THE Z PRINCIPLE
An actor is in the news for two reasons---his short-lived marriage and his claim of being cheated of P24M by someone who lured him into investing his money with a promise of a windfall. It made me wonder if the alleged swindler was a trusted friend like that someone who is known as a money expert but people who knew him from way back when are not impressed. They are even disgusted now that he is a church leader. His witness is a bit dent among those who felt duped into investing in his failed business.
“Why blame him? There are always risks in investing,” I said to more than just one person who knows an alleged victim. The answer was always along the line of him having a glib tongue. One added, “Since he’s supposed to be a Christian, he could have at least made some financial amends.”
This reminds me of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10) who was a corrupt tax collector. In ancient times, the already rich would bid for the position and make themselves even richer by padding the taxes owed by the Jews to their Roman colonizers. (Think Pinoys working for the Spanish gov’t at the time of Rizal.) Zacchaeus must have been really good at his job as he was a chief when he met Jesus and repented. Without any prodding from Jesus (but I’m sure the Holy Spirit did), he made a pledge that is now known as the Zacchaeus Principle.
“Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
Did you catch that? Not only did he promise to give half of what he owns to the poor, but that he will return the money that he stole FOUR TIMES the amount. I can already imagine the poor and the district that he collected from through the years mentally listing the things they will buy, as soon as they get their hands on the money.
I was talking to another friend about a politician claiming to be a Christian. He said he will only believe it when he applies the Zacchaeus Principle.
“Forget it,” I said. “That might entail admitting to a crime that carries a sentence.” As soon as I said that, it made me realize how big of a man Zacchaeus really was. (For those who won’t notice the pun, the former corrupt tax collector was short in height.)
The public humility that Zacchaeus demonstrated could have incriminated him when he could have just quietly returned the stolen money. Ang importante, alam ni Lord! Don’t think for a moment that he was being e-pal, otherwise the New Testament account wouldn’t have ended with Jesus praising Zacchaeus.
I don’t think the Zacchaeus principle is limited to money. We may have not stolen or smooth-talked someone into investing in our business, but perhaps we may have hurt someone who will not listen to the gospel until s/he hears us admit, apologize, and make amends. If you find yourself thinking of such a person, I bet you’re thinking what I’m thinking: “I will lose a lot!” That may be so but we might also gain a soul into the Kingdom. Ang hirap, no?! Big man ka talaga, Z!
An actor is in the news for two reasons---his short-lived marriage and his claim of being cheated of P24M by someone who lured him into investing his money with a promise of a windfall. It made me wonder if the alleged swindler was a trusted friend like that someone who is known as a money expert but people who knew him from way back when are not impressed. They are even disgusted now that he is a church leader. His witness is a bit dent among those who felt duped into investing in his failed business.
“Why blame him? There are always risks in investing,” I said to more than just one person who knows an alleged victim. The answer was always along the line of him having a glib tongue. One added, “Since he’s supposed to be a Christian, he could have at least made some financial amends.”
This reminds me of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10) who was a corrupt tax collector. In ancient times, the already rich would bid for the position and make themselves even richer by padding the taxes owed by the Jews to their Roman colonizers. (Think Pinoys working for the Spanish gov’t at the time of Rizal.) Zacchaeus must have been really good at his job as he was a chief when he met Jesus and repented. Without any prodding from Jesus (but I’m sure the Holy Spirit did), he made a pledge that is now known as the Zacchaeus Principle.
“Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”
Did you catch that? Not only did he promise to give half of what he owns to the poor, but that he will return the money that he stole FOUR TIMES the amount. I can already imagine the poor and the district that he collected from through the years mentally listing the things they will buy, as soon as they get their hands on the money.
I was talking to another friend about a politician claiming to be a Christian. He said he will only believe it when he applies the Zacchaeus Principle.
“Forget it,” I said. “That might entail admitting to a crime that carries a sentence.” As soon as I said that, it made me realize how big of a man Zacchaeus really was. (For those who won’t notice the pun, the former corrupt tax collector was short in height.)
The public humility that Zacchaeus demonstrated could have incriminated him when he could have just quietly returned the stolen money. Ang importante, alam ni Lord! Don’t think for a moment that he was being e-pal, otherwise the New Testament account wouldn’t have ended with Jesus praising Zacchaeus.
I don’t think the Zacchaeus principle is limited to money. We may have not stolen or smooth-talked someone into investing in our business, but perhaps we may have hurt someone who will not listen to the gospel until s/he hears us admit, apologize, and make amends. If you find yourself thinking of such a person, I bet you’re thinking what I’m thinking: “I will lose a lot!” That may be so but we might also gain a soul into the Kingdom. Ang hirap, no?! Big man ka talaga, Z!