The Biblical notion of conversion is psychological as well as social. Conversion is about a profound change in one’s belief system as well as one’s lifestyle. Conversion is about a change of heart that results in a change of living. Conversion to Jesus Christ involves the whole person, that is, not only the way we think, but also the way we behave and the way we engage and construct our self, community and society. Jim Wallis, the well known evangelical activist and spiritual leader of Sojourners Community in Washington DC, wrote in his book The Call to Conversion (1981): “The goal of biblical conversion is not to save souls apart from history but to bring the kingdom of God into the world with explosive force; it begins with individuals but is for the sake of the world. The more strongly present that goal is, the more genuinely a biblical conversion is. Churches today are tragically split between those who stress conversion but have forgotten its goal, and those who emphasise Christian social action but have forgotten the necessity for conversion” (p.8.)

The story of Zacchaeus the tax-collector and Jesus in Luke’s Gospel is a powerful demonstration of true conversion.

“He entered Jericho and was passing through. And there was a man named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector, and rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not, on account of the crowd, because he was small of stature.

So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” So he made haste and came down, and received him joyfully. And when they saw it they all murmured, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have defrauded any one of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:1-10, RSV).

This is a challenging story about conversion and salvation in a number of ways. It is a healthy balance to those theologies that mainly view conversion as an individual’s change of mind or heart. Such theologies tend to simply focus on a verse or two from the Apostle Paul, taken in isolation, for example: ” …if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 9:10). Zacchaeus’ personal conversion of mind and heart is only implicit in this account. Zacchaeus calls Jesus “Lord” which is a sign that he is a convert. He acknowledges that Jesus is Lord of his life but only in this implicit way. There is no emphasis given say to a change of belief. There is no personal statement of faith. That is to say the focus of conversion to Jesus is not an interior one, rather it is an exterior one. All too often Christianity has been marked by an individual interiorisation of the Gospel. This narrative in Luke is an exteriorisation of the Gospel. That is, the emphasis is upon the change in Zacchaeus’ lifestyle since his encounter with Jesus. The story is a testimony to the nature of true conversion to Christ. Biblical conversion is an interior conversion of heart and mind that leads to the total transformation of the person. As Wallis puts it: “Biblically, conversion means to surrender ourselves to God in every sphere of human existence: the personal and social, the spiritual and economic, the psychological and the political.

The tendency to sanitise, interiorise and privatise the Gospel has long been with us. Indeed the problem of any revolution has always been the conservative reaction of the next generation. A ninth century interpretation of the metaphor that Jesus used about a camel and the eye of a needle, is illustrative of this tendency. In Luke’s account Jesus says to a very rich man that “Indeed, it is easier to go through the eye of a needle than for someone to enter the kingdom of God” (Luke 18:25). The interpretation is that there was a small gate in the wall of the city of Jerusalem known as “The Eye of the Needle.” When the main Jerusalem gate was closed at night-time the smaller gate could be used and if a person with a camel wanted to enter, the camel could just get past by lowering its head and crawling down on its knees. Thus said the ninth century commentator, this was the eye of the needle Jesus was referring to and this saying means that a wealthy person can keep their riches so long as they are humble and on their knees. Well as the old adage goes, never let the truth get in the way of a good story. The problem is such a gate never existed. Mean while this interpretation has become a widely held one, in a variety of forms, even until the present day. Sometimes Jesus used graphic, grotesque imagery to get his point across. This was one of those times. In other words, he meant what he said. A rich person who merely has or wants an interiorised, super-spiritualised form of the Gospel is a grotesque figure and will not find the kingdom of God.

Zacchaeus is very rich also. But he is one that proves that indeed all things are possible with God (Luke 18:27). For at the sycamore tree a camel went straight through the eye of the needle. A despised, wealthy tax-collector, a traitor to his own people, responded to the unconditional acceptance and love of God in Jesus. There was genuine conversion. Zacchaeus gladly received Jesus as Lord of his life, but that meant that he had to give away his wealth. And to give away half his possessions to the poor and to give back four-fold from all whom he had swindled would mean that he would have practically nothing left. When people truly experience conversion to Christ then like Zacchaeus, their joy is expressed in every area of their lives. There is a total reorientation of one’s life (mind, heart and lifestyle) in the journey of faith. Everything is subordinated to the prize of this faith in Jesus Christ. And no price is too great to pay. The psychologist, Eric Fromm, rightly says: “In the New Testament, joy is the fruit of giving up having, while sadness is the mood of the one who hangs on to possessions” (To have or to Be? 1978, p.118.). When there is genuine, life changing conversion, in Jesus’ words, salvation has arrived.

The great news of Jesus Christ is that salvation is offered to all. The challenge for us is that aconversion that leads to salvation involves the whole person. God sees the potential in us, even the great sinners, like Zacchaeus. When Jesus saw him in the tree did he see a tax collector? Tony Campolo relates a story about himself. Once he asked a class of students “What do you reckon Jesus would have said to a prostitute?” Campolo was apparently preparing himself to be able to speak about Jesus’ compassion and understanding. At one particular point in the discussion a Jewish student responded: “Jesus never saw a prostitute.” Campolo began to sensitively suggest that Jesus in fact related to a number of prostitutes. The Jewish man interrupted him and said: “Dr. Campolo you didn’t hear me … Jesus never saw a prostitute.” Campolo responded again with a situation from the Gospels. Again the man said: “You’re not listening to me … Jesus never saw a prostitute.” Suddenly, Campolo understood. When Jesus looked at someone he looked beyond their situation and he looked beyond their own perceptions and societies’ configuration of them. He always saw the whole person and who they could construct themselves to be through the journey of conversion. The salvation of self and society is the goal of Biblical conversion and it becomes possible with God through Jesus Christ.

Blessings in Jesus’ name,

KIM THODAY, HEWETT COMMUNITY CHURCH OF CHRIST, SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

http://www.hewett.com.au