A Wee Little Man

“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.

And as the Savior passed that way, He looked up in the tree,

And said, “Zacchaeus, you come down.”

For I’m going to your house today.

I’m going to your house today.”

Now, if you grew up going to Sunday School in the 90s - that song is going to be stuck in your head for the rest of the day. Sorry about that. But have you thought of the impact of this bible story recently? 

As an interior designer, I am wildly interested in reading about Jesus’ interactions with others in homes. This is one I love.

Let’s start by reading the story. We find it in Luke 19:1-10.

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. ² A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. ³ He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. ⁴ So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.

⁵ When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” ⁶ So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly.

⁷ All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.”

⁸ 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.”

⁹ Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰ For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

First - let’s look at the posture of Zacchaeus. It says, “He wanted to see who Jesus was.” Other versions say: “He was seeking to see who Jesus was.” Zacchaeus was seeking. He was curious. 

Next - let’s look at the posture of the people around them. They muttered, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” I think it’s safe to say that the people were skeptical, if not completely disgusted. But let’s make sure we look at this with full depth. Zacchaeus hadn’t just done something wrong - he had hurt these people. Tax collectors were wealthy because of their job, but also because they abused the people they collected taxes from by taking more than they needed to. These people weren’t just having trouble seeing Jesus hang out with someone who was a “bad” guy - they were having trouble seeing Jesus have compassion on someone who had stolen from them and made their lives harder because of his actions. 

Jesus could have simply talked to Zacchaeus on the side of the road. But instead, He invites Himself to Zacchaeus' home. Isn’t that fantastic? I think when we meet people in our homes, there is a greater level of connection that happens. Jesus communicates with Zacchaeus that he is worthy of Jesus' time and presence. What a gift! Do you think it was transformative? Yes, it was!

After Zacchaeus encounters Jesus; he says, “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.”

Talk about a life transformed! Not only did Zacchaeus admit what he had done wrong, he paid the money back that he had taken and gave away half of what he owned. This was not a mundane interaction with a man on the street - this was a life-changing meeting with Jesus in Zacchaeus’ home. And Jesus responds, “Today, salvation has come to this house.”

Who in your life might need to feel God’s love by being invited to your home? Who might be seeking to see who Jesus is? And this one is the hardest: Who in your life might need you to see them as someone capable of life transformation because of an interaction with Jesus - rather than seeing them as the things they have done to hurt you? 

Or if you’re reading this and you feel like Zacchaeus [someone who has done bad things or hurt other people] - Jesus has already said these words to you: “I must stay at your house today.” Open the door for Him and it will transform your life. 

Jesus came to seek and to save the lost.