1. “Climbing to See.”
Several years ago, during a crowded Fourth of July parade, a small boy couldn’t see over the adults lining the street. Fire trucks passed. Veterans marched. Flags waved. But all he could see were backs and shoulders. Finally, he climbed a tree along the sidewalk. From that higher place, he saw everything clearly. He didn’t climb to be noticed. He climbed because he didn’t want to miss what mattered.
2. Zacchaeus did the same thing. But what he discovered is what we all must discover: When you climb to see Jesus, you may find He has already seen you.
3. Luke 19:1-10
4. And that encounter leads us from one tree… to another.
I. Up a Tree – The Hunger to See (Luke 19:1–4)
A. Zacchaeus’ Identity:
• A chief tax collector (wealthy, powerful, corrupt system)
• Hated by his own people
• Small in stature and socially ostracized
B. He Acted
• He ran. He climbed. He positioned himself.
• That sycamore-fig tree had low branches and sturdy wood—practical, accessible.
• He didn’t care how foolish he looked. He wanted to see Jesus.
[A successful businessman slips quietly into the back row of a church service. Pride fades when the soul gets hungry. If you truly want to see Christ, you may have to climb above pride, politics, and reputation.
II. Jesus Reclaims the Initiative – The Savior Who Sees (Luke 19:5)
A. Jesus stopped and looked up.
B. He saw the man and called him by name.
Not “tax collector.” Not “traitor.” But Zacchaeus. Then: “I must stay at your house today.”
C. Jesus saw more than a label:
• A person, not a position
• A man, a “son of Abraham”
• A relationship
• A candidate for salvation
Before Zacchaeus changed his behavior, Jesus restored his identity.
[In a courtroom, when the judge calls you by name instead of “defendant,” something shifts. Personal dignity returns.
III. Called Zacchaeus Down – Salvation Now (Luke 19:6–9)
A. Zacchaeus’ Response was:
• Not delayed. He came down quickly
• Joyful
• Privileged – He was chosen above the others
• Respectful, he called Him Lord
B. He Came to Jesus with Repentance
• The Law required double repayment in many cases. Zacchaeus offered four times.
• Salvation affected his wallet and his relationships.
C. Practical Application of Repentance Beyond Heaven:
• Salvation is not waiting to die.
• It is restoring what you broke.
• It is restructuring your priorities.
• It is bringing integrity into business and mercy into relationships.
• If Christ has entered your house, people should see the difference.
IV. Two Trees – Down from One, Up onto Another
A. The beautiful symmetry.
Jesus called Zacchaeus down from a tree to receive salvation.
Soon, the Father would allow Jesus to go up onto a tree to provide salvation.
Acts of the Apostles 5:30 — “whom you killed by hanging on a tree.”
B. An Applicable Wonder: What Kind of Wood?
• Olive
• Cypress
• Pine
• Possibly even sycamore
• The Romans did not care about symbolism. They used what was strong and available.
• Here is what matters:
o The first tree elevated a sinner.
o The second tree exalted a Savior.
V. National Restoration Begins with Personal Repentance
Zacchaeus did not just feel forgiven. He restored what he had taken.
A republic cannot endure without moral transformation.
John Adams warned that the Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.
National renewal begins the same way Jericho revival did— One man coming down from a tree in repentance.
If we want restoration:
• We must restore truth.
• We must restore justice.
• We must restore reverence for Christ.
Flags wave best over repentant hearts.
VI. The Purpose Statement (Luke 19:10)
“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.”
That includes:
• The corrupt official
• The religious skeptic
• The national backslider
• The quiet seeker in the back row
It includes every Zacchaeus.
1. Three Views of the Cross
A. Rome – Wood for Execution
For Rome, crucifixion meant:
• Political intimidation
• Public humiliation
• State power on display
It was a warning: “Do not defy us.”
B. Many Jews – Horror and Curse
• Deuteronomy 21:23 declared that one hung on a tree was cursed.
• To many in first-century Judaism, a crucified Messiah meant:
o Shame
o Rejection
o Failure
o The cross was a scandal.
C. The Early Church – Victory
1 Corinthians 1:23 — “We preach Christ crucified.”
What Rome meant for terror, what many saw as horror, God transformed into triumph.
Peter, once threatened, stood in Acts 5 and declared, “We ought to obey God rather than men.”
The symbol of intimidation became the banner of proclamation.
2. What Tree Are You On?
• One tree gave Zacchaeus perspective. One tree gave humanity redemption.
• To Rome — execution. To many Jews — horror. To the early church — victory. To Zacchaeus — salvation.
• And to you?
• If you are up a tree trying to see Him, He already sees you.
• Come down quickly. Receive Him joyfully. Restore what repentance demands. And proclaim what the cross accomplished.
• Because salvation is not merely about heaven later.
• It is a transformation now.
3. “The Survivor Tree”
In downtown Oklahoma City, near the site of the Oklahoma City National Memorial, stands an American elm known simply as the Survivor Tree. On April 19, 1995, when the Murrah Federal Building was bombed, the blast was so violent that many assumed the tree was dead. It was scorched. Shrapnel was embedded in its trunk. Cars were thrown into its branches. Limbs were torn away.
Investigators even considered cutting it down. But the roots held. Months later, small green shoots began to appear from what looked like a ruined trunk. Life where there should have been death. Today, that tree stands tall, protected, and its seeds have been planted across the country as symbols of resilience. The plaque nearby reads: “The spirit of this city and this nation will not be defeated.”
4. Zacchaeus had a tree that marked the turning point of his life. A sycamore where curiosity became conversion. But outside Jerusalem stood another tree—one that looked shattered beyond repair. What looked like defeat became the root of redemption.
• The Survivor Tree stood because its roots were deeper than the blast.
• The cross still stands because its roots are deeper than death.
• Zacchaeus came down from his tree and built his life around Christ.
• The early church built their courage around the cross.
• And believers through centuries of persecution have found that what looks destroyed is not always defeated.
5. So today:
• Come down from your tree of curiosity.
• Come down from your tree of compromise.
• Come down from your tree of distance.
• Build your life around the cross.
• Because that tree still stands.
• And like the Survivor Tree in Oklahoma City, it declares to every Zacchaeus and every nation:
• The blast was real. The scars are visible. But life wins.
