9.30am Sunday 8 February 2004
Rev Des Botting
Readings: Luke 19:1-10; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21
The Bible says, Everything in Scripture is Gods Word. All of it is useful for teaching and helping people and for correcting them and showing them how to live.[1] This is why theres value in taking a book of the Bible and preaching through it systematically from beginning to end. No matter which book we choose, therell always be things that we need to hear, and, for the preacher, it means tackling some subjects that we might otherwise avoid.
Of course, some books have more chapters than others and, therefore, take a little longer to get through. This has been our experience with Luke that we began two years ago. However, youll be pleased to know were on the last lap and well cross the finish line, God willing, shortly after Easter.
And so this morning we rejoin Jesus as he passes through Jericho on his way to Jerusalem for the final show down with the religious leaders of the land. Weve seen on this journey that despite knowing what lay ahead for him, he always had time for people. Hed had time for children and welcomed their parents who brought them for him to touch. Hed had time for those in need. In the last passage we looked at, Jesus had healed the blind beggar who was sitting by the roadside outside Jericho. Now, as we pick up the story again, he has time for Zacchaeus, an outcast of society.
Luke, whos the only Gospel writer to record this event, tells us a number of things about Zacchaeus:
1. His NAME. Many of the people mentioned in the Gospels remain nameless. All that we know is that Jesus met or told us about a certain man or a certain woman. Some of these people were obviously very important in their day but the Bible doesnt give us their names. Whereas many of those who are named would never have figured in the Whos Who list of the worlds most important people. For example, two of them were beggars, Lazarus and the blind man, whom we know from Marks Gospel was called Bartimaeus. In Zacchaeus we have a despised tax collector.
This reminds us that Gods way of assessing people is very different to ours. He doesnt judge people by what they look like, but by whats in their hearts.[2]
The Bible also teaches that names are significant. They tell us something about a persons character. For example, the name Zacchaeus means pure or righteous. He was anything but pure and righteous prior to meeting Jesus. But after his encounter with Jesus, he was able to live up to the true meaning of his name.
Speaking of names reminds of the story of a little girl who heard her minister read from Lukes Gospel the words spoken about Jesus by the Pharisees This man receiveth sinners and eateth with them.[3] She pricked up her ears and after the service was over she went up to the minister and said, I didnt know my name was in the Bible. The pastor said, Why Edith, I dont believe it is. Oh, yes, you read it this morning. The part that said Jesus receiveth sinners and Edith with them.
While the little girl might have made a mistake in her hearing, she certainly didnt in her theology. Jesus does receive sinners by name. He did so with Zacchaeus, calling him by name, and eating with him.
2. He was a CHIEF Tax Collector. This is the only place in the Bible where anyone is given this description. It most probably means that he was head of the local taxation department with other tax collectors under him. It could be said that he was a man who had reached the top of his profession. But, having chosen to be a tax collector made him an outcast in society with very few friends apart from his own kind.
3. He was very WEALTHY. Jericho was a good spot for a tax man, situated as it was on an important trade route from Jerusalem to the east, as well as being the centre of a good deal of local wealth. This region enjoyed great prosperity in the time that Jesus lived. The plains around Jericho were the richest in Palestine, abounding in the choicest of products, especially its world-famous balsam groves which perfumed the air for miles around, and provided a very sought after commodity of that time. Its little wonder that Zacchaeus had grown rich being an officer of superior rank in collecting revenues from such a fertile area. But by the way in which he had lined his pocket he had impoverished his soul. Despite his position and his prosperity, he was not a happy man.
This brings us to one of the important lessons from this story. Although Zacchaeus was very wealthy, his wealth couldnt buy him true happiness. He had yet to learn a very important principle in life that Jesus referred to when he said, Give, and it will be given to you. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.[4] As long as he kept all his wealth for himself he would never be happy. You see, Zacchaeus had a cash-flow problem. All his wealth was going one way.
Its like the difference between the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee. Both are fed by the Jordan River and numerous other streams and springs. The Dead Sea has a daily intake of over six million tonnes from the Jordan alone. Yet nothing lives in the Dead Sea, where the salt content is six times as great as the oceans. The Dead Sea keeps all the water it gets. By contrast the Sea of Galilees outflow supplies water for dozens of farming settlements. Trawlers with nets harvest sardines and larger fish from her waters. One lake keeps, the other gives.
Were not given things to keep, but to be caretakers of them, allowing whatever comes our way to flow through us to our benefit and the benefit of others. When we stop that flow as Zacchaeus did, then well have problems.
Paul expresses this principle in 2 Corinthians when he says, God can bless you with everything you need, and youll always have more than enough to do all kinds of good things for others. He will increase what you have, so that you can give even more to those in need.[5] These verses carry the clear implication that God expects us to help those in need, and he has promised to provide the wherewithal for us to do it. What it boils down to is a recognition that the earth is the Lords and we humans are but stewards of the earth, not owners.
This flow-through idea is central to the Bibles teaching, and is the way to solve our cash flow problems. Jesus said, Give, and it will be given to you. The real problem is that when we stop the flow through us, it affects the flow of Gods life into us, too.
I was really encouraged while on holiday to spend time with a former member of the Bible Class in the first church where I ministered. Today hes a man in his early 40s. Hes a very prosperous businessman, has a beautiful home and anything money can buy. But he also knows that everything he has is Gods, that its God who has given him the ability to make wealth, and, therefore, he doesnt hoard his wealth. It was also quite clear from some of the inferences he made that He gives far more than the biblical tenth to help Gods work and those in need. This man doesnt have a cash-flow problem such as Zacchaeus had.
What about you? Do you have a cash flow problem? Are you giving out as well as taking in? Do you realize that God has blessed you so that you can help those in need? Are you being a good steward of what God has entrusted you with?
4. He was RESOURCEFUL. No doubt that Zacchaeus would have heard stories about this man Jesus, and one can imagine him listening even more intently when he heard that, unlike the other teachers of his day, this man was friendly towards tax collectors. And even more so when he was told that one of Jesus disciples was a former tax collector. You can almost imagine whats going through his mind, and the questions he is asking. What is it thats different about this Jesus? I must see this man for myself. But he had a problem.
5. He was SHORT of stature. The word Luke uses to describe Zacchaeus is mikros from which we get words like microscopic and microscope. He was a little man. Some of you will remember singing in Sunday School, Zacchaeus was a wee little man There was no way he would be ever be able to see over the crowds, and anyway the crowd would never let him push his way through to the front. They would relish the opportunity of elbowing him out of the way. In fact he was being very courageous by venturing out into the crowds at all. One could say he had the courage of desperation.
But Zacchaeus wasnt a person who would be put off easily. If there was something he really wanted, hed be sure to find a way of getting it. After all, wasnt this was how he got to be where he was in life, a chief tax collector. He was quick at devising ways of getting round problems. Therefore it wasnt beneath his dignity to climb a tree to accomplish his aim. Maybe he thought he could see without being seen, but Jesus sees all who are looking for him. If you are seeking him today, he knows it and is looking out for you.
6. Jesus LOVED him. He may have been despised by his own community and they would always give him the cold shoulder, but Jesus didnt do that. He invited himself into Zacchaeus home. It was unheard of for a reputable teacher to go to the home of a person like this. No wonder the crowd murmured its disapproval. But Jesus was often found in the company of disreputable people. For him to go to the home of Zacchaeus was exactly the same as being in the home of a Pharisee. Who they were in the eyes of others had little significance for him. It was who they were in the eyes of God that was all-important.
This brings us to the second important lesson in this story. Its what Jesus teaches us about evangelism. Notice that Jesus hadnt said a word to Zacchaeus about his way of life, and what he needed to do to put things right. He just asked to go to his home. He says, Zacchaeus, hurry down! I want to stay with you today.[6] The New International Version translates this more accurately when Jesus says, I must stay at your house today. Jesus uses this word translated must many times throughout the Gospels to imply divine necessity. Jesus saw his visit to Zacchaeus as part of his divine mission. But note how he does it. What he was offering Zacchaeus was love and acceptance. He wanted to be his friend. This is what was so special about what Jesus did. Offering friendship is something that all of us can do. Jesus is modeling for us how to seek out and save the lost. It happens first by being a friend to people. Note, as we saw two weeks ago, the important part hospitality plays in evangelism.
Friendship was what Zacchaeus wanted. He was only too happy to have Jesus come and stay, for Luke tells us that he hurried down and gladly welcomed him. Does that surprise you, how ready he was to welcome Jesus into his home? And well find that to be so with many of Gods lost children. Theyll never know how much God cares, unless you and I care for them. They probably think as Zacchaeus thought, that Jesus would never be interested in them. How wrong they are! Jesus offered Zacchaeus friendship. And we can do that, too.
Notice also that he went to where Zacchaeus lived. Jesus did exactly what he asks us to do when he said, Go and make disciples of all nations.[7]
7. Zacchaeus was SAVED that day. And what a conversion! One commentator described it like this: Heavens light flashed full into the darkness of his heart and chased it all away.[8] For Zacchaeus it wasnt just a case of making anew start. There were things in his life that needed to be straightened out. He had become rich through dishonest means and now he had to make restitution for the things he had wrongfully taken. So Zacchaeus said he would do two things as a result of his time with Jesus that day. First he would give half of his wealth to the poor. Think for a moment of what a contrast this is to the rich and important man, mentioned in the previous chapter of Luke, who when Jesus told him to Go and sell everything you own! and Give the money to the poor, went away sad because he was very rich. He wasnt prepared to part with his wealth. Whereas, here we see a tax collector, one who was ostracized by his people and judged to be a sinner in their eyes, who promises to give half his wealth to the poor.
Furthermore, he also promised to pay back four times as much to anyone he had cheated. In Leviticus the Law laid down that if a person robbed or cheated someone the amount had to be repaid plus 20 percent.[9] In some situations double the value of what was stolen had to be repaid. What Zacchaeus was going to do was almost as much as the most extreme repayment required under the law of Moses in case of theft. The Law said that if a person stole a bullock they had to pay back five head of cattle. If a sheep was stolen, then the thief had to replace it with four sheep.[10] Zacchaeus was cheerfully agreeing to do (far) more than was necessary.
It is important to note that Zacchaeus wasnt saved because he did all that: he did it because he was saved. He showed by his deeds that he was a changed man.
And it wasnt only Zacchaeus who was saved that day. Listen again to what Jesus said to Zacchaeus, Today, you and your family have been saved. This is what follows from a genuine change of heart and mind. Ive seen this so many times. When a person gets their life sorted out with God, the whole family is touched by what happens, and especially if it is the husband or father. It cannot but rub off on those closest to us. God is not only interested in individuals. He wants whole families to be saved.
Though Jewish society excluded this man, Jesus states that he is a true son of Abraham,[11] not just by lineage, but one who follows the faith of Abraham.
Jesus concludes with what is one of the great utterances of the Bible. The Son of Man came to look for and to save people who are lost.[12] This statement explains why Jesus came - to bring salvation, eternal life, and the kingdom of God. Jesus sought out Zacchaeus who was certainly among the lost, but he didnt leave him there. He saved him. And he will save you, too, if you will invite him into your life today, and put right the things that are wrong.
One closing thought. This story shows us so very clearly that lost people matter to God. If lost people matter to God, then they must matter to us, too.
Question: Is there something that is stopping the flow of Gods life through you? As you prepare to take Communion this morning, make sure that you put that right first. Confess it to God, and, if you need to, make restitution as soon as is practicable.
[1] 2 Timothy 3:16
[2] 1 Samuel 16:7 (All Bible references are from the Contemporary English Version unless otherwise stated.)
[3] Luke 15:2 KJV
[4] Luke 6:38 NIV
[5] 2 Corinthians 9:8,10b
[6] Luke 19:5
[7] Matthew 28:19
[8] Graham Scroggie, in his commentary Luke and John.
[9] Leviticus 6:5
[10] Exodus 22:1
[11] Luke 19:9
[12] Luke