Zacchaeus was a wee little man and a wee little man was he. He climbed up in a sycamore tree for the Lord he wanted to see.
That’s the start of a children’s action song that we sang when I was a little girl in Sunday School. It started a train of thoughts this morning about God’s ability to bring about mighty changes in our lives.
“The Changed Life of Zaccheus
19 Jesus went on to the city of Jericho and was passing through it. 2 There was a rich man named Zaccheus. He was a leader of those who gathered taxes. 3 Zaccheus wanted to see Jesus but he could not because so many people were there and he was a short man. 4 He ran ahead and got up into a sycamore tree to see Him. Jesus was going by that way.
5 When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw Zaccheus. He said, “Zaccheus, come down at once. I must stay in your house today.” 6 At once he came down and was glad to have Jesus come to his house. 7 When the people saw it, they began to complain among themselves. They said, “He is going to stay with a man who is known to be a sinner.”
8 Zaccheus stood up and said to the Lord, “Lord, see! Half of what I own I will give to poor people. And if I have taken money from anyone in a wrong way, I will pay him back four times as much.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Today, a person has been saved in this house. This man is a Jew also. 10 For the Son of Man came to look for and to save from the punishment of sin those who are lost.” Luke 19:1-9 NLV
Zacchaeus had heard about Jesus – everyone had but he hadn’t seen Him. He was curious, he wanted to see what this teacher and miracle worker looked like. I don’t think he went thinking that Jesus would change his life. The woman with the issue of blood did that; she knew she needed to touch Jesus to receive her healing. The man with the daughter on the verge of death knew he needed to get Jesus to come to his house and touch his daughter or she would die. But Zacchaeus just wanted to see Jesus, who was this man?
However, being face-to-face with Jesus, eating with Him, talking with Him effected a marvelous change. A once greedy and dishonest man went through a complete metamorphosis in one afternoon.
Jesus didn’t demand that Zaccheus give back money he had taken wrongfully. We don’t have any evidence that Jesus even mentioned his shady business dealings. Yet, it happened.
“For if a man belongs to Christ, he is a new person. The old life is gone. New life has begun.” II Corinthians 5:17 NLV
Belonging to Christ brings change. Change in our attitudes, change in our perspective, change in our character and in our lifestyle. Greed is replaced by gratitude, fear gives place to faith. Kindness occupies the space that cruelty had dominated. Love lives where self-centeredness stayed.
Like a caterpillar our lives are transformed by the power of God’s love!