who hate us. Within each, and every one of them is that presence of Christ. And made in the image and likeness of God, they challenge us to be curious.
Let us give in to that curiosity and seek Christ in each and every person, and in ourselves, for the most important part of being curious is being open to understanding. To allowing ourselves to be formed, our minds to be changed, our hearts to be cultivated by the love of Christ.
And so, by opening our hearts to curiosity, by opening our minds to the teachings of our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ, we allow the entirety of ourselves to be transformed, so that we might imitate Zacchaeus and Simeon, and have our lives transformed by Christ.
Glory to Jesus Christ!
