Read Luke 18:35-19:27
Zacchaeus was a wee, little man,
And a wee, little man was he.
He climbed up in the sycamore tree,
For the Lord he wanted to see.
And as the Savior passed that way,
He looked up in the tree.
And He said, “Zacchaeus, you come down!
For I’m going to your house today.
For I’m going to your house today.”
Yes, I know—a children’s song. But there is so much more to this catchy tune and childhood story. It perfectly embodies what Jesus has been teaching in Luke 18.
Jesus told the parable of the tax collector and Pharisee to teach that it was the awful, “sinful” tax collector that received God’s mercy, but our human nature has a hard time believing that God’s kingdom actually works that way. Jesus used the rich ruler as an example of how impossible it is for us to be saved, but we heard Him say, “With God nothing is impossible.” Yet again, our human nature wants to reject the example Jesus gives.
So Luke gives us a case study that combines both of those elements: Zacchaeus, the rich tax collector. And while the crowd is shocked and grumbled against what Jesus did for Zacchaeus, Jesus confirms what He has been saying all along, “Salvation has come to you, Zacchaeus. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Just as Jesus looked up at Zacchaeus, called him out of the tree, and proclaimed salvation to him, Jesus looks our way, calls us with the Gospel and firmly says, “Salvation has come to you. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” When God’s grace just seems too good to be true, we can remember Zacchaeus, who is proof that while God’s grace is too good, it is also true.
Prayer: Almighty God, because of Your tender love for me, a sinner, You have given Your Son. By Your Spirit keep me steadfast in faith that I would not doubt the fullness of Your grace and mercy. Amen.