LUKE 19:1-10
“Becoming A Saint”
BY: Kenneth E. Sauer,
Pastor of Parkview United Methodist Church, Newport News, VA
Who are saints? In this
day and age we often only think of those who have been Cannonized...or those who have done
some remarkable things for God in the past as saints....but in the letters of Paul we see that he
often addressed all the believers he was writing to as saints....now from these letters we see that
these people were far from being perfect, but they had one thing on their side that gave them
that precious name: and that one thing was that they had experienced conversion through our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
And the meaning of conversion is clearly illustrated in the experience of Zacchaeus.
In verse 2 of our Gospel lesson we see that Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector, and he
was a very rich man.
This is the only time that the title ‘chief’ is used to describe a tax collector.
And this probably means that he was the head of the local taxation office; therefore,
Zachaeus was responsible to the Roman government for the employment and management of the
local tax-collectors and their monies.
So Zacchaeus had all the pleasures and comforts of life that money could buy....but this
was obviously not enough.
And as we know from what Jesus has taught us that because of his earthly riches he was a
man who would find it very difficult to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. His money was a
serious threat to his salvation, as it is with all of us who are rich. Because we tend to love our
money and the things our money can do for us more than we love Christ.
But as we see in verses 3 and 4 that Zacchaeus “wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a
short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree
to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.”
So the first step in the conversion of Zacchaeus was his desparate need to see Jesus.
Despite his wealth and the pleasures enjoyed by wealth, Zacchaeus was apparently empty
and lonely within his heart.
Now on top of this tax collectors were bittterly hated by the people.
Tax collectors served the Roman conquerors, and although most tax collectors were
Jews...in the people’s eyes they had denied their Jewish heritage and betrayed their country.
They were thus ostracized--completely cut off from Jewish society and excommunicated from
Jewish religion and priviledges.
On top of this....we’re not talking about the IRS, tax collectors were cheats. They were
dishonest and unjust people.
The Roman government compensated tax collectors by allowing them to collect more
than the percentage required for taxes.
And they greedily abused their right...adding whatever percent they wanted and felt
could be collected.
They took bribes from the wealthy, and fleeced the average citizen.
So Zacchaeus persevered in his attempt to see Jesus, and he had to humble himself in
order to do it.
Imagine Zacchaeus, a man of position and wealth, climbing a tree just to see an
important person pass by.
How many of us are willing to humble ourselves just in order to see Jesus?
Zacchaeus most likely had experienced the stirring of faith within his heart for some
time.
He had heard reports about Jesus’ being the Messiah, and perhaps he had heard about
Jesus saving and calling Matthew, another tax collector, to be one of his disciples.
Maybe Zacchaeus had known Matthew....maybe they had been friends...and maybe he
had seen the change that had taken place in the life of Matthew...and maybe he wanted that for
himself.
So often, the witness of others who have been changed through Christ...is what causes us
to hunger and thirst for the same thing.
Most people are led to Christ through friends...friends that have experienced something
that they have not....friends who witness through their lives...their love...their
compassion....and then invite them to church to come and see for themselves how wonderful
it is to serve the Lord, worship the Lord, and be surrounded by a loving household of faith.
When was the last time you invited a friend to come to church?
In verses 5 and 6 we see that “When Jesus reached the spot (where Zacchaeus was) he
looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, come down immediatley. I must stay at your house
today.’ So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.”
So we see that conversion includes receiving the invitation of Christ.
Jesus knew and called Zacchaeus by name...and He calls all of us by name.
And Jesus asked Zacchaeus to receive Him, and to be recieved immediately.
He was set for Jerusalem, and could not delay for too long. There was no time to
waste....so Zacchaeus had to act then and there.
The moment of opportunity was then and there...that day...that moment.
The next day it would be gone....this was Zacchaeus’ chance at salvation.....his moment
of grace....and Zacchaeus obeyed!
As the Bible declares in 2 Corinthians, “now is the time of God’s favor, now is the time
of salvation.”
And Zacchaeus welcomed Christ gladly! Right on the spot!
Now we see in verse 7 of our Scripture lesson that “All the people saw this and began to
mutter, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a ‘sinner.”
And this is what Christ does for all of us who receive him into our hearts....for we all
have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.
But Zacchaeus knew he was a sinner and he readily confessed his need for a Savior.
As the Bible says in Romans chapter 10, “if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is
Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
And we see that Zacchaeus repented and changed his whole life--he completely turned
around from his sinful way of life and turned toward God...and God’s way of righteousness.
Repentance means to change; to turn; to change one’s mind; to turn one’s life. It is
turning away from sin and turning toward God.
In verse 8, “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.”
Zacchaeus did exactly what Jesus had said time after time, and he did exactly what the
rich young ruler had refused to do.
As Jesus said in Luke chapter 9, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself
and take up his cross daily and follow me. For Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but
whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and
yet forfeit his very self?”
Zacchaeus repented and looked to Jesus as Savior, and this saved him....as we read in
verses 9 and 10, “Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man,
too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
As soon as Zacchaeus was saved, he became a true spiritual son of Abraham....and this
is true for all of us who come to Christ.
As the Bible says in Galations, “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed,
and heirs according to the promise.”
Zacchaeus had been lost. the lost are the ones who are perishing, being destroyed, losing
eternal life, and being cut off from God. The lost are spiritually destitute.
And Jesus is the One who seeks and saves the lost...Jesus is the one who sought
Zacchaeus.
Sure, Zacchaeus put himself in the position to see Jesus, but Jesus did the speaking to
Zacchaeus’ heart, asking Zacchaeus to received him, and after Zacchaeus received Him...Jesus
saved him.
And at that moment of salvation, Zacchaeus, this hated, sinful tax collector became a
saint.
During World War II, my Uncle Jack and a friend of his got access to a printing press.
They used this printing press to print thousands of Christain tracts called “God’s Plan for
Your Life” which they distributed to people throughout the war.
Twenty years later, Uncle Jack was telling this story to a German Bishop....the bishop
was quiet for a moment....then he began to tell Uncle Jack about the greatest evangelist in all of
Germany...his name was Kurt Vagner. He had been a body guard for Adolf Hitler.
One day while walking down the street he picked up a piece of paper....it was entitled,
“God’s Plan for Your Life.”
Through giving his life to Christ, Zacchaeus became a saint....through giving his life to
Christ....someone who was involved in the most inhumane kind of evil imaginable became a
saint.
I know many saints here at Parkview United Methodist Church.....if you have not joined
those ranks, now is the time...this is the place...come down at once and receive Jesus Christ
into your life!
