Gospelism.org

Luke 19:1 Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

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.”

We can learn a lot about the impact the words of Jesus, his preaching of the gospel, had on his hearers about observing their behavior.  How did people respond to the message Jesus preached?  What was his impact on their lifestyle, on their perspective, when they hear the words of our Savior?  What can we learn about the way we live our lives from their example?

Zacchaeus was a rich man.  In fact, the bible says he was the chief tax collector in the region, so he meets Jesus from a position of wealth and power.  Yet we find that the presence of Jesus brought out of Zacchaeus a sense of humility, repentance and great generosity in response to the invitation of Jesus.  To those that knew Zacchaeus, he reputation preceded him; he was a sinner.  But to Jesus his actions proved his faith such that the Lord proclaimed, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham.” 

The proclamation of the gospel should increase our desire to know Christ and love others (especially the less fortunate) while decreasing of desire for the materialism and wealth of this world.  Our hearts should be convicted to the point where we are overflowing with joy and generosity such that people can see the love of Christ gushing(!) from our hearts.