Understanding Zacchaeus 2

Luke 19:5-10 (NIV)
5 When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today."
6 So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.
7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, "He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.'"
8 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."
9 Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

In the last blog (Understanding Zacchaeus) we saw that it was not Zacchaeus who was looking for Jesus, it was Jesus who looked up and called him and asked that He have dinner at his house.  It was not Zacchaeus who invited Jesus to his home, but Jesus who invited Himself to eat in his home.

So it is with our salvation, with our relationship with Christ.  We did not choose Him, He chose us.  It was not our prayer to invite Jesus to our hearts that brought salvation, but rather our response to His call, His invitation to come to Him, by His grace, through our faith, that brought us into our present relationship with Him.

What happens when Jesus calls us, invites us to have a relationship with Him, and we respond?

6 So he (Zacchaeus) came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

Jesus does not force anyone to come to Him.  But when we realize the grace when He calls us to come to Him, it is almost impossible to resist that call.  Zacchaeus was excited and glad to be with Jesus.  At first he was hesitant and stayed away, up a tree.  But when Jesus called his name, and asked to go to his house, Zacchaeus accepted the call!

1 Thessalonians 1:6 (NIV)
6 … in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.

There is a joy that comes with the calling of the Lord.  it’s not something He forces us to be part of.  When God calls, our hearts respond with an excitement and joy that comes from God Himself!  And why not, for the Lord tells us:

Luke 15:7 (NIV)
7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

And our hearts sense that joy.  Now, once that relationship begins, look at what happens:

7 All the people saw this and began to mutter, "He has gone to be the guest of a 'sinner.'"

Everyone knew who Zacchaeus was.  He was corrupt.  He loved money.  He took advantage of people.  That’s why they wondered why Jesus, a righteous teacher, would be the guest of a sinner!  But this was exactly the reason why Jesus was reaching out to Zacchaeus – because of who he was, a sinner. 

So what happened? 

8 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."

First, notice how Zacchaeus calls him “Lord”.  You know you’re in a right relationship with God when you recognize who He is in your life!  “Lord” is not just a title that we are to call Jesus, it is who He is in our life.  We are the captains of our soul, we feel we own our lives.  Jesus’ presence in our lives commands us to give up that position, and have the Messiah take His place in our hearts.

Then, Zacchaeus gives up what was of utmost importance to him.  Jesus did not even have to ask.  The moment Zacchaeus knew the grace and mercy of God, his heart moved him to give up, to let go, to surrender that which was ruler and master of his heart – money.  Money defined his life.  This was what controlled his actions and motives.  But now that Jesus was there, Zacchaeus willingly surrendered the wealth he had, and also repented of the wrongdoing he had done by giving back to people he cheated four times more than what he took!

Here is the sign of a true relationship with God.  When He calls us, and we respond, and HE takes the place of King in our hearts, everything else we lived for, anything that was of utmost importance, anyone who was important, are all shelved, pushed aside, so that Jesus may now take that place in our hearts – the King of our soul.

This is what made Jesus proclaim:

9 Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost."

Salvation had come to Zacchaeus, as proven by his recognizing Jesus as who He is, and by giving up what used to hold his heart.

But Jesus said something more – He said “this man, too, is a son of Abraham”.  I believe this is related to Abraham’s profession of faith and allegiance by his willingness to sacrifice his own son Isaac, as the Lord had commanded him.  This was the same heart that Zacchaeus showed – a willingness to part with his money and to turn away from his sin, just to maintain the relationship he now had with Jesus.

Zaccheaus was lost, and Jesus found him.  Many of us reading this were lost, and we also have experienced the grace of God in His finding us.  This is what Jesus came to do – to save what was lost.  And unless we have that realization of how lost we are, Jesus can have no place in our life.