Out on a Limb

The story of Zacchaeus is one of many stories told which highlight the reason Jesus became man; to save us from ourselves, to bring us the joy of His salvation.  To be perfectly honest, I had never heard this story as a child and that means I had never heard the popular children's song either. (Now you are going to have that tune in your head all day--sorry.)

Tax collectors were Jews who had sold out to the Romans. The people considered them traitors, cheats and thieves, as their job/duty was to extort heavy taxes the Romans levied on the people in order to finance this huge empire.

When Jesus came to town He often caused a stir and this time was no exception.  Zacchaeus had heard about Jesus and he wanted to see the man for himself.  Jesus' reputation had gone before him and people were curious.  The despised tax collector must have wanted more in his life to be open to Jesus' words.

"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke19:10)

Jesus knew Zacchaeus by name and He knew Zacchaeus was a sinner.  Still Jesus called the man down from the tree. Once down, he invited Jesus to his home. Zacchaeus He was obviously ready to have his life changed. Were you ever to that point – ready for a major life-change? 

What is your story?  What brought you to climb out on a limb with the likes of Zacchaeus?  Your story needs to be told too, so that others might hear and sense the same call upon their life.  So that all might hear Jesus' words: “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham." (Luke 19:9)

Luke 19:1-10

Luke 19:1-10

It’s Personal

Do you remember the song about Zacchaeus? The one that begins this way:

Click picture to view 2 minute video

“There was a man in Jericho call Zacchaeus. There was a man in Jericho called Zacchaeus. Now the Hebrews, they were tall, but Zacchaeus, he was small, and the Lord loved Zacchaeus better than them all!”

I don’t know that Jesus loved Zacchaeus MORE than others, but He did make the time to seek Zacchaeus out, sit at his table and through his words and presence brought the tax collector out of death and into life.

Jesus was most at home in the midst of the lowly. He knew they needed Him. He often took aside those shunned by the majority and made example of them.

Every person matters to God. Our relationship with Him is personal. Many of us are searching but do not know what we are looking for, like Zacchaeus. We long for answers, hope and life but often look in all the wrong places. Jesus was the light that guided Zacchaeus out of his darkness. Perhaps a gloom he did not even realize.

As people of God we still fail and begin again. We put our hope in things that do not matter eternally, forgetting that the will of God is what matters.  His will, in His time.

As we journey through this earthly existence, God asks us to seek those who are searching for life in places that can’t give life. May we, like Jesus open our hearts to taking the hand of another and sharing the hope that is within us. Who is your Zacchaeus?

Good News Stories

Jesus had just finished relating the parable of the story of Zacchaeus, the tax collector.  "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.  For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke 19:9-10)

The people were still under the impression there would be a political leader who was coming to remove the Romans from power. Jesus' story was laying that idea to rest as He explained first He would go away for a while, and His followers would have to be faithful and produce fruit in His absence. Only then would He return to set up a Kingdom like they were envisioning.

We have that same command.  We have the resources, the gifts to follow Jesus' directions and bring people to faith, we just have to do it. We live in that time period; between Jesus' departure and His second coming and we have the charge to spread the Good News so that everyone may come to know who Jesus is and what that means to them.

Luke 19:11 (NIV) 
While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. 

The command we have been given, to "seek and to save what was lost," isn't a passing thought, it is our life's work. Jesus didn't come to earth to tell us a secret and have us keep it to ourselves. We are to tell the world and to use our own special gifts to accomplish this task.  Do you know what your gifts are? Do you understand them and want to use them for the greater good?

You can read about them in 1 Corinthians 12. This section explains how we are One Body; and there are many arts which form this One Body. Our individual gifts build up the body and when we use them for the sake of the Gospel we are doing as Jesus taught. We will then hear the words, "Well done, my good servant." (Luke 19:17)

Luke 19:11-19

A Tale of Two Rich Guys

But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “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.”  Luke 19:8

What kind of experience could instantly warm a heart from icy greed to glowing generosity?  How could a life-long cheat become a pay-it-forward giver in just one moment in time?

In a word, grace. 

Let’s consider Zacchaeus’ encounter with Jesus ... and contrast it with that of another wealthy man, the rich young ruler.

Zacchaeus had little claim to any righteousness of his own.  Tax collectors were despised for shaking down the Jews on behalf of Rome and for cheating the people in the process.  And among tax collectors, Zacchaeus was the chief.  While the ruler had kept the commandments since boyhood, in all likelihood, righteousness was, to the cheat, an aspiration long ago abandoned.

Unlike the young ruler, it would never have occurred to the tax collector to run up to Jesus and fall on his knees in search of the one missing piece needed to complete the puzzle of salvation!  Having spilled most of his interlocking pieces along life’s path, Zacchaeus wanted only to see the completed picture on the box – the portrait of the Savior.  And throwing off all pretenses, he climbed a tree to do just that.  (Why put on airs when you’re already universally scorned, right?)

It was Jesus who initiated the relationship with this undeserving man, this diminutive sinner of the sycamore, “... come down immediately.  I must stay at your house today.”  To the ruler whose deeds had become relational obstacles, the Master had said, “Go ... give ... Then come ...”  But to the one who sought only the man, Jesus simply bade him, “Come ...”

The rich young ruler went away sad, knowingly forgoing that which he had sought; its cost was too high.  But Zacchaeus, the wealthy man with a bankrupt soul, responded with his entire being to the grace he found in Jesus, “Look, Lord!  Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor ...”

What inspires us to open up our hands and offer that which once remained locked up inside clenched fists?  Grace.  The infinite reach of radical grace.

“Today salvation has come to this house ...” – Jesus Christ, to Zacchaeus

[Today’s reading is the story of Zacchaeus, Luke 19:1-10, which you can read by clicking here. 
To read the story of the rich young ruler in Matthew 29:16-24, click here.]

Luke 19:1-10 - Jesus Dines with Zacchaeus

The story of Zacchaeus is one of many stories which highlight the reason Jesus became man; to save us from ourselves, to bring us the joy of His salvation.  To be perfectly honest, I had never heard this story as a child and that means I had never heard the popular children's song either. (Now you are going to have that tune in your head all day--sorry.)

Tax collectors in Rome were hated by the citizens, as they were Jews by birth and they chose to work for the enemy.  The people considered them traitors, cheats and thieves.  Their job/duty was to collect the heavy taxes the Romans levied on the people in order to finance this huge empire.

When Jesus came to town He often caused a stir and this time was no exception.  Zacchaeus had heard about Jesus and he wanted to see the man for himself.  Jesus' reputation had gone before him and people were curious.  The despised tax collector must have wanted more in his life to be open to Jesus' words.

"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke19:10)

Jesus came to save us, the lost, from being lost for eternity.  Each generation or even civilization has those people everyone would rather avoid, the outcasts of society.  Jesus avoided no one. There is great comfort in that truth.  There must be a fascinating story behind the man, Zacchaeus.  The story of what brought him to climb up the tree just to get a glimpse of the celebrity in town.  He was obviously ready to have his life changed.  Why?

What is your story?  What brought you to climb out on a limb with the likes of Zacchaeus?  Your story needs to be told too, so that others might hear and sense the same call upon their life.  So that all might hear Jesus' words: “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham." (Luke 19:9)

Read Luke 19:1-10 here.

Listen to Luke 19:1-10 here.

Out On A Limb, Luke 19:1-10

What are you willing to do to get a glimpse of the Messiah? To what lengths would you go to be in the presence of the Savior? The rich young ruler was only concerned about going to heaven, so when Jesus told him to sell his possessions in order to inherit eternal life, he went away sad. Jesus’ disciples asked, “Who can enter heaven if the rich young ruler, who followed all the commandments, couldn’t?”

Jesus shows, though today’s scripture, what salvation really means. Picture Zacchaeus, physically he is short, he is also a wealthy man but in contrast to the rich young ruler Zacchaeus is described as a sinner. Wanting to get a look at Jesus, Zacchaeus climbs a tree. That must have been very humbling for Zacchaeus. I can imagine the taller people in the crowd snickering at Zacchaeus hanging on to a precarious limb, hoping to peek at the man everyone was talking about. Jesus sees Zacchaeus and calls to him.

We can all learn from Zacchaeus. Instead of focusing getting to heaven, we should do whatever we can to get a glimpse of Jesus. It’s not about rules, as the rich young ruler assumed, rather it’s about a relationship with the Savior.

Heavenly Father,
Once again I am humbled by Your love for me. You have called me, and You love me. Thank you for looking my way. Help me to enjoy your presence and respond the way Zacchaeus did, reconciling with those I have wronged and giving to those in need.       Amen.

Read today's scripture on Biblegateway Luke 19:1-10