We are in a series called Broken and Healed, in which we are looking at people who found healing with God. But a question may be what hope is there when you have turned away from religion.
We live in an age that has seen a significant change in the religious landscape. In 1970 44% of people were going to church. That’s at 19% today. That is a change of almost 70 million people not going to church and not affiliating with Christianity.
Christian Smith, a professor of sociology at Notre Dame, wrote a new book Why Religion Went Obsolete: The Demise of Traditional Faith in America.
Smith’s thesis is simple: Traditional religion in America hasn’t merely declined numerically, but has become useless and irrelevant in the minds of most people. Due to long-simmering forces in “deep culture,” younger Americans don’t hate or oppose religion so much as they consider it irrelevant (xiv).
Perhaps, you don't know the books, but you have seen the social media posts of people deconstructing. Maybe you have done that yourself. And maybe you are seeing now that your secular perspective has not fulfilled your hopes and dreams. Maybe you wonder, for yourself or for others, what hope you have now. Could God heal me? Would God heal me?
We are looking at a person who turned from faith and found healing.
Broken Faith
Let’s look at the main character of this account:
His name is Zacchaeus, meaning “righteous one.” Jewish. Not surprising because they are in Jericho, part of the promised land of the people of God.
Chief tax collector. Interesting term. that is used nowhere else in the Bible. He is the arch tax collector. Chief tax collector. He is the ruler of the tax collectors.
This is not the IRS. This is something between the IRS and the mafia. Tax collectors were kind of a multilevel marketing scheme. Rome would tell them how much a person owed and that’s what Rome wanted from them. But the tax collectors would go after more so they could make a living. However much they collected above Rome’s cut was theirs to keep. So it was open to abuse. Zacchaeus is at the top of the organizational chart, so he is making money from everyone.
Even more, a tax collector for the Roman Empire. Rome conquered Israel. Israel was God’s nation and God’s people, and they were to establish God’s kingdom in the land by being devoted to the things of God. His people rebelled against him and they lost their land, their throne, their nation.
This Jewish tax collector is a sellout to his people. He is associating with Gentiles, handling impure money, probably doing sinful things, and therefore ceremonially unclean and thus excluded from the temple. Couldn't come, even if he wanted to. Jewish community probably didn't even associate with him. Didn't like him, so he hung with the lower rung of society, even though he was rich.
He probably was not interested in advocating for religion. He was only interested in leveraging his Jewish roots to collect taxes for Rome. He is a traitor to his people and despised. I know the people and language community and I will serve you by collecting from these people, my people, to pay Rome. Despised by his own people as he sold them out. He probably was not liked by Romans either, because he was Jewish, and even more, he was kingpin of a gang.
Rich. He has lots of money. He was interested in making money, not sharing his faith.
Probably not unlike many today who turn from Christianity in disinterest to pursue the world. How many people become less interested in church, in sharing the gospel, in reading the word and praying with others? They drift away and then think “I’m already in this stream, let me throw myself into it.”
He is of small stature and probably sought to make up for it with riches. All his wealth and he can’t see Jesus. Still things he is not able to do. There is some definite irony here. Chief tax collector, but small in size.
We don't know the full story of Zacchaeus; we can ask in heaven. We don't know if he grew bored, if he was turned off by the mess of God’s people. Maybe it was bad teaching, maybe he was disappointed with God, maybe he had a difficult family situation, was persuaded by all the posts showing his friends aligning with the Roman culture of the day and the many philosophers bashing religion, or maybe the pull and lure of the world simply seemed too irresistible.
But he is at the top of the system, and he is searching for a way to hear Jesus.
Searching for Something
Zacchaeus was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. So, he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. (v. 3 and 4)
We are not told why, but Zacheaus had an eagerness to hear Jesus. All the stuff he had, but he was still searching. All his riches can’t make up for his disconnection from God and his inadequacy as an individual.
Might not be too unlike the period we are in. Many are saying that we may be at a turning point, where people are more open to religion because secularism has let many down. It can’t articulate meaning to life, it can’t articulate a way to live, it can’t explain biological or ontological distinctions. It is failing in the public square, leading to confusion, depression, etc.
Rich people typically are not idle people. They have things to do. Lots to get done. Driven to accomplish something. As chief tax collector, he certainly had people asking for his attention. It's surprising he would take time to go see what the commotion was about, but it seems he was looking for something.
He brushed aside his to do list, walked away from his project management software to go see the preacher.
Climb a tree. If you were to walk outside and see someone in a tree, who would be your first bet? Probably a young kid–limber and full of energy. In their shorts and shortsleeves. You would not expect to see the CEO of the company way up high in a tree, not the chief officer. This takes a lot of humility. There is my boss at the top of the tree trying to see this street preacher. Might give credence to the preacher.
Zacchaeus' climbing the tree also accents his primary fault. He is short, of small stature. People would have laughed at him. Can’t see over the crowd so you climb a tree!?!? But he wanted to hear Jesus. He runs ahead of where Jesus is going and climbs a tree. There is a hope, an expectation, an eagerness displayed here. He is not being passive or idle. He exerts great energy and risks being ridiculed.
Let me say this: Zacchaeus is a model of what it means to pursue Jesus. For Zacchaeus to hear Jesus, he had to climb a tree. For you to hear Jesus you will need to read the Bible or go to church. That’s how we hear who he is. And it will require you to do something. You can’t sit there, do nothing, and then be disappointed that God doesn’t act. There is a readiness that God does in your heart. A readiness to hear and receive. Zacchaeus wants to hear Jesus. It may take humbling yourself to hear from him. It may require showing yourself as needy. So many people today say they want to hear Jesus, but they are not willing to put down their work. They are not willing to sacrifice anything. Many today won’t admit their neediness. I think this affects their prayer life. Most people don't even want to ask for prayer in church because they fear how it will be perceived. Would rather go to a counselor outside of any social network they have.
You can’t follow Jesus and maintain the illusion that you have it all together. I need Jesus, just a little bit. I'm good with direction, GPS assists me. Lost.
Won't raise your hand to receive prayer because people might think something is wrong. Won’t share how people can pray because they might think I can't handle life, think I am weak.
Jesus came to see and to save the lost. If you want salvation you have to admit you are lost.
Ask Direction
Lost: It means you have no idea where you are going. It means any road will do. Lost means you are on a path of destruction. May be having a great time. So lost you don't know you are lost. Degrees of lost. There is, “I'm supposed to be here, but I'm not.” There is “I’m so lost I don't know that I am lost.” Hit speed bumps and you don't even notice. Angry, mad, following the ways of the world. Disoriented. Pride kicks in and keeps you from asking for help.
Zacchaeus positions himself to see Jesus physically, and positions to see him spiritually.
In Lord of the Rings, Gollum is one who is taken by the power of the ring. It has destroyed his life, ruined him, but he won't let it go. Disfigured in every way. He dies on Mount Doom when he is hurled along with the ring of power into the lava.
Jesus’s Invitation
And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. (v. 5 and 6)
Jesus comes to this despised tax collector, this religious apostate, sees him in a tree, and he calls him by name. Staggering. A man embarrassing himself in a tree. He is on the upper deck and Jesus calls him. Jesus knows his name and presumably everything else about him. Nothing is hidden.
He didn't call him “boy.” Didn't call him “hey you.” He calls him by name.
When you encounter a person who knows everything about, you it is intimidating. What would you expect to be the next words of a person you just met, and even though you are a distance away, he calls your name? All seeing eye of God.
Jesus invites himself over for dinner. I must stay at your house today.
You only go into the homes of people who are your friends. Got a rift between you and another? Then you won’t go to see them. You go to people you care about and to those whom you want to know you care. This is the mission of Jesus.
This is the Christian faith. Jesus is seeking to save the lost. He is not waiting for them to get it all together and then go to them. He enters into the mess. He doesn't give Zacchaeus time to clean up his house to make Jesus feel comfortable. “Get everything in order and then I will come.” No, he says, “I am coming today.”
This is Jesus’s approach to mission. Whose house am I going to? Who am I eating lunch with? If you want to evaluate how you are doing in becoming more like Jesus, ask yourself whom have I eaten with? It's a powerful thing to be with people and talk with them. Want to be like Jesus? Have lunch with a person banned from the temple!
When someone hasn’t been to church, has bailed on Jesus, has pushed that Bible to the side. When he has betrayed his community and pushed an agenda contrary to God’s people, and then shows up in church, humbly acknowledging what they have done has not satisfied them. How will you receive them? Jesus goes to their house for dinner.
One big concern with Christianity in America, and building a church in Alpharetta, is the breakdown in community and the disconnection of Christians from the lost. More interested in separation and distance than on seeking and befriending. More concerned with running and hiding than with belief in the power of God to confront and change people.
And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” (v. 7)
There is a moral majority who is now outraged at grace, “He is hanging out with a sinner. We would never do that!”
All the people…began to mutter against Jesus. People even muttered at Jesus. Let me also point out the great sin of grumbling. What was the great sin of the Israelites? Grumbling and complaining. It's easy to grumble at what people are doing; it's much harder to be friends with them.
They see Jesus go to this man’s house and think Jesus doesn't know what he is doing. They grumble because this guy has wanted nothing to do with Jesus. They grumble because they see Jesus going off with another who has abandoned them, who has left them to go after the world.
But the gospel is greater than the power of the world. When God does a work in a person, it doesn't matter how far they have gone. When God opens a prodigal’s eyes to grace
Grumbling is a result of not believing in the power of God. The Israelites grumbled in the desert about what they had to eat. The American church grumbles because people are not in church. Are you going to others with the good news?
The Coming of Salvation
And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” (verse 8)
Zacchaeus receives Jesus’s invitation gladly.
He rejoices in it. His response also shows how great a change has happened.
Zacchaeus demonstrates repentance.
He is willing to give up everything he has gained. His heart has changed, and that changes everything.
He offers to give half his goods.
The very thing he sold out his people in order to gain. Gives up what was once so valuable. First of all he offers half of his goods.
Speak to the people of Israel, When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the LORD, and that person realizes his guilt, 7 he shall confess his sin that he has committed. And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. (Num. 5:6-7)
“Give” and “pay back” in this verse are in the present tense in Greek
I give (present and ongoing) half of my possession. It begins a different life for him. A life of generosity. He is not just a rule follower, towing the line of doing as little as possible to get by on the ok list. It’s a radical reorientation.
There is a fundamental change in this man. What he sacrificed everything to get, what he longed for, what he thought would fill him, he is now freely giving to others who have need.
Like a man who found a treasure in a field, then in his joy he goes and sells all he has to buy that field. (Matt. 13:44)
Zacchaeus is not buying his salvation. No amount of money can buy salvation. No, he’s showing, by his giving, the change of heart he’s had. When a person is truly repentant, it affects how they view and use money. Money is no longer their god—Jesus Christ is.
They don’t look to cheat people for money; they look to bless people with their money. They become givers rather than takers because they’ve been set free from greed and idolatry. A converted man is a generous man.
God changes him from the inside out. This is what it means to be born again. You come alive to the things of God. You come alive to God. You don’t care about what others think; you just want to know him, walk with him, and make him known. This is how you find purpose in life. There was a season, in my exploring the faith, that I kept coming across people and I thought, “That is what I would like to be like: kind, successful, generous, happy, fun to be around,” and everyone of those people was a committed Christian.
How powerful is faith and repentance in the grace of God. It atones for a life of rebellion.
And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (verses 9 and 10)
Jesus’s pronouncement.
This is not to be interpreted as meaning that the “Savior” had come to Zacchaeus’ house, but that salvation had occurred. The lost Zacchaeus had been sought (v. 5) and now saved (v. 10). The promised salvation had come to Zacchaeus and his family.
Zacchaeus is now a son of Abraham. This is the prodigal son story all over again. The son who trades his family in for the world and comes to his senses.
He is brought into the family of God. The Son of God calls Zacchaeus a son of Abraham, he is in the family. The promises of God are now his! All that God has been doing and promises has now come to him!
How can this be? What of Zacchaeus’ sins and offenses? Doesn't he need to make restitution, one who is big in stature comes to those of no stature. Jesus will lay down his life and die on the cross for the sins, disobedience, and rejection of God. This brings forgiveness. He will rise again to show we too can rise, not because of effort, riches, or goodness, but simply because Jesus is in us. He comes into our heart and we open ourselves.
Preach the gospel to yourself.
What changes you is what keeps changing you. It's the gospel, and you never move on from it.
Zachaeus finds what he was looking for. We don't know the background. It is presumed that what is given here is what he was looking for. Zacchaeus wanted salvation. Salvation from his little stature, salvation from all who didn't like him. Salvation from taking advantage of others. Salvation from defrauding others.
He is no longer an outsider. He is a son!
He is brought into the family of God. He learned grace. He found acceptance. He is restored to the people of God, not necessarily those of his lineage, but those whose hearts have been changed.
That day he became a “true” son of Abraham. Abraham believed God’s promise, and God counted Abraham as righteous because of his belief (Gen. 15:6). The same has happened here with Zacchaeus. He has believed the promise of God and has become a “son of Abraham,” a person of faith.
Jesus is the solution to all. Luke is concerned with telling us people like Zacchaeus could be welcomed back in. The rest of the Bible tells what he has done and why it would appeal to people. Outcasts can be adopted into the family and receive the full rights and privileges of sons, and it changes them completely. Jesus's invitation is to all.
Discussion Questions
- In what ways does Zacchaeus demonstrate he has turned away from his religious roots?
- How does Zacchaeus show a pursuit and reception of Jesus? How are you pursuing and receiving what Jesus offers?
- How is Zacchaeus changed from the inside out? What does Jesus say of Zacchaeus?
