”Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.“
Luke 19:1-6 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/luk.19.1-6.NIV
What would I do if You invited Yourself into my house? Would I go around tidying up the clutter and put stuff into closets and drawers? Or, would I simply invite You into my house and let You see the worst of my clutter – evidence of an undisciplined life? I don’t have an answer. I know that I need You. But, I don’t want it to look like I need You as much as I do. I want to think that I could do most of the housework, like sweeping, taking out the trash, and doing the dishes. I would leave the more challenging things for You – like cleaning the gutters. But, that’s not the way things work.
If I allow You to come into my house, You want to do all of it. Yes, You will take care of the gutters, but You will also do the dishes. You’re not content with doing some of the chores. You want it all. Am I willing to invite You in? Am I willing to be that vulnerable with You? What kind of host allows a guest to clean? The host that realizes that they don’t actually own the house.
The house is a rental. The landlord is asking for an invitation to go inside the house that they own. The landlord has the right to enter the house at any time for any reason, but doesn’t. Instead, the landlord waits to be invited.
The tenant may not feel worthy of having the landlord as a guest. But, that’s the only way the landlord will go inside of the house. It doesn’t matter what the invitation looks like. It doesn’t need to be something fancy from an engraver. If the tenant is receptive in any fashion to the landlord, that’s invitation enough.
There’s no need to tidy things. The landlord cares about how the house is being maintained. Most importantly, though, the landlord cares for the tenants. Do the tenants like the neighborhood? How is their cell reception? Is the HOA too much of a burden for the tenants?
As the tenants share with the landlord, they discover that instead of being shocked by clutter and chaos, the landlord simply picks up a broom and gets to work. The tenants find themselves drying and putting away the dishes that the landlord washes. Finally, the house is clean and tidy. An agreement is reached between the landlord and the tenants.
The landlord is going to move into the house and live with the tenants. The tenants will need to move out of the master suite. But, it’s not a problem, because it’s not the tenants’ house. It never really was. But, the tenants forgot that they aren’t actually the owner.
The tenants don’t mind moving into the guest bedroom. As a result, their rent is lowered dramatically. This lower rent is locked into a lease that says that the rent will never increase as long as the landlord remains with them, living in the master suite.
The tenants upkeep on the house is altered as well. The landlord pays the mortgage and utilities while he lives in the house, as the owner, mind you, not as a guest. Whoever heard of a guest paying the bills? That’s what the tenants are now, guests. Any work that they do around the house is at the request of the landlord. Would the tenants mind setting the table for dinner while the landlord cooks? Would the tenants like to listen to the landlord read aloud or watch television together? The landlord wants the tenants to stay as long as they will, as long as they help keep the house in order.
What would I say if You asked to come inside of my house?
Journey with Monica 