Zacchaeus | Luke 19:1-10

Zacchaeus is one of the most familiar characters in the Bible, but his story is far more than a children’s song about a short man in a tree. Zacchaeus was wealthy, despised, isolated, and considered beyond the reach of respectable society. Yet as Jesus passed through Jericho on his way to the cross, he stopped, called Zacchaeus by name, and invited himself into his home. In Luke 19:1–10, we see that Jesus sees the worst of sinners, changes the worst of sinners, and saves the worst of sinners. And that is good news not only for the people we struggle to imagine receiving grace. It is good news for us. Grace does not wait for Zacchaeus to clean himself up. Jesus moves toward him first. And when Zacchaeus receives Jesus, that grace begins changing everything, including his relationship with money, with others, and with the community from which he had been alienated. Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem to be rejected and cast out so that sinners like Zacchaeus, and sinners like us, could be welcomed home. Scripture: Luke 19:1–10 Preacher: Tommy Allen Church: Mercy Spokane