1 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 what was lost."
My thoughts -
How do we respond to grace? We have been forgiven much. I know that I, at least, was and still am desperate for forgiveness. We need it. We need mercy. We need grace. I have been awake all night at times begging for it. And God is good. What we ask for we receive.
Zacchaeus was desperate. He climbed a tree just to catch a glimpse of Jesus. Jesus sees Zacchaeus and tells him he will be staying with him. Zacchaeus doesn't hesitate. He climbs down and welcomes Jesus gladly. Not only that, but in his joy exclaims that he's giving half of his wealth away to the poor right then and there. Not only is he giving to the poor but he is also settling up with anyone he has cheated. With interest.
How do we respond to Jesus? My changes have been a lot more subtle than Zacchaeus'. Zacchaeus was lost, knew he was lost, knew he needed Jesus, and Jesus saved him. He responded with joy and with generosity. Not only where his sins forgiven but he paid restitution. He did so gladly.
Do we follow Zacchaeus's example? Do we not only receive forgiveness but also turn from our sins and give as generously as we have received?
I don't. Not yet, at least. But I'm working on it.
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