Literary Context Of Luke 19: 1-10

Darin Goodman

Mr. Mancini

Bible

Living out Luke 19:1-10

Throughout the gospels we are given thorough examples of how Jesus portrays authority, kindness, grace, mercy, compassion, and every other form of good. The parable of Zacchaeus is found Luke chapter 19 verses 1-10 and in it readers learn of the fullness of Jesus’ forgiveness. When we ask for forgiveness, forgiveness is given. When we reach our hands out to God, he will enter our hearts with love. When studying a passage of scripture it is very important to fully understand the historical context. By simply recognizing the context of how people of certain groups were treated, we can better understand how Jesus treated those who were socially less than. In this passage Zacchaeus is

The literary context provides readers with knowledge of previous events that led up to the moment they are studying. To find the literary contexts of Luke 19:1-10 I read passages from Luke 17:11-19:27. The main passage that stood out to me was from Luke 18 verses 9-14, the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. In this parable there is a Pharisee who prays to God and boasts of his “superior” actions, and he even compares himself to the tax collector who is standing near him. He thanks God he is not like this tax collector and others wrong-doers of the world. The Pharisee man continues to tell God of the good he does like fasting and giving tenths of his earnings. After, the tax collector confidently exclaimed to God, asking him to give him mercy on him as a sinner. Jesus ended this parable by explaining that those who humble themselves before God will be forgiven completely and room will be justified before God. How does this tie in with the parable of Zacchaeus? Well, both of these parables show the mercy given to those who exalt themselves before the Lord. A clean slate is given to those who ask for

The main message I got from this passage was to love as fully and unconditionally as God does. If God did not love us the way he does he would not be able to forgive and answer to us with as much ease as he does. As teenagers we are often segregating others by the way they act or by the things they have done in the past. We separate our peers and make cliches and we find ways to make ourselves superior over others. We can read this story of Zacchaeus and the parable of the Pharisee man and easily pinpoint the problem… they judged and outcasted tax collectors and decided they were automatically better than them. We can not compare our actions to others actions and judge them as if we are God. God calls us to love and help everyone. Jesus did not wave Zacchaeus aside, rather he spoke to him the same way he would speak to anyone else. This is an example of how we should treat others, we should strive to talk to all people without the judgment that other people have stamped them with. This parable also shows us how we should act like Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was outcasted and disposed of within the community, yet when he spoke to Jesus he did not run from his past. He did not try to hide his sins from Jesus, he did not play dumb about his past and why he was disliked. He exclaimed his repentance to the Lord. To the face of Jesus Zacchaeus acknowledged his sin and took account of his actions. God asks us to