You have to love the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus. The man of “short stature” who wanted to see Jesus so badly that he climbed a tree to get above the crowd of people surrounding Him. When Jesus spotted Zaccheus, he shouted “Come down, Zacchaeus, I must stay at your home tonight.” Ah!

Being of short stature myself, I can appreciate the effort that Zacchaeus went through to climb that tree (not an easy feat for a small person) and the humility that it took to admit that he couldn’t see Jesus as the others in the crowd could. However, his desire to actually see Jesus with his eyes gave him the determination to accomplish his goal.

The back story in this Gospel lesson involves Zacchaeus’ occupation. He’s a tax collector. I remember hearing this reading as a child and wondering what the big deal was. Tax collection is a necessary part of government’s functioning in order to provide services to the people.  

However, in the time of Jesus, this was not true. The tax collector was despised and shunned. Often, they were dishonest and cruel. They cheated, they stole and the made false charges to make more money. They were not considered to be providing a community service, but rather they were feared and avoided. In addition, it was Rome, the conquerors of the Jewish people, that was being supported. This is why the crowd criticized Jesus for associating with Zacchaeus. He was a sinner.

Zacchaeus, a little man, a tax collector, stands up to the criticism and announces that he does not practice evil ways as he goes about his business. He gives half of his goods to charity and if he has defrauded anyone, he pays it back fourfold. This is a dramatic change in behavior for Zacchaeus. Jesus proclaims that salvation has come to this house, that Zacchaeus is a son of Abraham. This change of attitude and behavior is because Zacchaeus has accepted the teachings of Jesus-the source of salvation.

I particularly like the illustration found below. It shows Jesus helping Zacchaeus to come down out of the tree. Not only would it have been difficult for Zacchaeus to climb up into the tree, getting down would have been tough. Jesus is always there to help us climb down out of the tree of our troubles.

Count on it! Let His unconditional love surround you, enter your heart and bring you to a safe place. He must stay at your house tonight…and always. Read Luke 19:1-10.

Terri