Luke 19: 1 – 10
Little Big Man
Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” 8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “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.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; 10 for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
May our Lord God Please Bless the ones He has made small in stature. For many a man, who has been created as a tiny man, the insults and bullying throughout their lives play a significant role in their mental position in their interaction with others. Many cases someone who has been dealt this hand from God become fighters. In a way they go through life with a chip on their shoulders. They fight the system and people who have been their enemies who are the blessed people in life who have been made tall and handsome. Most of you might have run into such a person. In many cases they become your superior or manager at work. And boy, can they be mean. They take out their hurts on you even though you may never have been unkind to a small person. It’s not fair but neither has life been fair to them. This is part of the sinful world that we live in.
In today’s story we come across such a person. Just like I have just said, this little man became ruthless in his business dealings. Oh yeah, he became very rich and had a bunch of people working for him, but to all extents and purposes, he was hated. This is how he got to be so successful. The Roman Government like our great government loved to tax. Instead of having their own Internal Revenue Service, they contracted out the jobs. The Government would come up with an amount that they wanted collected. Now in the process a person who bid for the job could collect any additional amount he wanted to as long as the Roman Government got their correct amount.
This little man became the little big man in Israel. He had a bunch of contracts from the Roman Government and became very rich as a result of his shrewd business savvy. His base of operations was in Jericho.
Our Wonderful Holy Spirit has set an appointment for our Holy Lord Jesus and you know who this appointment is with. His name was Zacchaeus. Ironically his name is probably derived from the Hebrew word for ‘righteous’. However, he was seen by all as a traitor.
Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich.
The words, ‘And he was rich’ speak volumes. He had plied his evil trade successfully and had creamed off large amounts of money from the helpless people around. Many were the grudges that would be held against him, and great would be the hatred in which he was held.
3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature.
Zacchaeus was not only short on stature, he was short on goodness. He was a public outcast. Thus when he wanted to see The Messiah, The Lord Jesus Christ, he discovered that it was not possible, because he could not see over the crowds who surrounded our Lord Jesus. And he would certainly not have sough to push his way through the crowds. Many a member of that crowd would be only too pleased to avenge himself for wrongs done to him by this man.
4 So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way.
So he ran on ahead, and found a tree along our Lord Jesus’ route. From there he knew that he would be able to see God In The Flesh, Adoni Yeshua, and remain safe, and, with any luck, escape without anyone knowing that he was there.
5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.”
You can picture his shock when our Holy Lord Jesus stopped below the tree and looked up. Now, he was totally exposed to public view. The horror however, turned to joy, when he heard what our Lord Jesus had to say. For our Supreme Master, Who knew his heart, informed him that He wished to eat with him in his house. All would know the house. It was a place that no good man would enter except under duress. Our Holy Lord Jesus was not just a good man. He was the One Who had come to seek and to save that which was lost. And this day He was seeking a particularly wayward sheep, and was willing to go ‘into the wilderness in order to do so.
6 So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully.
Something radically happened that day in Zacchaeus’ life. If you ever saw the movie ‘Scrooge’ then you can understand easily the transformation. Here is a man who was mocked and picked on all his life. Now he was hated by everyone. And can you believe it? The One Who was being proclaimed as God The Father’s Own Son made a special trip just to spend some time with him. It does not get better than this. You know what we all want - the same kind of personal involvement with our Great Jehovah Elyon – The Lord Most High.
Zacchaeus not only humbled himself and ‘came down’, he also received the Lord Jesus into his house, and did it joyfully. It was as though a great burden was lifted from his life. He was transformed by the very presence and personal interaction of our Lord Jesus. All the hatred and greed and covetousness and bitterness fell away, and he became a new creature like we read in the book of 2 Corinthians 5.17, “17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
7 But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.”
It appeared to the crowd that our Lord Jesus seemed to be putting Himself on the side of the sinners. Did He have no thought for all the people who had been wronged by this man? For this man was not just your normal sinner. From the human point of view he was a great sinner. He was a traitor and unscrupulous, and there seemed no good in him. But what they could not see was what our Lord Jesus could see.
8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “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.”
Unknown to the crowd, inside that house a miracle was taking place. Earlier when our Lord Jesus had been questioned about who could be saved He had spoken of God doing the impossible. No doubt all would have seen as impossible the conversion and transformation of this evil man who had caused his people such harm. But this day God had done the impossible. For this man, who all his life had coldly calculated how he could extract as much as possible out of people by fair means or foul, suddenly became a giver. He now began calculating what he should give back to the people whom he had so systematically robbed. And he was going to restore fourfold. This was an admission of guilt.
In the case of theft restitution we read in the book of Exodus had to be double. Exodus 22:7-9 , 7 “If a man delivers to his neighbor money or articles to keep, and it is stolen out of the man’s house, if the thief is found, he shall pay double. 8 If the thief is not found, then the master of the house shall be brought to the judges to see whether he has put his hand into his neighbor’s goods. 9 “For any kind of trespass, whether it concerns an ox, a donkey, a sheep, or clothing, or for any kind of lost thing which another claims to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whomever the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor. “
In heinous cases we read in 2 Samuel chapter 12 that restoration had to be fourfold, “6 And he shall restore fourfold for the lamb, because he did this thing and because he had no pity.”
Can you see how quickly Zacchaeus took his own inventory and realized that he had earned all his income while not taking any pity on those it affected? Wow, what a dramatic change. Here then was the evidence of genuine repentance. Here is the explanation of our Lord Jesus’ presence in his house. For we need to recognize that The Son of David our King Jesus did not just mix with any tax collectors, He mixed with those who were interested in His message. He did not meet with them to talk about the races, or to learn about their jobs. He met with them to talk about God.
9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham.
Our Lord Jesus recognized true repentance and Zacchaeus desire to be forgiven his sins, truly salvation had come to his house. God had accepted his repentance, and change of heart and life. He was forgiven.
10 for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
The emphasis on ‘saving’ indicates an especial reference to the parable of the lost sheep. Our Holy Supreme Lord Jesus Is present to deliver.
We can imagine people’s total surprise therefore when later they heard the knock on the door and found a collector of taxes bringing them some money back.
Anyone interested in a tax refund?
