If you want to know Jesus, you need to know that He sees us.
Read chapter 19 of the gospel according to Saint Luke here.
The encounter between Jesus and Zacchaeus is a vivid illustration of Jesus’ saving power at work.
Luke tells us that Zacchaeus was a tax collector and a wealthy man. It would be difficult to overstate how much tax collectors were disliked in Israel at that time. First, they were collaborators with Rome, and thus considered traitors to their country. Second, the salary of the tax collector was the difference between the money he collected from taxpayers and the money he was obliged to hand over to Rome. The tax collector could charge people a little extra and live modestly, or he could tax people exorbitantly and live a life of luxury. Rome didn’t care. He could even play favorites – charging some people just the minimum needed and sticking those he didn’t like with a high bill. By noting that Zacchaeus was wealthy, Luke implies that he was taking his share and then some from the people of Jericho.
Luke also tells us that Zacchaeus wanted to see who Jesus was. What had Zaccheus heard about Jesus? Was he hoping to see a miracle? Being short in stature, he climbed the sycamore tree to see Jesus. Did he want Jesus to see him? Was he hoping Jesus would speak to him? Or was he hoping up in that tree that Jesus wouldn’t notice him?
But Jesus did see Zacchaeus. That by itself is one of the most wonderful parts of the story. God is not distant, not aloof, not indifferent to our lives. God always sees us, and Jesus, the Son of God, took on human flesh so He could reveal God’s abundant love to us. We all want to be seen and we all want to be loved. Jesus sees us. He walks with us, He speaks with us, He loves us.
Jesus did not condemn Zacchaeus. He knew who Zacchaeus was, but He did not condemn him. Quite the contrary – He invited Himself to Zacchaeus’ house! He does the same for us. He invites Himself into our hearts. He desires to dwell in our hearts.
To do that, we have to let Him in. We have to accept His invitation. Zacchaeus modeled for us how to respond to Jesus. He responded to Jesus with joy. He did what Jesus asked Him to do – coming down quickly from the tree to be close to Jesus. He pledged to make amends for his sins – giving half of his money to the poor and paying back four times over anyone he has cheated.
By responding joyfully to Jesus’ invitation, Zacchaeus was a new man. He was a saved man – Jesus told him so. And Jesus tells all of us that this is the very reason He came down to earth – to find and rescue the lost sheep, to save us all from our sins. We’re all lost sheep. The shepherd is calling us. Do we hear Him? Do we respond joyfully to His call? Do we follow Him to our home?
To save us, Jesus had to come down from heaven to meet us on our level, despite all of the suffering that entailed for Him. So often, we climb a tree like Zacchaeus, to position ourselves a little above Jesus. Our pride is this kind of tree. Our ego. Our independence. Jesus traveled so far to be with us. Let’s climb down from our little trees to be with Him.
“Christ is the Master of humility. Christ is not called King as one who exacts tribute, or arms His forces with the sword, or visibly crushes His enemies, but because He rules men’s minds, and brings them believing, hoping, and loving into the kingdom of heaven.” -Saint Bede the Venerable
Image: Zacchaeus by Niels Larsen Stevns (downloaded from Wikipedia Commons).
Pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet every day for the salvation of souls.
