Today we celebrate Palm Sunday. It is the day that we remember and commemorate the day Jesus entered into Jerusalem as Savior and King. So typically, on this day we read the Bible verses about Jesus’ triumphal entry, wave palm branches, and shout, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” But today for a reason I chose a little bit different scripture passage, that is, a story of Zacchaeus. If we read the passage of the triumphal entry of Jesus, right after that passage we find that Jesus is weeping over Jerusalem (19:41-44). It’s a little bit weird, isn’t it? All the people in Jerusalem – men and women, young and old – came out, greeted him with palm branches and welcomed him with enthusiasm. But for some reason, Jesus is weeping as he watches the crowd. Why? Because they honor Jesus with their lips, but their hearts are far from him. They honor him with their lip service, “Jesus, you are our King!” But deep in their hearts they say, “Jesus, I don’t want you. I don’t need your help. I think I am ok. I am not lost.” Knowing their hearts, Jesus says, “The day will come… Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not recognize the time when God came to help you.” (v. 44, NLT) But there were few who did recognize Jesus, receive him joyfully, and honor him with their life. Zacchaeus was one of them. So this old conversion story of Zacchaeus teaches us the true meaning of what it means to receive Jesus Christ as King and Savior as we celebrate Palm Sunday.
Who Is Zacchaeus?
So then, who is Zacchaeus? The Bible says, “He was a chief tax collector and was rich” (2). In Jesus’ time tax collectors were considered as the scum of the earth. For personal gain they served Rome, taking unfair advantage of their own countrymen. They were despised among the Jews. Zacchaeus was not only a tax collector, but a chief tax collector, which made people despise him all the more. And as a result of an unrighteous gain he got rich. The Bible says, “For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God” (18:24). So in many ways Zacchaeus was a most unlikely candidate for salvation. But today’s story proves that there is no one is beyond the power of God’s grace to reach. God is able to save. If Zacchaeus was saved, there is hope to everyone, even to the worst of sinners. Let us be encouraged and comforted. Let us never give up praying for our souls and for our beloved ones who need salvation. Our God is able.
God Seeking Us
Our God is not only able to save, but also he is passionately seeking us, before we seek him. On the surface, it seems that Zacchaeus sought Jesus and found him. He was curious about Jesus. He climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him. And he invited Jesus to his house. But the truth is the opposite. It was Jesus who was passionately seeking Zacchaeus before Zacchaeus even heard about the name of Jesus. Jesus always seeks the lost by taking the initiative. Verse 1 says, “Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through.” Why? Jesus was coming to seek the lost, particularly a man named Zacchaeus. He was directly walking toward the tree to see Zacchaeus. And he looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” Here we find at least two reasons why we can say it was Jesus who took the initiative. First, Jesus called Zacchaeus by name. Zacchaeus must have been surprised, “How should he know my name? I never saw him before.” But Jesus already knew not only his name but also his heart. Just as Jesus said to Nathanael, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you (John 1:48),” now Jesus is saying, “Zacchaeus, I have heard your cry. I know all about your pain. And now I have come to help you.” Second, Jesus used the verb “must” – I must stay at your house today. In the same way, John 4:4 says, “Now it was necessary for him [Jesus] to go through Samaria (ISV). Why? Because he had to meet a Samaritan woman who was lost. And now it is necessary for him to go through Jericho. Why? Because he has to meet Zacchaeus and to abide at his house. That is why he came. In verse 10 Jesus says, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
I love a story of D. L. Moody because it tells us how passionately Jesus is seeking us. On one occasion Moody saw a little girl standing on the street with a pail in her hand and invited her to his Sunday School. She promised to go the following Sunday, but she didn’t do so. Moody watched for her for weeks, and then one day he saw her on the street again from a distance. But when she saw him and started to run away. Moody followed her. Down she went one street, Moody after her; up she went another street, Moody after her; out on another street, Moody still following; then she dashed into a saloon and Moody dashed after her. She ran out the back door and up a flight of stairs, Moody still following; she dashed into a room, Moody following; she threw herself under the bed and Moody reached under the bed and pulled her out by the foot, and led her to Christ. That day Moody also led the widow mother and all the family to Christ.[1]
The Bible says, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" The answer is, no one and nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord! (cf. Rom 8:35-39) We may have withdrawn from God, but God never withdraws from us. God never gives up on us. Instead, he gently, graciously, passionately seeks us and calls us by name. Have you had that experience? Have you heard Jesus call your name? Even now Jesus is seeking you, calling you personally and individually by name.
Seeking the God Who Is Seeking Us
Zacchaeus heard Jesus call his name. And he came down quickly and received Jesus joyfully. God’s grace is so amazing, so powerful! God’s grace prepared Zacchaeus’ heart, made him thirsty and curious about who Jesus was (v. 3; “prevenient grace”). God’s grace empowered him to say “yes” to Jesus’ invitation and to receive him joyfully (v. 6; “justifying grace”). Furthermore, God’s grace transformed his heart, changed his worldview, gave him a new desire to love God and to love his neighbor (v. 8; “sanctifying grace”). By God’s grace, Zacchaeus is now seeking the God who is seeking him. He does not avoid people anymore; instead, he does stand right beside Jesus and say, "I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!" Zacchaeus is saved not because he gives away his possessions to the poor. He is not saved by his works. But his good works prove his changed heart and the love for God expressed in love for others. He is saved by grace through faith. Here Zacchaeus is saying, "Come in, come in, Lord Jesus! From now on I own nothing. You own everything. Jesus, you are my Master and King!" That is Zacchaeus’ confession of faith. And Jesus says to him, “Today salvation has come to his house!”
Zacchaeus was an “outsider,” but now he has become an “insider” by God’s grace. Jesus says to the people grumbling, “He also is a son of Abraham!” Zacchaeus is now a true son of Abraham, son of Noah, son of Adam, and son of God. In Ephesians 2:19 Paul proclaims this truth as follows: "So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God's holy people. You are members of God's family" (NLT), that is, the church. In other words, the moment when we become a Christian, follower of Christ, we naturally also become a church member. So church membership is a gift, honor, and privilege.
The church consists of people – “lost and found” people. We have all different versions of the story. But they are all the same story: “I once was lost, but now I am found.”
Invite Others In
God’s house is big enough to adopt all the lost. God’s table is large enough for all of us. Perhaps you know some of “Zacchaeuses” who are still seeking truth, seeking an answer, seeking to see who Jesus is. Let us remember: Jesus is passionately seeking them, before they seek him. Let us invite at least one of these individuals to church this Easter. Perhaps they have some hindrances, and you may wonder, “What if?” But, was not Zacchaeus a chief tax collector? Was not Zacchaeus rich? Was not Zacchaeus small in stature? But God’s grace made him more than conqueror over all these hindrances. All things are possible to Jesus Christ. Nothing is too hard for him. He is the Lord almighty!
Perhaps today you yourself are seeking to see who Jesus is. Now Jesus is calling you personally and individually by name, saying, “My son, my daughter, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today!” So like Zacchaeus, let us come down quickly and receive him joyfully, saying:
Seeking the God Who Is Seeking Us
Zacchaeus heard Jesus call his name. And he came down quickly and received Jesus joyfully. God’s grace is so amazing, so powerful! God’s grace prepared Zacchaeus’ heart, made him thirsty and curious about who Jesus was (v. 3; “prevenient grace”). God’s grace empowered him to say “yes” to Jesus’ invitation and to receive him joyfully (v. 6; “justifying grace”). Furthermore, God’s grace transformed his heart, changed his worldview, gave him a new desire to love God and to love his neighbor (v. 8; “sanctifying grace”). By God’s grace, Zacchaeus is now seeking the God who is seeking him. He does not avoid people anymore; instead, he does stand right beside Jesus and say, "I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!" Zacchaeus is saved not because he gives away his possessions to the poor. He is not saved by his works. But his good works prove his changed heart and the love for God expressed in love for others. He is saved by grace through faith. Here Zacchaeus is saying, "Come in, come in, Lord Jesus! From now on I own nothing. You own everything. Jesus, you are my Master and King!" That is Zacchaeus’ confession of faith. And Jesus says to him, “Today salvation has come to his house!”
Zacchaeus was an “outsider,” but now he has become an “insider” by God’s grace. Jesus says to the people grumbling, “He also is a son of Abraham!” Zacchaeus is now a true son of Abraham, son of Noah, son of Adam, and son of God. In Ephesians 2:19 Paul proclaims this truth as follows: "So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God's holy people. You are members of God's family" (NLT), that is, the church. In other words, the moment when we become a Christian, follower of Christ, we naturally also become a church member. So church membership is a gift, honor, and privilege.
The church consists of people – “lost and found” people. We have all different versions of the story. But they are all the same story: “I once was lost, but now I am found.”
Invite Others In
God’s house is big enough to adopt all the lost. God’s table is large enough for all of us. Perhaps you know some of “Zacchaeuses” who are still seeking truth, seeking an answer, seeking to see who Jesus is. Let us remember: Jesus is passionately seeking them, before they seek him. Let us invite at least one of these individuals to church this Easter. Perhaps they have some hindrances, and you may wonder, “What if?” But, was not Zacchaeus a chief tax collector? Was not Zacchaeus rich? Was not Zacchaeus small in stature? But God’s grace made him more than conqueror over all these hindrances. All things are possible to Jesus Christ. Nothing is too hard for him. He is the Lord almighty!
Perhaps today you yourself are seeking to see who Jesus is. Now Jesus is calling you personally and individually by name, saying, “My son, my daughter, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today!” So like Zacchaeus, let us come down quickly and receive him joyfully, saying:
Into my heart, into my heart
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus
Come in today, come in to stay
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus!
Come into my heart, Lord Jesus!
--------
[1] R. A. Torrey, Why God Used D.L. Moody (Moody Press, 1973) 42-43. 
No comments:
Post a Comment