Zacchaeus The Tax Collector
Okay, we've all heard the story. A short guy climbs a tree to see Jesus. But Pat Dorbin, who spoke to our church a few weeks ago, brought out the underlining meaning of the event. Jesus came to meet with Zacchaeus, one on one. He sought the little Z out, to meet him on a very personal level.
I don't think Zacchaeus ever expected to get to talk to Jesus. Much less having Jesus declare he was coming to his house that day. I know it sounds like Jesus invited himself over for dinner, but Pat explained that at that time, in that culture, coming to someone's house was a tremendous honor for the host. It meant acceptance, a stamp of approval. No wonder the religious leaders dropped their jaws and stuttered out their condemnation. Tax collectors were not well thought of. They had a reputation of over charging on taxes and keeping the extra for themselves. Then for Jesus to have dinner at the man's house was outrageous. Sort of like Rush Limbaugh taking Hillary Clinton out to lunch and announcing his backing for her presidency. Or Obama doing a commercial for Fox News.
The tax collector was also astonished. He was so moved he declared he would give half his money to the poor, and anyone he had cheated he would give them four times the amount back. Now that is repentance! Jesus thought so, too.
Pat reminded us that God has a habit of meeting his creations one on one. He seeks us out. We see it all through the Bible. Moses and the burning bush. Mathew and Peter's call by Jesus. Not to mention Paul's visit from Jesus after he rose again.
You are not just one of the crowd to God. He is seeking you, on a personal, one-on-one search and rescue. If you know Him rejoice in this. If you haven't yet had this amazing encounter, He is personally waiting to meet . . . with YOU.
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