June 5, 2014
Zacchaeus, the Tax Collector
Luke 19:1-10 NKJV
Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way.5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him,“Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” 8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; 10 for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
| Luke 19:1-10
New Living Translation (NLT)
Jesus and Zacchaeus
19 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.”
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Luke 19:1-10
King James Version (KJV)
1 And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho.
2 And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich.
3 And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature.
4 And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way.
5 And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for today I must abide at thy house.
6 And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully.
7 And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner.
8 And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord: Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold.
9 And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.
10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
| Luke 19:1-10
Amplified Bible (AMP)
1And [Jesus] entered Jericho and was passing through it.
2 And there was a man called Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector, and [he was] rich.
3 And he was trying to see Jesus, which One He was, but he could not on account of the crowd, because he was small in stature.
4 So he ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree in order to see Him, for He was about to pass that way.
5 And when Jesus reached the place, He looked up and said to him, Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.
6 So he hurried and came down, and he received and welcomed Him joyfully.
7 And when the people saw it, they all muttered among themselves and indignantly complained, He has gone in to be the guest of and lodge with a man who is devoted to sin and preeminently a sinner.
8 So then Zacchaeus stood up and solemnly declared to the Lord, See, Lord, the half of my goods I [now] give [by way of restoration] to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone out of anything, I [now] restore four times as much.
9 And Jesus said to him, Today is [Messianic and spiritual] salvation come to [all the members of] this household, since Zacchaeus too is a [real spiritual] son of Abraham;
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.
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What do I see?
I see a rich chief tax collector named Zacchaeus who wanted to see who Jesus was. He could not see because of the crowd and he was too short. So he ran ahead and climb up a sycamore tree to see Jesus. When Jesus saw him, He told Zacchaeus to come down because He will stay with him in his house. Zacchaeus came down immediately and received Jesus joyfully. He told Jesus that he gives half of his goods to the poor and if he had taken anything from anyone by false accusation, he restores fourfold. Jesus says to him that salvation has come to this house that day. The other people murmured that Jesus went to stay at Zacchaeus’ ( a sinner’s) house. (Miyagi)
What does this mean?
This means that though Zacchaeus was rich, he wasn’t fulfilled. He needed something that money could not buy. He didn’t know who Jesus was, but he wanted to find out. He made the effort of climbing a tree to see who Jesus was. He didn’t realize it, but he needed Jesus. He needed love, acceptance, and approval. As a tax collector, he was hated by many. But Jesus showed him love and acceptance by offering to stay with him at his house. To everyone else, Zacchaeus was the worst sinner. (Miyagi)
The word “if” in verse 8 shows that Zacchaeus was not totally clean. He knew that he had cheated others. Using the word “if” indicates that he is not sure if he did. He did and he knew it. But he didn’t come clean and admit it in front of Jesus. Salvation came to his house that day. But if he is to keep that salvation, he must work out his salvation with fear and trembling every single day. That means he must be clean before God. (Miyagi)
The role of the chief tax collector would be the one to collect sales and customs taxes and hired collectors under him.. Given that role, Zacchaeus is already rich without having to cheat. But yet, he cheated anyway. That expression “salvation has come to this house” - isn’t this grace? Why couldn’t Zacchaeus accept the grace? Why did he respond with a promise of restitution rather than just accepting the gift of grace? His promises of restitution is admitting his crime. His promising to restore fourfold is part of the pharisitic law. We have law and grace. Jesus was extending grace to him. He responded with law. This restitution is only valid if a certain number of people witnessed the act. So Zacchaeus is really using pharisitic law to respond to the grace of God. In retrospect, most Jewish people believe that salvation belongs to Israel by virtue of descend by Abraham. Just by that Abrahamic covenant, most Jews believe that they are already saved and there is no need for the messiah. But they have missed the point. (Keener, 241)
When Zacchaeus said to Jesus “Look, Lord….,” he was really telling Jesus that he is already saved and that he really doesn’t need the salvation that Jesus is bringing to this household. Therefore, Zacchaeus responds with restitution, which is the pharisitic law. Because he believes that he is already saved, he pledges to give half his goods to the poor and restore fourfold to those whom he cheated. The attitude of Zacchaeus is typical of the Jewish mind. Jesus came to his house and said that “salvation has come to this house”, not “your house.” And because he believed that he is already saved, he did not choose Jesus that day. (Keener 241)
Zacchaeus perceived Jesus as nothing. To him, he is all good. He doesn’t need Jesus’ salvation because by default, he believed that he is already saved. This attitude is alive and well in many senior pastors. They think they are all good. They think that they are the final spiritual authority. In their minds, they are saved and well on their way to heaven. To them, they already got it. They receive and hear directly from God. But today, salvation has come to this church. So senior pastors cannot receive the gift of salvation because they think they got it all. And if they think they have cheated, all they have to do is restore fourfold.
Jesus perceived Zacchaeus as a lost sheep. Jesus’ ministry is to seek and save the lost sheep of Israel, and Zacchaeus is that lost sheep. Jesus came to bring the very thing that Zacchaeus needed, which was salvation. But Zacchaeus is too blind to see it and too prideful to accept it. He refuses Jesus’ gift because he thinks he is all good. He is too sure of himself. He is more interested in pledging to do good works in the presence of Jesus, tooting his own horn. That is the danger of a prideful person. They are too sure of themselves and their abilities to make it to heaven on their own. All they are concerned with is to be seen and heard for all their alms giving. Zacchaeus was a wimp, which is a weak, ineffectual, timid person. (dictionary.com). He tried to make up for his crime by pledging to make restitution. He could not even admit his crime of cheating the people. That is why he used the word “if.” Zacchaeus is a coward and a phony. There are many people and church leaders just like Zacchaeus in churches today. They rather buy their way out of their sins than confess, admit, repent, and make amends. They are too weak to face their sins head on to address it, so they go around it, under it or over it. But they will never go through it to deal with it. (Miyagi)
If we look at the definitions of the word “salvation,” it means “deliverance, soundness, prosperity, happiness, rescue, and general well-being.” This word may be used in the material sense, a temporal condition. In addition, it is in a spiritual, eternal sense. What would “salvation” mean to Zacchaeus? Jesus saw him and told him that He must stay at his house for today. Did God give him a choice just for today? What about eternity? What if Zacchaeus confessed his sins, repented, made restitution and received Him as Lord and Savior? Would he then have eternal salvation? What happened when he said “if I have taken anything from anyone..” and “look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor?” Without Jesus saying or doing anything, he is getting convicted. So he gives the impression that he is making restitution. But it is simply a cover up for his wicked, evil deeds. (Miyagi)
Matthew 15:24 says “But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” Jesus came to save the Jews first as his primary concern.
If anyone was to be at the presence of Jesus, would he not be convicted just to be in His mere presence? Jesus Christ is God, but why did Zacchaeus say “if I had taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold?” It sounds like Zacchaeus is arrogant. He had the audacity to even say this. He knew he had taken from others and would even say this to Jesus. What this tells me is that he is a fake and a phony. He is only making an outward appearance of giving half of his goods to the poor. He has not given it yet. He says he gives (present tense). Why does he have to say “look, Lord?” This statement indicates that he makes himself righteous in the presence of Jesus Christ. All his gifts are filthy rags. Verse 8 is the main focus. It is almost as if he is buying his salvation. And on top of that, he is tooting his own horn. Then in verse 9, Jesus says to him that salvation has come to this house. The word “salvation” has the material, temporal and eternal aspect. Because Zacchaeus is the son of Abraham, the covenant and promises God made with Abraham may be that physically, he came from the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. (Miyagi)
So today, salvation has come to this house simply because the covenant is entitled to Zacchaeus. He may come from one of the tribes of Jacob physically. He is an heir. It may be only in the physical, temporal state as a natural Jew. (Miyagi)
So in the Abrahamic covenant, all the family of Abraham will be blessed. The allusion is that salvation has come to Zacchaeus’ house because he is a son of Abraham from the Abrahamic covenant. God told Abraham “in you, all the families will be blessed.” But this salvation can become eternal. The spiritual well-being is the gift of salvation in that God’s love is for Zacchaeus and anyone else. John 3:16 (NKJV) says - “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Why would Jesus say to Zacchaeus that “salvation has come to this house because he is the son of Abraham?” It may be in the natural, temporal state. The indication that Zacchaeus is fooling around is that he says “I give half of my goods to the poor,” not “I gave.” He did not give it yet. Jesus said that “salvation has come because you are a son of Abraham.” Zacchaeus was busted because Jesus is in his house. So he spills his guts before the Lord. Salvation came to his house because he is a son of Abraham, not because he is giving of his wealth to the poor. (Miyagi)
Many Jews have the inheritance of Abraham but are fooling around. In verse 10, the son of Man came to seek and save the lost. Zacchaeus is the lost sheep. Jesus’ ministry is to the lost sheep of Israel first. It is to the Jews. Jesus saw Zacchaeus. He told him that salvation has come to “this house”, not “your house.” Zacchaeus was a covenant person. And because of that, salvation has come. Verse 10 clarifies it. Jesus said that the son of Man has come to seek and save the lost. And today, salvation has come because Zacchaeus is a son of Abraham, the covenant people. (Miyagi)
Zacchaeus has to make the choice of accepting the gift of eternal life or not. When he said that he will give half of his goods to the poor and restore fourfold, he is justifying that he is a righteous man and if needed, he will give half of his goods to the poor and restore fourfold. This was a cover up to justify himself. If he has come to terms with Jesus, the Messiah, he would not have to cover up, justify and make the “if” statement. So because he did not come to terms that Jesus Christ came to his house and salvation came to his family, he is still poor, wretched and blind and lost. (Miyagi)
Question:
Why did Zacchaeus say to Jesus “Look, Lord, I gave half of my goods to the poor.” Why did he bring attention to his so-called good works? Doesn’t he know that Jesus can see and knows everything? Wasn’t he being self-righteous at that point?
Why did he add the “if” to the next statement? Zacchaeus knew that he was a great sinner because he was the “chief tax collector.” He was likely to be the worst of all the tax collectors. But yet he added the word “if” as if he didn’t know that he cheated anyone. Wasn’t this another indication of his self-righteous acts?
The heart of the Jew is stubborn. They always need proof before they believe. Thus, Jewish rabbis always write commentaries upon commentaries but can never come to a conclusion. Without the Holy Spirit as the teacher and counselor, we are just like those unregenerate Jews that cannot see the depths, heights and width of the written Word of God. The second-hand revelation is used of God to come to a point of realizing that operating under grace and mercy will keep one poor, wretched, blind and lost. That person will never receive direct revelation from God and will always miss the point. Their salvation and faith is based upon someone else’s salvation and faith. And their understanding is their understanding. Churches today use this as control over the congregation. If the senior pastor refuses to give up his spiritual authority and position to Jesus Christ, he is a strong man and will be dealt with. (Miyagi)
The Jewish mind is based upon proof. That is why the rabbis write commentaries upon commentaries and can never come to a conclusion. Zacchaeus, like a typical Jew, rationalized his actions and behaviors as a cover up that he is still waiting for the Messiah and he feels that perchance, all is still well. He did not accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior on that day. He was simply curious to see what was going on. (Miyagi)
To have someone explain scripture is indicative that the person is still blind and operating in the carnal. But those who have move away from grace and mercy and is now in the place of moving from glory to glory is able to fellowship and break bread with fellow believers. It is the Spirit bearing witness that we are the children of God. The members of the Body of Christ coming together in the Spirit of unity is to share freely for the edification, exhortation and comfort of the body of Christ. Therefore, no one person, such as a “senior pastor” or a “priest” can have the exclusive, sole spiritual authority over a body of believers. (Miyagi)
The believers of Christ, matured by the Holy Spirit can have this kind of fellowship. The babes in Christ are to be ministered to and be fed milk because they cannot handle the meat of the word yet. So how does a person become spiritually mature? One way is to do daily due diligence by prayer, meditation and study. Then there is to be regular breaking of bread, fellowship, prayer and apostle’s doctrine. And finally, there is to be regular assembly with the body of Christ. Whether Jew or Gentile, whether pentecostal, baptist, or methodist, we should not forsake the assembly. Denominational dogma should be put aside. Jesus appointed some to be apostles, prophets, pastors, teachers, and evangelists. The five-fold ministries is the operation of Jesus Christ. It is the evidence of that operation. (Miyagi)
Jesus came to bring Zacchaeus the gift of eternal life. But instead of accepting the gift of eternal life, he tries to make himself look good to Jesus. The gifts of Zacchaeus is nothing but filthy rags. Jesus told him that salvation has come because “you are the son of Abraham.” Jesus is reminding him that salvation has come to this house. Jesus, the son of Man, has come to your house, Zacchaeus, to seek and save those who are lost and you are lost. Jesus is here is save you from darkness. (Miyagi)
When we see someone, whether Jews or Gentiles, we seek to save the lost. Jesus’ ministry was to seek and save the lost sheep of Israel. Jesus was saying to Zacchaeus that I have come to save you. But Zacchaeus missed the whole boat. He did not accept the gift of eternal salvation. He was more concerned with showing Jesus how righteous he was and as long as he did those two things, he thinks it is all good in his eyes. All he has to do is give to the poor and restore fourfold to those whom he cheated. (Miyagi)
Insights from the Matthew Henry Commentary
1- (verse 5) Jesus told him to come down quickly. Those whom the Lord calls must act immediately, for the time is here and now. They must not delay. To do so would be dangerous. “Behold, the Lord stands at the door and knocks.” Tomorrow is guaranteed to no one.
2- (verse 3) “And sometimes those that come to hear the word of Christ, as Zacchaeus did, only for curiosity, beyond what they thought of, have their consciences awakened, and their hearts changed.” So a person who is curious about Jesus may actually hear God’s word and have his heart changed. That is the power of God and His word.
3- (verse 7) Those who murmured that Jesus is going to stay in the house of a sinner is judging Zacchaeus to be a great sinner. But are they not sinners as well? And didn’t Jesus come to seek and save the lost? Those who judged Zacchaeus are no better than him. That is why Jesus tells us not to judge others. Often times, those who judge others are equally as sinful if not worse.
Insight from the commentary by an article in Bible.org
Jesus came to save the worst of sinners - those that everyone hated. Zacchaeus was not just a tax collector. He was the “chief tax collector,” indicating that he was considered a great sinner, hated by all. Jesus came to save the worst of sinners, and Zacchaeus is one of them. And many times, we don’t understand why Jesus would save the very people that are hated by so many. But the truth remains: Jesus came to earth to seek and save the lost- those lost in sin. (Cole)
The attitude of Zacchaeus was very prideful, self righteous, arrogant and boastful. He has not done it. He is just talking. How many churches today have a similar attitude? Where is the outreach? Are they looking for the Zacchaeus in their communities to deliver the gospel message of salvation? Are the senior pastors today covering their tracks and touching bases to give the appearance of being ministers of God, “we have already done that” or “we have already covered those bases?” These pastors are just doing church by the numbers. So when you hear a pastor say these things, they are covering their tracks just like Zacchaeus. Are they like Zacchaeus, full of pride and just faking it? The Lord will come again and judge. And all these player churches will be condemned. Many of the local churches are just like Zacchaeus, full of spiritual pride, boastful and self-righteous. (Miyagi)
Question:
How many of us has an outreach?
Are we still doing church only?
Are we looking for the Zacchaeus as Jesus did to deliver the gospel message of salvation?
Zacchaeus was not ready, willing and able to accept the gift of salvation but covered his bases by making declarations that is all “shi bai” (He was just faking).
What do I do?
I go out to Chinatown to do tract ministry with my wife 4-5 times a week. We pass out “our daily bread” in Chinatown. The Holy Spirit showed me that when a person accepts one of these little booklets, they are accepting the invitation of Jesus. But they must make a decision to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior before salvation becomes a part of their household. Salvation is knocking on their doors, but they still have to make the decision to accept. Many open the booklet out of curiosity, but have not made the decision to accept Christ yet. They were only curious. Zacchaeus was only curious. He was not ready to make a decision for Christ. He justified himself by good works. He had a plan to cover up his sin. He wasn’t ready to accept christ. He was only curious. He knew that he was a big time sinner because he was the chief tax collector. And yet, when the invitation was presented to him, he said “look Lord, I will give half of my wealth to the poor and if I have cheated anyone, I will restore fourfold.” This was all talk. He knew he was a big sinner. He was really saying I dont need the gift of your salvation. He was saying that he was not lost. He was doing just fine. Because the accounting of Zacchaeus’ life came up that day, he had to give an account. But he refused the Lord. All the work that we claim for Jesus’ service is nothing. The people we meet in Chinatown is very similar. All the wealth that Zacchaeus possessed is as filthy rags before the Lord. He refuse to accept the gift of eternal life from Jesus Christ. And he thinks that by his good works, it is good enough. (Miyagi)
The carnal believer today thinks that by giving their weekly tithes and offering and being part of a ministry,that they are all good. But they are fooling themselves. Jesus will say, “ I never knew you.” (Miyagi)
Cornelius was a devout man who fear God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people and pray to God always. That is the contrast to Zacchaeus. The messengers went to his house. Then an angel of God appeared to him and said that your prayers and your alms have come up as a memorial before God. Go to Joppa and look for Simon and he will tell you what you must do. The message is “ be baptise in the name of the Lord.” Peter is talking to Cornelius. God told him to seek out this guy. And Cornelius, a just man, with a good reputation was divinely instructed by the angels to summon Peter’s house and hear words from him. The jest of the message was that he commanded them to be baptised in the name of the Lord. and by doing so, he will receive the gift of salvation. The gift of the Holy Spirit is salvation. Compare to Cornelius, Zacchaeus was not a just man and made an excuse when Jesus came to him. Peter’s job was to give the message. Cornelius’ prayers was heard by God. So Peter was to baptise Cornelius in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is to be baptised with the Holy Spirit. To be baptised in Jesus Christ is to be baptise in the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ baptism is with spirit and fire. Then this baptism of the Holy Spirit is to receive the gift of eternal salvation. (Miyagi)
The second phase of our chinatown tract ministry is to lead them to make a decision to receive the gift of eternal life. We have been doing this for quite some time now. We are about to take it to the next step which is to ask them if they are ready, willing and able to accept the gift of Jesus Christ. There are many Zacchaeus in Chinatown. Some of them are very wealthy, and some, we have met at least 2 or 3 times. They come because of the hype, the excitement and the feeling good. But many are not ready to accept Jesus Christ. No one is promised tomorrow. Today is the day of salvation. (Miyagi)
Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart as in the rebellion, for tomorrow is promised to no one. (Miyagi)
Miyagi
The Body of Christ Jesus Fellowship
Makaha, HI USA
Work cited
Cole, Steven. “Lesson 87: Why Jesus Came (Luke 19:1-10)”. Bible.org. June 18, 2013
Keener, Greg. S. The IVP bible background commentary, New TEstament, Downers grove: Intervarsity press. 1993. Print
Marshall, Morgan & Scott, Ltd, Matthew Henry’s commentary, Zondervan: Grand Rapids. 1961
Miyagi, The Body of Christ Jesus Fellowship, a non profit domestic corporation, est. 2002, Makaha, Hawaii, USA.
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