Zacchaeus

On the road to the cross (19:1). Jesus had taken the twelve aside and said, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished” (Luke 18:31). “Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho.” Every step of this road led toward the cross. A chief tax collector (19:2). “Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich.” Chief means he was probably over other tax collectors. He had money and position, the two things many people chase their whole lives. He sought (19:3). “And he sought to see who Jesus was.” He was not content to hear about Jesus from others. He wanted to see for himself who Jesus was. Short of stature. He “could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature.” Stature means height. He was a short man, and the crowd stood in his way. Ran ahead and climbed (19:4). “So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way.” He did not wait for the crowd to make room. He went ahead to the place where Jesus would come. Rich, and still looking. Money and position did not keep Zacchaeus from looking for Jesus. It seems he wanted something they could not give him. Jesus once asked, “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” (Matthew 16:26). The seeker is seen. Zacchaeus chose the tree, but Jesus was about to stop beneath it (19:5). The man who came looking for Jesus would soon find that Jesus had come looking for him. Application. What stands between you and Jesus? It may be a crowd of other voices, a full schedule, or a feeling that you are too small to matter. Do not let it stop you. Go where Jesus is found: in His Word, in prayer and among His people.

He looked up (19:5). “And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him.” Zacchaeus chose the tree, but Jesus stopped beneath it. The one looking for Jesus was found by Him. By name. “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down.” Jesus spoke to him by name, in front of the whole crowd. Being known by Jesus is personal. Today (19:5). The Greek word is semeron (say: SAY-meh-ron), today. Jesus will say it again in 19:9. The angel told the shepherds, “For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior” (Luke 2:11). In Nazareth Jesus said, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21). When Jesus arrives, salvation is not only a promise for later. It is here. I must (19:5). “For today I must stay at your house.” Must is dei (say: DAY), it is necessary. Jesus uses the same word for the cross: “The Son of Man must suffer many things” (Luke 9:22). The plan that led Jesus to Zacchaeus' door was the plan that led Him to the cross. He invited Himself. Zacchaeus sent no invitation. Jesus chose him and his house. Grace starts with God. Received Him joyfully (19:6). “So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully.” Jesus said make haste, and Zacchaeus made haste. His answer was immediate, and his welcome was full of joy. Application. Jesus still calls people personally. When you sense Him calling you through His Word, do not put Him off. Come down from wherever you are watching from, and receive Him with joy.

They all complained (19:7). “But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, ‘He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.’” Not a few of them; all. The crowd that had walked with Jesus did not like where He chose to stay. Hamartolos. The word for sinner is hamartolos (say: hah-mar-toh-LOSS), a person who does wrong against God. God's Word uses it for every person: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). A label. The crowd used sinner as the name for one man. In 19:9 Jesus gives him another name: “a son of Abraham.” The guest of a sinner. Jesus did not keep His distance to protect His good name. He went in. His holiness was not spoiled by a sinner's house; the sinner's house was changed by His holiness. Mark 2:17. At another tax collector's house Jesus had answered the same kind of complaint: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.” The same word for all. Zacchaeus was a sinner. So was every person in that crowd, and so is every one of us. No one is out of Jesus' reach. Christ died for sinners. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). God did not wait for us to improve before He loved us. Application. Two questions. Do you believe Jesus is willing to come close to you, even after your worst day? And who have you labeled the way the crowd labeled Zacchaeus? Ask Jesus to help you see that person as someone He came for.

He stood (19:8). “Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord.” He spoke to Jesus, not to the crowd, and he called Him Lord. Half, and fourfold. “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” He named his own possible wrongs openly, and no one was forcing him to promise any of it. Fruit, not price. Zacchaeus spoke after Jesus had called him and after he had received Him. Salvation was not the reward for his generosity; his generosity was the fruit of salvation. Paul writes, “For by grace you have been saved through faith,” and adds that we are “created in Christ Jesus for good works” (Ephesians 2:8-10). Soteria (19:9). “Today salvation has come to this house.” Salvation is soteria (say: soh-tay-REE-ah), rescue. Today again: the day Jesus came in, rescue came in. A son of Abraham. “Because he also is a son of Abraham.” Zacchaeus was one of Abraham's descendants, and the label sinner had not put him outside God's promises. Salvation came to him as it came to Abraham, who “believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). The mission (19:10). “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Jesus came to look for lost people and to rescue them. Two rich men. The rich ruler “became very sorrowful” (Luke 18:23). Zacchaeus received Jesus “joyfully” (19:6). The difference was not their money but their answer to Jesus. Application. If Jesus has saved you, what does your changed heart want to make right? Is there something to return, an apology to make, or someone to help? Do it gladly, not to earn His love, but because you already have it.