Jesus met Zacchaeus and changed a rich man's life.
5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”
6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.
8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “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!”
9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”
There was a tax collector that was very short in stature but he was big in curiosity and initiative, of course he was a rich man, tax collectors were always rich in that day. Despite all of his money, Zacchaeus was still looking for something that was missing in his life, until that day that Jesus came along.
Their was a crowd of people around Jesus that day, as there usually was, in that crowd there were always people with different motivations for being there. We don't know what Zacchaeus motivation was but he seems to be sincerely looking for something that is missing in his life. Zacchaeus couldn't see Jesus because of the crowds yet this determined man was not to be denied.
All that Zacchaeus had to do was take the first step toward Jesus and Jesus took care of the rest, Jesus was already aware of him in the tree and he also knew his name, Jesus met Zacchaeus where he was. He didn't have to cleanup his life first and give restitution for his sins, Zacchaeus life was changed from the inside out, he gave up his riches after he became a believer.
Zacchaeus did the Impossible
Luke 18:24 -27 “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God! In fact, 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!” Those who heard this said, “Then who in the world can be saved?” He replied, “What is impossible for people is possible with God."What Zacchaeus did was too difficult for the rich man that we met in Luke 18:18-27. The rich man that didn't make it because he wanted to hold onto his accomplishments in life, he kept his money and fame and sacrificed his soul. (Luke 9:25) Not so with Zacchaeus, he was willing to let go of his ill gotten gain and use his money to provide restitution to those that he cheated. Zacchaeus let go of his earthly accomplishments and his security and put his trust in Jesus.
When anybody sincerely seeks out Jesus, he is going to find Jesus, after all Jesus said that he "came to seek and save those who are lost” even those that have great riches and have accomplished a lot on their own. Zacchaeus proved that if you let go of your agenda and your pride then God can save you and use you.
Help me to avoid trusting in myself and my own ability Lord. I need to trust in you completely for my salvation and for help in everything that I do.
