The Standard June 21, 2025
One of the most popular New Testament stories for Vacation Bible School is one found only in the Gospel of Luke, about a Jewish tax collector named Zacchaeus. Countless children have sung about this “wee little man,” and Jesus going to his house. The Jewish people in Zacchaeus’ community would have had an extremely unfavorable perception of him, as he demanded much more in taxes from them than what was actually owed to Rome.
“Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short, he could not see over the crowd. So, he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.’ So, he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.’ But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord! Here and now, I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.’” Luke 19:1-10
We don’t know much about what Zacchaeus was like prior to his encounter with Jesus. By overcharging his fellow Jews while collecting taxes for Rome, he became considered a sinner and an outcast among his own people, and probably among his family members.
We might wonder if Zacchaeus experienced bouts of regret about becoming rich by exploiting others. Perhaps he reassured himself that most of the other tax collectors were doing the same thing. Maybe he justified his unethical practices by thinking that he worked hard and deserved to be compensated. If he had a wife and children, perhaps he excused his methods because he wanted to secure a good life for his family. Maybe Zacchaeus had been ridiculed since childhood for being short and felt entitled to some compensation for the teasing he had endured.
However Zacchaeus might have felt about the way he did his job before meeting Jesus, he sure had a new attitude afterwards. We don’t know what was said between Jesus and him in that home, but it caused a complete about-face. Zacchaeus was convicted to right his wrongs. His faith in Jesus resulted in a wonderful change in his actions.
Jesus called him a “son of Abraham,” because, like Abraham, Zacchaeus believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Out of that faith grew a new way of doing business. We get a sense that Zacchaeus not only welcomed Jesus into his home gladly, but gladly showed his newfound faith through gracious action. May we be as quick and as cheerful to obey God!
celiastone 