Luke 19:1–10 (ESV)
Jesus and Zacchaeus
19
He entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. 3 And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. 4 So
he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he
hurried and came down and received him joyfully. 7 And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” 8 And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give
to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
“Zacchaeus was a wee little man, a wee little man was he...” I have to sing this children’s song every time I read this. It must be said that he really wanted to see Jesus, to the point of
climbing a tree. Today, people don’t want to get out of bed or the lazy boy chair to see Jesus. Now what is really neat is also something that can easily be missed. Jesus knew Zacchaeus and called him by name. He asked him to
come down from the tree, because he (Jesus) was going to stay at Zacchaeus house. If Zacchaeus knew this, he wouldn’t have been up in the tree! Zacchaeus already knows that he has done much wrong and he repents through giving back.
Jesus absolves him by saying “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Notice that it is Jesus who came to seek and to save!
I pray: O Lord, I thank you for seeking me out and saving me. My forgiveness comes from your act of love on the cross. I didn’t ask you to die for my sins, but you took them on anyway.
You absolved me, restored me, and renewed me and have given me eternal life. I am forever grateful. Amen.