Scripture: Luke 19:1-9; Psalms 119:137 - 144; Isaiah 1:1-10
Theme: Seeking to See Jesus
Title: Zacchaeus - The Righteous One
In this passage Luke shares with us the story of Zacchaeus - a chief tax collector who 1. Wanted to see Jesus 2. Wo possessed a spirit of humility 3. Who opened his heart and home to Jesus and 4. Who displayed the heart and life of righteousness
INTRO:
Grace and peace from God our Father and from His Son Jesus Christ who came to take away the sin of the world!
There are some cities that are famous for a specific thing or two. For example, the cities of Boston, New York and Pittsburg are famous for their love of sports (baseball, football, basketball, the marathon etc...). The cities of New Orleans and Memphis are famous for their love of music and festivals (Mardi Gras and Elvis Week). The cities of Chicago and Austin are famous for their love of food ( deep pan pizza and BBQ).
So, if I ask you this morning what the cities of Milan (Italy), Nottingham (England), and Jericho are famous for you might be a little stumped. I know I would be. Actually, they are the locations of some of the greatest spiritual conversions ever recorded in history. St. Augustine of Hippo (City of God - doctrine of grace and original sin) in 386 AD came to faith in the city of Milan. William Booth (Salvation Army) came to faith in 1844 in the city of Nottingham, England and from our passage this morning we know that the chief tax collector Zacchaeus came to a fullness of faith in the city of Jericho through Jesus.
Now, the city of Jericho has experienced a long and vibrant history. Archaeologist believe that the first humans settled in the city around 9000 BC making it one of the world's oldest cities. Most of us remember Jericho being the location of one of the most famous military battles in the Bible. Jericho was the first town captured by Joshua and the Israelites as they came into the Promise Land. Many of may remember the African-American Spiritual - Joshua Fit the Battle. The first line went like this:
Joshua fit the battle of Jericho
Jericho Jericho
Joshua fit the battle of Jericho
And the walls come tumbling down
Historians tell us that around 35 BC Mark Anthony presented the city as a gift to his wife Cleopatra. Cleopatra believed that the persimmons that grew around the city's oasis produced a perfume which reputedly would "drive men wild". Later on when Cleopatra needed money she leased a portion of the city to Herod the Great for an exorbitant fee. Reportedly, it cost King Herod almost half of Judea's income to lease the land. King Herod wanted Jericho for its economic, political and military importance. Following the deaths of both Anthony and Cleopatra, Cesar Augustus awarded the city of Jericho to King Herod for his faithful allegiance. Josephus records that King Herod enriched the town with a number of public buildings, including a hippodrome and an amphitheatre, together with a winter palace for himself and villas for the Jewish upper class in the new town west of ancient Jericho.
Jericho, in Jesus' time then was a thriving and prosperous city. It was a city in which Jesus was well acquainted. It was near the area where John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the Jordan River. It was also near the wilderness where Luke tells us that Jesus fasted and prayed for 40 days and had his encounter with Satan. Jesus also made the road leading down to Jericho the scene of one of his famous parables, the Parable of the Good Samaritan.
It is here on Jesus' last trip to Jericho as he is making his way to Jerusalem that we find our story. It is a story that reminds us of the tremendous power and possibility of sudden conversion. There is something incredible about hearing the story of someone coming to faith, especially someone no one would have expected. Pastor Jim Cymbala reminds us that "People pay attention when they see that God actually changes persons and sets them free. When a new Christian stands up and tells how God has revolutionized his or her life, no one dozes off. When someone is healed or released from a life-controlling bondage, everyone takes notice." (Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire, pgs 161-162).
This morning, I would like to invite you to take notice of some wonderful qualities that we find here in our story surrounding this tax collector named Zacchaeus. Surprisingly in one way and yet not in another his name means "righteous one". For many years it appears that he did not live up to his name but as we read our passage all of that changes. This morning, let's look at some of qualities that this man possessed that can help us in our own spiritual formation journey. We see first of all that:
I. Zacchaeus possessed a intense desire to see Jesus - (verses 1 - 3)
From the number of stories that Luke shares with us about events that happened in and around Jericho it goes without question that Zacchaeus most likely knew something about Jesus. It is not beyond thought that he had heard Jesus preach and teach over the years. No doubt, the story of a fellow tax-collector being a part of Jesus' disciples had stirred his curiosity along with his heart. With Zacchaeus being the chief tax collector of that region it is not too much to conjecture that he might have even been a part of Matthew's transition party when Matthew retired from being a tax collector to becoming a disciple of Jesus. Tax collectors had a habit of spending time together. After all they were not liked by very many people at that time.
Verse 3 tells us that Zacchaeus was doing his best to see Jesus. He wanted to make sure that he did not miss Jesus as he walked through Jericho. Luke uses the word zētéō which means to search with a passion, with a craving and with an intense desire. The idea is that Zacchaeus is out on a mission and that mission is to see Jesus.
It reminds me of the passion I recently saw in the football fans of North Carolina State. Around 10 am one Saturday morning, I turned on the TV and there was a football game going on between North Carolina State and Notre Dame. What amazed me was that the game was being played at the same time Hurricane Matthew was pounding the east coast. The news reported that nearly 60,000 people tolerated torrential rain and potentially dangerous winds just to attend the game. During the second half wind speeds were clocked at over 50 mph, the steps of the stadium were being overrun with rainwater and there was even a call for a voluntary evacuation. What is amazing is that each one of those 60,000 fans could have sat in their homes and watched the same game in the comfort of their living rooms but there they were getting soaked to the bone watching two teams go back and forth in the slosh and mud. Now, that is some crazy and passionate dedication. Their desire to watch that game was off the charts. So, too was Zacchaeus' desire to see Jesus. He wasn't going to allow anything to keep him from seeing and hearing Jesus.
II. We also see that Zacchaeus possessed a deep spirit of humility (verse 4)
Once again Dr. Luke provides us a great little detail in our story that we might miss if we are not careful. We find it in verse four where he once again mentions the sycamore (or sycamine tree as it is called in Israel) tree. We first noticed this tree back in Luke 17:5-6 where it was called a mulberry tree. Scholars tell us that the true tree was neither a sycamore tree or a mulberry tree but the correct translation is that of a sycamine tree.
It's a tree that grows to be about 30 -35 feet tall and produces fruit about 4 to 6 times a year. The ancient rabbis tell us that over time the tree became a symbol of two great things - the first one of course was that it was seen as a tree of bitterness because of some of its unique qualities (its root system and its fruit). Secondly, it was also seen as a tree of humility. Mainly because only the poor and the disenfranchised would eat its bitter fruit or allow it to grow in their neighborhoods. The affluent and wealthy people could afford the luxuries of growing high quality fig trees for fruit. They would even avoid having a sycamine tree grow around their area.
However, for the poor people the sycamine tree provided some basic food and nutrients even if the fruit was bitter and hardly edible. It also provided some needed shade from the harsh sun. If you were in the area of a large gathering of sycamine trees then you most likely were also in an area where the poor lived and worked. It was in this area that we find Jesus walking down the road. He is walking among the poor and the disenfranchised.
For Zacchaeus to climb up a sycamore (sycamine) tree was to either display a spirit of humility or a spirit of recklessness. It would either mean that he was sending Jesus a message that he wanted to be a different person or like any of a number of rich people he didn't care how people looked at him or what crazy things he did. If he wanted to climb a tree then he would climb a tree.
I tend to think because Luke recorded it here as he did that he wants us to understand that there was a specific reason Zacchaeus climbed that tree. He could have gotten a better view of Jesus from any number of house tops that lined the road that Jesus was traveling. By climbing the sycamore (sycamine) tree Zacchaeus was already signaling to Jesus that he was ready for a change. By climbing the sycamore tree Zacchaeus was signaling that he was comfortable being about being among the poor and disenfranchised. We will see just how comfortable in a few minutes.
III. Zacchaeus displays a radical openness to receive Jesus (verses 5-7)
I remember as a child the few times that my father attended church with my mom and siblings. My dad didn't like church, nor was he keen on pastors/preachers. Most Sundays he spent his time making extra money, hunting or going to visit his mother. But there were a few times that he would decide to go to church with us. Each time that he did my mother would be estatic. It was her heart's desire for all of us to go to church as a family.
Now, in my home church almost all of our services ended with an altar call. It would include an invitation to anyone who would like to come down, confess their sins, repent and accept the grace of Jesus Christ by faith. I can still remember as a child watching my father resist time after time in accepting Jesus. I remember this one time during an altar call he gripped the back of the pew so hard that all his knuckles were white. His jaw tighten and he clinched his teeth until the altar call was finished. As soon as the last word was said he got out of there as quickly as possible. He had gone to the church to hear about Jesus but when he was given an opportunity to receive Jesus he refused. His heart and life remained closed. Thankfully, I can say that many years later before he died he did come to faith. He did receive Jesus as His Savior and LORD.
Our little chief tax collector reacted quite differently. He not only welcomed Jesus into his home he also welcomed Jesus into his heart and life. He put aside all the ridicule, the embarrassment and the opposition and opened his home, his heart and life to Jesus.
Luke tells us that Zacchaeus not only opened his home and his heart but he opened them with joy. His passion to see Jesus was met with his joy in receiving Jesus. When Jesus told Zacchaeus that he wanted to come to his house the man could not have been more pleased. No doubt with the location of Jericho and the high position this man held there had been many heads of state and heads of finance that had been in his home. It is not beyond conjecture that given his title and riches, Zacchaeus had hosted family members of King Herod Antipas, King Philip along with some Roman officials associated with Pontius Pilate and other dignitaries and VIP's. Now, he opened his home to the only one who would transform his heart and his life and he does so with joy and delight.
IV. Finally, Zacchaeus displays the heart of righteousness ( verse 8 - 10)
Luke begins by sharing with us the intense desire Zacchaeus possessed to see Jesus. He then shares with us the humility of Zacchaeus. He goes on to share with us the openness of his heart and life as he welcomes Jesus. And now we see where Zacchaeus not only allows Jesus to transform his heart but his life as well.
Where I grew up there was an old saying that went something like this - "The proof is in the pudding." It's a shortened version of an ancient saying that went like this "the proof of the pudding is in the eating". It has nothing to do with the sweet pudding we eat today. Instead, it referred to what was called pudding back in the 17th and 18th century. Back then, pudding referred to a type of sausage. You would take the intestines of some animal and fill them with minced meat ( pig, beef, lamb or goat), blood, spices and some other things. Because of the unsanitary conditions of the time one had to be careful since eating rancid "pudding" could prove to be fatal. So, the "proof is in the pudding" or "the proof of the pudding is in the eating" referred to the fact that over time one would see if in fact the "pudding" was good or bad. If it was good then you lived and if it were bad then you either got sick or you got sick and died.
When it came to Zacchaeus the "proof is in the pudding" happened very quickly. He began to visibly live out his conversion. No doubt Zacchaeus wanted to help alleviate all the opposition that Jesus was already receiving from the Pharisees and others as he publicly proclaims that he is not the sinner they have labeled him. He declares openly to all that 1/2 of all his goods will go towards helping the disenfranchised, the marginalized and the poor.1
Even the most dedicated of rabbis at that time dared only to give 20% and here was Zacchaeus publicly proclaiming that he would give 50%. Coupled with that he would pay back to any person that he had defrauded 400%. We see here very quickly three great steps that Zacchaeus applies to his life:
a. He repents
b. He practices the spiritual ministry of restitution
c. He lives out his faith personally, domestically, socially and economically
Now, a great many people make rash faith statements at times. And a great many of those type of faith statements fall to the wayside. But according to Church Tradition the ones made here by Zacchaeus did not. He was seen as living out the rest of his life practicing his faith not only in his heart but in his everyday actions. He was seen not only being faithful to Christ but sharing his goods with the poor and making good on any restitutions that were necessary. He was a transformed man living out a transformed life.
According to the Early Church Father Clement of Alexandria, Zacchaeus not only experienced a heart change but a name change as well. In his book, Stromata, Clement writes: "So Zacchaeus, whom they call Matthias, the chief tax collector, when he had heard that the Lord had esteemed him highly enough to be with Him, said, 'Behold, half of my present possessions I give as alms, and Lord, if I ever extorted money from anyone in any way, I return it fourfold.' At this, the Saviour said, 'When the Son of Man came today, he found that which was lost'" (Stromata 4.6.35.2). Zacchaeus is also said to have become the first bishop of city of Caesarea (Apostolic Constitutions 7:46).
This morning we started out with a story about a man who passionately wanted to see Jesus. A man willing to endure ridicule and embarrassment. A man who humbled himself and a man who rejoiced over being able to welcome Jesus in his home and in his heart. We end today with a man transformed and living out a life of transformation. We end with a man who lets us know that today is day of salvation. We end with a man who lets us know that it is never too late to accept the LORD Jesus Christ as our Savior and LORD. We end with a man who let us know that conversion is God's gift to everyone, liberal or conservative, rich or poor, young or old.
We end today with a man who if he were here would ask us this question - Today, how is it with your soul? Today, have you allowed Jesus to come into your heart and life. Today are you living out a life of Christian transformation.
We end today with a man who would be the first to invite us to come forward and to pray for Christ to come into our heart an lives. We end today with a man who would be the first to testify how God can give us a whole new start. We end today with a man who would remind us that today is the accepted hour and today salvation can come into your house and into your soul.
This is the message of God for the people of God.
(ALTAR CALL)
1There is some debate whether Zacchaeus was saying this in the present tense or the future tense. Whether he was already testifying that he was already giving half of his goods to the poor or that he would do so in the future. The same is true of his giving 400% to those who have been defrauded. Either that was already the practice of Zacchaeus or it will become the practice of Zacchaeus. In this sermon I have adopted the position of it being in the future. However, if one takes that it was already his practice then the meaning of the passage becomes one not of conversion but one of vindication. Zacchaeus would be living up to his name as the righteous one and was only vindicated by Jesus. He was already a Son of Abraham and contrary to how others viewed him he was already doing more in accordance to the Law then they were doing. Jesus simply comes to let others know that before them was this righteous tax collector who was obeying the Law in greater ways than even they were obeying.
