Well, please turn with me in your Bibles to Luke chapter 18. Luke chapter 18. God willing, we'll return to our studies in the book of Acts in a few weeks. This morning, we're looking at another book that Luke, the author of Acts, wrote.
Our focus will be on chapter 19, verses 1 to 10, the salvation of Zacchaeus, but I want to read beginning in chapter 18 at verse 18. So Luke 18, 18, now a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? So Jesus said to him, Why do you call me good? No one is good but one, that is God.
You know the commandments. Do not commit adultery. Do not murder. Do not steal.
Do not bear false witness. Honor your father and your mother. And he said, All these things I have kept from my youth. So when Jesus heard these things, he said to him, You still lack one thing.
Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me. But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich. And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, he said, How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God.
For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. And those who heard it said, Who then can be saved? But he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. Then Peter said, See, we have left all and followed you.
So he said to them, Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or parents or brothers or wife or children for the sake of the kingdom of God, who shall not receive many times more in this present time and in the age to come eternal life. Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished. For He will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. They will scourge him and kill him, and the third day he will rise again.
But they understood none of these things. The saying was hidden from them, and they did not know the things which were spoken. Then it happened, as he was coming near Jericho, that a certain blind man sat by the road begging. And hearing a multitude passing by, he asked what it meant.
So they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. And he cried out, saying, Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. Then those who went before warned him that he should be quiet. But he cried out all the more, Son of David, have mercy on me.
So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he had come near, he asked him, saying, What do you want me to do for you? He said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. Then Jesus said to him, Receive your sight, your faith has made you well.
And immediately he received his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich.
And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was going to pass that way. 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. So he made haste and came down and received him joyfully.
But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner. 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. And Jesus said to him, Today salvation has come to this house because he also is a son of Abraham.
For the son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank You for the written Word of the living and true God.
We thank You that You've not left us alone in the world, but You've given us this sure Word, this inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word. And not only the Word of God, but the Spirit of God. And we pray that He would come now, that He would illumine our minds and hearts, that You would open our hearts to receive the good things that the Word of God has for each one of us. Encourage your saints with a fresh view of the glory and the excellence and the majesty of Jesus Christ as the one in whom alone there is forgiveness.
And God, I pray that you'd open hearts of those unbelievers. I pray that the Spirit of God would do that which is impossible with men, but is obviously possible with you. Open hearts and give the graces of faith and repentance that today may in fact be the day of salvation. Forgive all of us of all of our sin and unrighteousness and cleanse us in that precious blood of the Lord Jesus.
And it's in his name that we pray. Amen.
Introduction
Well, last week we considered the salvation of that thief on the cross in the 11th hour. And this morning we're going to look at the salvation of this man. Zacchaeus, and I read the extended sort of context because I think there is a connection between what Jesus teaches in chapter 18 and with what we see displayed here in chapter 19. So I want to look at two things, two main concerns this morning.
First, the object of God's mercy in verses 1 to 4, and then secondly, the mission of Jesus Christ in verses 5 to 10. So let's look
The Object of God's Mercy
first at the object of mercy, and I want to consider two things here. First, a description of his person, and then a demonstration of God's power. As we meet this man Zacchaeus, Luke tells us a lot about him. In the first place,
Description of Zacchaeus
his occupation, he was a tax collector. As I'm sure all of you have discovered as you read through the gospel records, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, you will see that tax collectors were not the most favored among society. They were oftentimes looked at as traitors by the Jews, because oftentimes Jews functioned in that capacity. You see them castigated.
You see them used as illustration, even by our Lord Jesus, as being very bad sinners. And with reference to being tax collectors, they collaborated with Gentiles. They functioned on behalf of the Roman Empire. As well, they handled currency with pagan inscriptions and even icons of civil authority that were deified and worshipped.
They took money from fellow Jews to give to an oppressing government, and as well, they were often greedy and corrupt themselves. So they had several strikes against them in terms of society at large, and with reference to a holy God, they had nothing to commend themselves to Him and everything before Him to be condemned for their sin and rebellion against a holy God. In the gospel narratives, they are linked with sinners in Matthew 9-10. They are linked with heathen Gentiles in Matthew 18-17.
They are linked with harlots in Matthew 21-31. And they are linked with extortioners, unjust, and adulterous men in Luke 18-11. So when we come to consider the case of Zacchaeus, we're not dealing with a polished man. We're not dealing with a good man.
We're not dealing with a man who is worthy of the grace of God Almighty. There is none righteous, no not one. There is none of us who is worthy of the grace of God. That's why it is called grace.
It is God's benefit, God's conference of blessing upon those who are undeserving. Notice his economic standing. The text tells us that he was rich, and this again indicates most likely some misgivings in his dealings. In other words, he got rich being a tax collector, and as we trace out his repentance and the fruits of his repentance later on, he pledges to give back those things that he had taken.
So he was a rich man, and then as well, his stature. He was a short man. Some say it was Jesus that was short, based on this passage, and that Zacchaeus had a tough time seeing him as a result of that. But I think the text indicates that it was Zacchaeus.
So Zacchaeus goes up into this sycamore tree so that he can get a view of the Lord Jesus as he passes there through Jericho. And in terms of his spiritual state, he is a sinner. He is condemned before God. He is, again, not righteous.
He has no works to offer up to God, and there is nothing about him that should solicit from God blessing and benefit. Now, that's a description of his person. Second, under the object of mercy, I want to consider the fact that he is a demonstration of God's power. Now,
Demonstration of God's Power
go back in the context to Luke 18. In Luke 18, at verse 18, we have this certain ruler, and verse 23 tells us he was very rich, asks Jesus, saying, Good teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Jesus is not prescribing to him an alternate way to obtain heaven. Rather, Jesus is preaching the law of God to him to show him his sin and to show him his need for the Lord Jesus Christ.
So this man is able to boast, at least with some external compliance, that all these things I have kept from my youth. So Christ then takes that 10th commandment, you shall not covet, and he presses the man's conscience with that specific mandate. That's what we have in verse 22. So when Jesus heard these things, he said to him, you still lack one thing.
Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven, and come, follow me." Again, this is not a prescription for an alternate way of finding eternal life, but it is rather bringing that tenth word to bear upon the young man to show him his sin. Verse 23 indicates, when he had heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich. Now, on the heels of that, Christ makes this statement in verses 24 and 25. And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, he said, So what do we have with Zacchaeus?
We have an example of a camel entering through the eye of a needle and entering into the kingdom of God. Jesus makes this declaration. It is harder for a rich man, based on his status before a holy God, to enter into the presence of that holy God than it is for a camel to shimmy through the eye of a needle. Now this provokes from the apostles, or Christ's disciples, who then can be saved. there was this prevailing idea that men that were blessed economically were blessed by God.
And having been blessed by God, then they were good positionally before that God. So on the heels of that, Christ says, with men it is impossible, but with God all things are possible. In other words, how does a camel get through the eye of a needle. It is because God is sovereign, God is gracious, and God is able to make it transpire.
In the same way, a rich man won't be able to enter into the kingdom of God based on his ability, based on the abilities of others, because with men it is impossible, but with God all things are possible. This is an encouragement for all of the people of God, that as we pray for those on our list that are unconverted, we don't have the power to change them, we don't have the power to convert them, we don't have the power to confer upon them the graces of faith and repentance. but the God to whom we pray does, and He delights in it, and He rejoices in it, and this God is in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, according to the apostle Paul. When we see those blessed pictures in Revelation 5 and 7, where there are men from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation gathered before the throne, and they are proclaiming that salvation belongs to our God and to the Lamb who sits upon the throne, They're not faking it. That is precisely what obtained in their lives.
It wasn't their goodness, it wasn't their accomplishment, it wasn't their ability, it wasn't their so-called righteousness, but rather it was the sovereign grace of God Almighty, of whom our brother just read. It does not depend upon him who wills or upon him who runs, but upon God who shows So, this Zacchaeus is a demonstration of the grace of God, and similarly, with reference to a camel passing through the eye of a needle. That is precisely what we have in the case of Zacchaeus before us.
The Mission of Jesus Christ
So let's look secondly now at the mission of Christ in verses 5 to 10, and we see the invitation given and then the mission stated.
The Sovereign Invitation
Notice in the first place, with reference to this invitation, it's an invitation not like we're typically used to. We make invitations like this. We'd like for you to come over to our house. Jesus says to Zacchaeus, I'm going to come over to your house.
There is irresistible grace. He doesn't give Zacchaeus the weasel room to say, no, I don't want that. No, I will have nothing of that. Christ tells him what he is going to do.
You have perhaps seen that sort of famous painting of at least what's supposed to be Jesus. He's an ancient Near Eastern man. He looks a bit effeminate. He's got the long flowing hair and he's knocking at the door of sinners hearts.
And if you look closely, well, you don't have to look too closely at that particular image. There's no doorknob on Jesus' side. It is Arminianism through and through. The idea is that the sinner on the other side, as Jesus knocks gently upon the door, must exercise his or her free will and open that door so that the Savior can come in.
That's not what the Bible says. It doesn't depend upon him who wills or upon him who runs, but upon God who shows mercy. A better sort of conception, if we were to put it into a visible representation, is kind of like a SWAT team when they're going to serve a felony warrant, or they're going to arrest a drug dealer, and they take that big battering ram, and they knock down the door, and then the officers run in, and they conduct their business. That's more akin to what we have with irresistible grace.
Now, mind you, He makes us willing in the day of His power. We don't try to rebuff Him, we don't try to say no, but rather we see His prerogative, as He spells out in verse 10, to seek and to save that which was lost. not to help men save themselves, not to sort of finish something that they themselves began, but rather to open the door, to invade our personal space, to forgive us of our sins, and to confer upon us a righteousness that avails with the Father. We ought to praise God for this account of Zacchaeus because it ought to afford great hope for all of us that the Zacchaeuses of our lives are subject ultimately to a sovereign God who is in the business of saving sinners by His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. So notice the invitation proper.
Verse 5, it says, In the first place, you see his condescension. Christ stops at the base of this tree, and he looks up to this man Zacchaeus. Again, in the previous section, with blind Bartimaeus, the crowd tried to rebuff him because Jesus was too busy to pay attention to a blind beggar man. Well, that same argument might be made with reference to this man Zacchaeus.
Jesus is too busy, but he stops at the base of the tree and he looks up to this man. Secondly, you'll notice his omniscience. He understood and knew that this was, in fact, Zacchaeus. unless he had been briefed by people, hey, that little fellow sitting up in the tree is a man by the name of Zacchaeus. No, I think Luke is underscoring something concerning our Lord, not only in his humanity, but in his divinity.
And he speaks to this man and knows his name. And then we see, obviously, his grace. He says, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house. Now, pay attention to what our Lord says, make haste.
Don't tarry. Don't wait. Don't sit in the top of the tree and figure out your options. Don't try and, you know, work yourself out of it.
I think that oftentimes sermons meant by the Spirit of God to affect change in the people of God are oftentimes forgotten because we so little concern ourselves with the truth as it is in Jesus. We considered last Sunday, with reference to that thief on the cross, I mentioned that passage in Paul's letter to the Corinthians. Today is the day of salvation. Don't tarry, make haste and come down, is the word of the Lord Jesus Christ.
John Gill says in light of this, the dangerous estate and condition of sinners requires haste. It requires haste. So don't think that you always consider what your state is outside of Jesus Christ. You're liable to God's wrath and curse, both in this life and that which is to come.
You're liable to every bad thing that the law of God specifies in terms of disobedience to those who disobey. You're liable ultimately to hell and abandonment from the living and true God. You are liable to those things that Scripture speaks of in such a way that it ought to evoke from all of our hearts horror and fear and terror. This is why Paul says, knowing therefore the fear of the Lord, we persuade men.
It is a terrifying thing, Paul says in the book of Hebrews, to fall into the hands of a living God. And if you don't ponder this, and you don't consider this, and you think that everything that you see right here and right now is all there is to it, then you are sorely mistaken. There is a heaven to be gained by God's grace, and there is a hell to be gained by our own sinfulness. And so he says to this man, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.
And there I think he's speaking in terms of covenant. Later he'll identify this man as a son of Abraham. Not according to the flesh. Not all Israel is Israel.
Again, as our brother read in Romans chapter 9. It isn't physical attachment to Abraham that the Bible alights on to show us God's grace. Rather, it is the spiritual connection. It is the Galatians 3, 26 to 29 connection.
It is the reality that those who are in Christ Jesus, by God's grace, through faith in Him, are what? Their Abraham seed. And when Christ says that he must, and when Christ highlights that he is a son of Abraham, I think that Christ has in his mindset the very covenant of God in the salvation of sinners by Jesus Christ our Lord. Matthew Poole says, Zacchaeus is the first man we read of to whose house Christ invited himself.
And in it did more for Zacchaeus than he expected. Oh, the freeness and riches of divine grace, which seeks not a worthy object, but makes the object worthy and therefore loves it. Grace doesn't seek the worthy objects, grace makes worthy objects, and then grace loves those worthy objects that are made. Christ comes to deal graciously with this man Zacchaeus.
Zacchaeus Receives Christ Joyfully
Now notice his response in verses 6 and 8. In the first place, I would suggest he was initially curious. Why does he shimmy up that sycamore tree? Is that preparation?
Has he been feeling the pangs of his sin? No, he hears that Jesus is in Jericho and he wants to get a view of this. Again, kids, I don't know how wee little he is, but he's a short fellow if he can't see Jesus because of his stature. So he climbs up into this tree first out of curiosity.
He just wants to see what's happening. He just wants to know what's going on in terms of Jericho on that particular day. But then notice he comes down the tree in response to Christ. Verse 6, so he made haste and came down and received him joyfully.
Again, Matthew Poole says curiosity carried Zacchaeus up, but love to Christ bringeth him down. There is this great power of our Lord Jesus that when He issues the command, He gives the enablement to comply with the command. Remember at the gravesite of Lazarus, He says to that man who had already gotten to the point where he was stinking, where he was smelling, and Jesus says, come forth. Well, that's a horrible command if Christ does not have the power to enable compliance with the command.
It is most blessed in that instance, and therefore, Christ, the giver of the command, is able to enable this man. Lazarus to comply with the command and come out of the tomb. Well, the same thing is true here. Curiosity carries him up into that tree and love brings him down from that tree because Christ has changed his heart by the power of his word and spirit.
And then notice he receives Christ joyfully. Isn't that the case with sinners when they come to the Savior? Now, it may be in varying degrees. There are, you know, different dispositions among people.
Some people cry more than others. Some people laugh more than others. Some people have a natural disposition that is joyful over others. I get that.
There's a whole host of differences among image bearers of the true and living God. But this one thing is true among those who find this pearl of great price. They are joyful. They rejoice in the reality that they are now found in Him.
Not having a righteousness which is of their own from the law, but rather they are found righteous in and through Jesus Christ the Lord. They are forgiven, they are blessed, and as a result, they are joyful. That doesn't mean every single day they're going to be skipping and hopping and leaping. If they're thinking spiritually, they at least will be internally.
But with reference to this reality, a reception of Jesus Christ brings joy to the heart of sinners. That's what brings ultimate joy. See, we in this world think it's this or this or this or that that will produce joy in our hearts. That's not it.
It is the peace of Jesus Christ that surpasses all understanding. Such when we engage in or receive or experience even hardship and loss and affliction, trial and difficulty, there is nevertheless a peace that abides in the hearts of God's people. The reality that our sins are forgiven. The reality that we have a righteousness that avails with God.
The reality that when we breathe our last, we will enter into the presence of God most high. That brings joy to those in Christ Jesus. And this man, Zacchaeus, receives him joyfully. John Gill says, he not only received him into his house, but into his arms and heart.
Christ was a welcome guest to him as he is to every sinner, who by faith receives him as the Father's free gift, as the alone Savior and Redeemer, as the great mediator in all his offices. of prophet, priest, and king, and in every relation and character he bears, and embraces his doctrines, and submits to his ordinances, and that with the greatest joy. As there is reason for it, since with him he receives the free and full forgiveness of his sins, a justifying righteousness, an abundance of grace, and a right unto and meekness for heaven. I don't know that Zacchaeus had all that worked out the way that John Gill explains, but it was certainly there in seed form. The reality is, he not only received him into his house, but he received him into his arms, and even more importantly, into his heart.
And that's what produced joy in this man. And again, brethren, I don't think any of us will discount the sorts of things that we face in this world. We live in a world that is in opposition to our God. We live in a world where it's okay to blaspheme the name of the Savior, but boy, you better not ever speak ill of the prophet in Islam.
We live in a world where it's okay for pornography to go unabated or murdering babies to go unabated, but churches are being chased out of towns or chased out of their buildings because of this particular virus. There are a lot of horrific things that obtain in this world, but there's one thing they can never take from us, and that is our joy in the Lord Jesus Christ. wherever we are, whatever our circumstances, whatever our experiences may be, we have something that no man can ever deprive us of, and that is our salvation in Christ the Lord. This idea of a salvation that is on again and off again, this idea that a salvation can be lost, is an idea that is from the pit of hell. Praise God Almighty that He who begins this good work in us will complete it unto the day of Jesus Christ.
Praise God Almighty that in Romans chapter eight, he ends that blessed chapter celebrating the glory of the love of God for his people and that which nothing shall separate us from. Brethren, be encouraged, be strengthened, be joyful because we have the same God that Zacchaeus saw when he came down that sycamore tree and he received the Lord into his life. Notice, he confesses Jesus as Lord. Again, this is an expression of his faith.
Verse six, so he made haste and came down and received him joyfully. Verse eight, then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, look, Lord, that is always a great sign that God's work is in the heart of a sinner. We confess him as Lord. We don't see ourselves as Lord anymore.
Isn't that the fundamental sort of default response of all image bearers that are in opposition to God? We think that we're the captains of our own destiny. We think that we're kings of kings and lords of lords. We think that we're all that.
Brethren, when God by grace teaches us to see Jesus as Lord, that is a happy day. That is a glorious day. That is a wondrous day. Because again, our Lord is better and bigger and stronger and more glorious than any other Lord out there.
I remember back in the service, we had a staff judge advocate. That was the base lawyer. He was a big black fellow, and he had a coffee cup, and it said, my lawyer can beat up your lawyer. I've always thought as Christians, our Savior can beat up your Savior.
Our Savior is God most high, glorious, wondrous, excellent, immutable. able to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto God through Him. You see, why Zacchaeus is doing this is because he's experienced and tasted the grace of God. Notice
Repentance as Fruit of Grace
he manifests his faith through repentance. He owns his sins and he deals with his sins. Look at verse 8. I give half of my goods to the poor, and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.
He's not doing this as payment to the Lord for salvation. He's not doing this in a bartering system with the Lord in order to secure benefit. He is doing this as a recipient of benefit. He is doing this as a saved sinner.
He is doing this as one conquered by grace, and this is consistent with it, to evidence that grace by fruits of repentance. Our Confession says these good works, done in obedience to God's commandments, are the fruits and evidences of a true and lively faith. How do we know what happens to Zacchaeus is real? How do we know it's true?
Well, you can take the effect and go back to the cause. The cause is the grace of God, changing this man's heart, giving him the grace to confess Jesus as Lord, receiving him joyfully. What's the effect of that when persons so receive? They repent of their sins.
They get rid of those things that at one time enamored them. They get rid of their wealth, they get rid of their money, they get rid of whatever it is that had been an idol prior in their lives. The Geneva Bible captures it well. The example of true repentance is known by the effect.
It is cause and effect. It's not the case that we repent and therefore we are saved. We're saved and therefore we repent. It's not by words, lest any man should boast.
It's not what we do. It's not how we perform. It's not what we accomplish. Our soul and whole righteousness is Jesus Christ alone.
It is most glorious and most wondrous for us to ponder this. But before we go to the mission stated by our Lord,
The Crowd's Complaint
we got to go back to verse 7 and just see how the crowd responds to this. What's the crowd do when God manifests His grace? Do they praise? Do they worship?
Do they celebrate? No, that's what heaven does. In Luke 15, we learn that heaven rejoices over one sinner who repents. Earth, on the one hand, couldn't care less, but on the other hand, rages with even further enmity to the God of grace who does such things for such undeserving people.
You can always tell persons that don't understand grace, because they talk in terms of what's fair. They talk in terms of what's right. They talk in terms of merit. They talk in terms of goodness or perceived badness.
You don't understand grace then. Because grace is God's saving, miserable, hell-deserving sinners that could never save themselves, could never help Him save themselves, who don't even want to be saved without the power of the Spirit working in their hearts to show them their sin and to show them the glory of another world. So let's see what these persons do. Verse 7, But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.
This is the same response that's found in Luke 5. You can turn there. Luke 5 at the salvation or conversion of Matthew. That apostle and author of the first gospel.
Luke chapter 5 at verse 27, after these things, he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi. This is Matthew. He had two names, two first names. I have James and Peter.
Some of you have whatever your name is, and then a middle name. Sitting at the tax office. And he said to him, follow me. So he left all, rose up, and followed him.
I love Luke's comment that he left all. In the parallel in Matthew 9, Matthew doesn't say, I left all. Because I think that Matthew wouldn't want people to say, oh, what a wonderful guy. You left everything for Jesus.
What a wonderful example of repentance. Matthew doesn't boast. Matthew doesn't indicate that. Luke certainly can.
The reality is, is that he left all. Why wouldn't we leave all for Jesus? Why wouldn't we put off those things that are detrimental to our souls? Why wouldn't we put off those things which hinder communion with God, the God who made us, the God who created us for worship of Him and communion with Him?
So Matthew leaves all and follows Jesus. Now notice in verse 29, Then Levi gave him a great feast in his own house, and there were a great number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them. And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against his disciples, saying, Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners? Then Jesus answered and said to them, Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
Same sort of thing. Why would he go and eat dinner at the house of Zacchaeus? Doesn't he know what kind of man Zacchaeus is? Or that woman which was a sinner in Luke chapter 7?
When she comes and she weeps on his feet in the house of Simon the Pharisee, and Simon's meditating in his own mind thinking, doesn't he know what kind of woman this is? Doesn't he know the degree of wickedness that this woman possesses? Doesn't he know how degraded she is because of her own chosen profession, perhaps in harlotry or some other form of sin? The grace of God is not something that everybody appreciates.
They say things like, it's not fair that that guy's saved, and I'm not. It's not fair that that guy's going to heaven, and he's not. It's not fair that the thief on the cross, who was perhaps guilty of insurrection and murder himself, is now at the marriage supper. It's not fair.
To that I say, it isn't fair. It's amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I'm found, was blind, but now I see. It's about grace.
If it was fair, every single one of us would be in hell for an eternity of eternities. That's what fairness brings. That's what justice demands. That's what God's righteousness rewards to those who break his law.
It's amazing grace, we say, not amazing fairness. And then notice in Luke 15, Luke 15, verse one, Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to him to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, This man receives sinners and eats with them. So he spoke this parable to them, saying, See, these men are grumbling.
These men are whining. These men are complaining. But these men, unbeknownst to them, are preaching the very sum and substance of the gospel itself. Isn't that our good news?
This man, this Jesus, receives sinners and eats with them? That's absolutely, positively the best news any sinner could ever hear. And I guarantee you that the tax collectors and the sinners and all those who had come near to hear him wanted to hear how he was going to respond to this charge. What's he going to say when these Pharisees and when these scribes are stroking their beards and looking down in their judgment and wagging their fingers and saying, this man received sinners?
They want to know. They want to understand. Does He, in fact? Because they had at least an understanding of their sinfulness before God, and want to know if He's the sort of man that's going to receive them and eat with them.
So what does Jesus say? He says, Yes, I do. I do it like a man who loses one sheep, leaves 99, and goes and finds that one. And then there's rejoicing in heaven.
I do it like a woman who loses one coin and doesn't just count her losses and write it off at the end of the year, but she moves the furniture, she sweeps up, she finds that coin, and there is rejoicing. just like rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents. And then he says, I do it like that father who had the son, the prodigal son, who said to the father, you're better off to me dead than alive. Give me my share of the inheritance so I can go do what I really want to get about. So that young man goes, he squanders it all in prodigal living, he comes to himself not in repentance, he comes to himself as a mercenary.
He comes to himself and he reckons, well if I go and I cast myself upon my father's mercy, then he will receive me as a hired hand and I can at least not eat pig slop or crave pig slop each and every day. He wasn't converted. He's converted when the Father, who sees him from a long way off, runs to him, falls on him, kisses him, grabs him, brings him back to the household, puts a ring on his finger, puts a robe on his back, and orders the execution of the fatted calf or fatted animal so that they can eat and feast and rejoice. That's how Jesus receives sinners and eats with them.
Again, we consider this last week. We have taken the beneficence, the goodness, the graciousness, the ocean fullness of God's grace, and we have turned it onto its head and said, it's just a small little pond. It's just efficacious for just this small little handful. There's just this few that's gonna populate heaven.
For most of you, there's no hope at all. That is contrary to the written word of the living and true God. There is mercy to be found for great multitudes from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation. Disavow, disabuse, get it out of your head, this mindset that Christ isn't a real Savior for real sinners.
Because He most surely is, and we see it displayed here in the case of Zacchaeus. So this is similar to previous instances where Christ saves. But as well, it is the default setting of man. It is.
What do you think Paul tells us in Romans 12? Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep. Is that natural dispositionally to us? Not usually.
We rejoice when we get good. We don't typically rejoice when others get good. Someone comes and says, I got a great raise at work. What's the default setting?
Well, I didn't get a great raise at work. I didn't get any benefits from my employer. I didn't get... Brethren, we have to be told, even as God's people, who have grace in our hearts, to rejoice with those who rejoice, and to weep with those who weep.
What's the default setting of man? Just the opposite. And we see that here. The grace of God comes to a needy sinner in the person of Zacchaeus, and instead of saying, praise God for that grace, Praise God for justification by faith alone.
They say to themselves, or they say amongst themselves, this man is going to eat at his house? How scandalous, how reprehensible, how vile, how wicked. They don't rejoice in the goodness of Jesus. They get upset that he's going to be with the badness of Zacchaeus.
It is a failure to grasp the saving power of God in the gospel of Christ. Listen to Calvin. He says, it is thus that the world disregards the offer of the grace of God, but complains bitterly when it is conveyed to others. You're not happy.
You don't want it. It's preached to you. We call on you to believe. We call on you to look and live.
You reject it. You despise it. You forsake it. You want no truck with it whatsoever.
And then you have the wherewithal to complain about those who do. Those who by God's grace respond, those who by God's grace come to know Him as Lord and Savior, that is a horrible default. We should want the best of our fellows. We should want their productivity.
We should want their benefit. We should want their goodness and their wholeness and their health. That is a legit response from image bearers of the true and living God, because we are to participate in who God is, not in some divinity sense, but God is good and rejoices to do good for people. And so we see these miserable wretches complaining about the grace of God in verse 7.
And
Salvation Stated: Christ's Mission
that brings us finally to Jesus' statement in verses 9 and 10 concerning His mission. Notice in verse 9, He says, Today salvation has come to this house. See, this is what Jesus brings, salvation. not moral reform. Jesus doesn't now wag his finger at Zacchaeus and say, all in all you're a decent fellow, just don't extort people and try to be better.
No, that's not what Jesus brings. Telling sinners to try and be better is a futile task. Isn't it? Tell sinners, be better, do good.
That doesn't work. We need empowering grace. We need the spirit of the living God. We need the inspired word of God to inform our minds and our hearts and our consciences.
He says today, salvation has come. That's what Christ brings. Not even, you know, revolution in terms of the political sphere. Brethren, as bad as it is right now, I don't want to scare you.
I'm not a prophet or the son of the prophet. It can get a lot worse. We shouldn't expect heaven on earth. We shouldn't expect the eschaton in this futile world.
We can be salt. We can be light. We can be faithful. We can be prayerful.
We can do all the things that God Most High calls us to do. But brethren, I don't want you to think that we're going to see heaven on this earth. we will see hopefully some prosperity, we will hopefully see some small victories from here to there, but ultimately after Christ is done, he ushers in the eschaton wherein righteousness dwells. Again, I don't wanna scare anybody and I'm not suggesting we shouldn't pray God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven, but when we try to take the eschaton and infuse it into this world, more often than not, what happens is that we become discouraged We become disenchanted and disenfranchised. We need to be faithful.
We need to be full of courage. We need to stand fast, come what may. But brethren, Christ brings salvation. He doesn't bring moral reform.
He doesn't bring sort of a behavior modification. He doesn't bring sort of salvific benefit on human society. He brings salvation, salvation from sin. Matthew 1.21, you shall call his name Jesus, for it is he who will save his people from their sins.
He brings salvation from the effect or from the penalty of God's law. Galatians 3.13, God made him a curse. to receive in himself the punishment due for us, for us having been cursed by the law for not fulfilling its terms and its mandates. And he ultimately brings salvation from the wrath of God. You have that bit in Romans 3, 25 and 26, where the apostle Paul, starting with justification by faith alone, before he gets to the effect upon the persons justified by faith alone, he shows how this scheme answers to the righteousness of God.
In other words, the gospel does not compromise the perfections of God. In the gospel, in the cross specifically, we see the demonstration of God's righteousness, that he may be both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. See, for Paul that mattered. I'm not sure we're like Paul in that respect.
We need to think first and foremost about God's glory, and that's precisely what Paul does. But in that bit, in 325 and 326, he speaks of Christ being set forth as a propitiation by His blood. For those who understand that word, it has to do with the wrath of God. Because of our sin, because of our rebellion, because of our transgression, we're justly liable to God's wrath, His punishment, His curse.
This is where Paul begins the gospel exposition in chapter 118. For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth and unrighteousness. Well, what do we do with that wrath? How do we avert the wrath?
How do we deflect the wrath? Well, the blessed provision of God in the gospel is the second person of the Trinity who assumed our humanity with all the essential properties and the common infirmities thereof and yet without sin. And that one went to the cross as a propitiation. He doesn't deflect the wrath of God.
Rather, he exhausts the wrath of God in himself that was due for each of us. That is glorious. That is beautiful. That is something that Christians should celebrate each and every day.
When you're lacking in that joy of the Lord, consider the fact that you are deserving of God's wrath and curse, and Christ took it in Himself. Christ drank the dregs of God's wrath to the very end drop. He exhausted it for us, and that's the point in Romans 3. Notice, he moves on in his statement concerning Zacchaeus, again to covenant.
Verse 9b, because he also is a son of Abraham. He was a son of Abraham not because he was an Israelite. He was a son of Abraham not because he was a Jew. He was a son of Abraham because he's a believer.
He's a Christian. He is one for whom Jesus died. That's the point in Galatians 3, 26 to 29. Remember those Jewish leaders that opposed Jesus in John 8.
They were prizing or parading themselves or priding themselves on being connected to Abraham. And he says, if you're the sons of Abraham, why are you trying to kill me? Before Abraham was, I am. They pick up stones to throw at him.
They were Jews, but they weren't converted. Not all Israel is Israel, as we see in Romans 9. It's not somebody that's circumcised outwardly, but it's the inward circumcision of the heart. And that's why Jesus refers to him as a son of Abraham.
So not only men from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation, which we see in Genesis chapter 12, in you, all the nations of the earth will be blessed. But among those tribes, among those tongues, among those peoples, among those nations, are sinners! Wretched, hell-deserving, Zacchaeus-like sinners! Wretched, hell-deserving, thief-on-the-cross-like sinners!
People that violate the law of God! People that transgress it! People that lack conformity unto it! We have this delusion that Christ came to call the righteous.
We imitate the Pharisees and the scribes in that. Oh, he comes to a certain class of people, people that are like him and people that want him. That wasn't me, and I doubt it was you. You didn't want him.
You weren't seeking after him. The implications of Romans 3 touch all of us. There is none righteous. No, not one.
There is none who seeketh after God. There is no fear of God before our eyes. So if that is going to be fixed or remedied, it's not going to be fixed or remedied by us. It is going to be by virtue of Christ, the executor of the new covenant, the surety of a better covenant who brings to make these blessings flow.
And that brings us to his mission stated so specifically in verse 10. Really bizarre how persons in the history of the world have missed this, have missed the implications, have missed the significance of Jesus, have missed the whole idea behind the coming of the Son of Man. It is this simple. It really is!
What's your fascination or your love for Jesus? What is that founded upon? Well, it's His mission, you see. He came to seek and to save that which was lost.
And I'm not going to kid you, I was lost. I was dead. I was blind. I was destitute.
I rightly deserved every bad thing God could bring upon a sinner because I had violated His law. But I see, by God's grace, this reality. Four. The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.
I love that seeking and saving. It's not just saving, but there is the seeking. And I know for those of you who have been with us for any time, you know where I typically go when I speak of God's seeking. I go to the beginning.
Because when Adam and Eve sinned, they didn't go to God. God came to them. When Adam and Eve sinned, they tried to hide themselves from God. That's just a fool's errand, right?
They make these fig leaf coverings and they hide among the trees. Hey, genius, do you know that God made those trees? He can certainly see between them and find you out. But it's God who seeks.
It's God who saves. It's God who kills the animals and takes the skins and covers Adam and Eve. It's God who calls Abram out of Ur of the Chaldeans in Genesis chapter 12 to remedy the situation that we see in Genesis 3 to 11. If there's hope for this world, it's not going to come by virtue of man.
It's going to come from on high. And as the prophets move forward, and as we go through the contours of redemptive history, we see at the very foundation is the promise of God of Genesis 3.15, that He will put enmity between the seed of the woman and between the serpent himself. In other words, it is going to be a man, not the men, that have rebelled and transgressed, but the man of God's own love. He will send him, he will clothe him in our humanity, and that one will live, and he will die, and he will be raised again.
And that to seek. Again, brethren, this concept where you can never encourage a sinner to seek God, When all through Scripture we have a God who seeks out sinners, why would we turn that on its head? Of course we bid sinners come. Of course we call sinners, believe.
Of course we tell them to seek. Of course we tell them to come because God has said so. And because God himself seeks and saves that which is lost. That's the salvific or salvation intention of the Lord Jesus.
Again, he came to seek and to save. Not seeking to subjugate the Roman Empire. That's the Jewish popular idea of Messiah at the time of Jesus. There was a messianic expectation.
There were contenders. There were persons or claimants to the messianic sort of crown or throne. There were Jews that were looking for that, but not this kind. They didn't want this one.
He was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He had no former comeliness that when we saw him, we would esteem him. Rather, he was stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God Almighty. See, they didn't have that conception because they didn't have this category, not because it wasn't in Scripture, but because in their foolishness, because in their hard-heartedness and their obstinance, they didn't see themselves as sinners before a holy God.
And so their concept of Messiah was a a civil political ruler that would put down the Roman Empire and elevate the Jews to earthly geopolitical prestige. No, that's not why he came. He came to seek and to save that which was lost. Lost because of sin, lost because of rebellion, lost because of an inability to make themselves found, lost because of their connection covenantally ultimately to Adam.
For in Adam all died. But in Christ, all shall be made alive." If anybody ever asks you, why did Jesus come into this world? Luke 19.10 will serve you very, very well. To seek and to save that which was lost.
Application and Conclusion
Well, in conclusion, with reference to the object of mercy, this man Zacchaeus, the scripture is clear. Jesus came to call sinners to repentance. There was nothing in Zacchaeus to commend him to God. There was everything in Zacchaeus to be condemned by God.
The fact that Zacchaeus not only went home that day and had communion with the Lord, but the fact that when we get to heaven, should we be so blessed to actually bump into the thief on the cross or bump into Zacchaeus, we will marvel at God's sovereign grace in the same way they'll marvel when they see us. See, it works both ways. For everybody we're surprised to see in the Eschaton, there's going to be a lot of people that are surprised to see us there. It's grace.
It is grace. Secondly, we ought to appreciate the glory of Christ. The Lord Jesus demonstrates in this passage that all things are possible with God. Again, reminder, Luke 18.
For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. And those who heard it said, who then can be saved? But he said, the things which are impossible with men are possible with God. A camel went through the eye of a needle on that day in Jericho, and instead of the people around it marveling, praising God for such wonderful feats, they complain and they grumble and they snivel that he went to stay at the house of one so wretched as this man Zacchaeus.
As well, we learn what Paul will later tell the Corinthian church, that our Jesus is a real Savior for real sinners. In 1 Corinthians 6, verse 9, Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you.
Brethren, we condemn sin when we see it, and while we should. But we always, always, always tell the remedy. We always point sinners to Jesus. It's not just law that this wicked generation needs, but it's gospel.
And the law shows them their need for the gospel. So let it not be the case that we are imbalanced. Let it not be the case that we stand on the street corner condemning every sinner for their vile activities. But may we point all men everywhere, every man, every woman, every boy, every girl, from every tribe, every tongue, every people, every nation, to that Jesus who saves to the uttermost.
So he mentions all of these sins. He says with reference to the Corinthians, and such were some of you. but you are washed, but you are sanctified, but you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. It is most glorious. Our Christ is a seeking God.
Our Christ is a saving God. And our Christ comes to those who desperately need it. who are destitute without it, who are hell-bound without it. Those are the ones for whom Jesus came. And I want to point out one final thing, comparing Luke 5.
We already looked at that. You can turn back there in the calling of Matthew, because the emphasis is the same. Luke chapter 5. The scribes and the Pharisees, they complain, Luke 5.30, against his disciples, saying, which I've always thought was cowardice.
You got a problem with Jesus? Take it up with Jesus. You going to complain to the disciples? That doesn't show manliness, that doesn't show courage.
If your axe to grind is with Jesus, Jesus can take care of things himself. Don't complain to the disciples, rather take your complaints straight to Christ. Christ has no problem receiving all kinds of people with whatever it is they have to say. So these chickens, they complained to his disciples, and this is the nature of their complaint.
Complained to his disciples saying, why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners? Do you know what's implicit in that? That they're somehow better. that the Pharisees and the scribes are a bit better. They're like the animals on animal farm.
All animals are created equal, but some are a little bit more equal than others. That was the final commandment that lasted in that tent on the barn door. These are the same sorts of men, the same sorts of Pharisees are alive and well today, wagging their fingers, acting as if they're somehow better than everybody else. Christ tells us just the opposite.
It's the harlots and the publicans entering into the kingdom of God when this Son of God comes, and it's the Pharisees and the scribes that are consigning themselves to the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. This is a mindset that is rampant among the sons of men, this pride and arrogance and this desire to look down on others. And brethren, it ought not to be that way. If by God's grace, we are possessors of God's grace and we own the spirit and the spirit owns us, let it be our prayer. to kill any seeds of self-righteousness, to kill anything that ever gets into our hearts where we think we're somehow better than others, where we pray with that man in Luke 18.
Thank you, Lord, that I'm not like other men. Thank you, Lord, that I pray and I fast and I tithe. Thank you, Lord, that I'm not like this fellow, this publican right here. May God keep us from that.
May it not be the case that we offend sinners by a self-righteousness or by an attitude wherein we think we're better than you. No, we're miserable, hell-deserving sinners that God reached down and loved, picked up, cleansed, and fit for heaven. That's what separates us. It's not our goodness.
It's not our accomplishments. It's the grace of God. So these men complained. They tell Jesus, and look at his twofold response.
Jesus answered and said to them, those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Don't you love the brilliance and the simplicity of our Lord? Isn't that every... even Pharisees and scribes follow that logic. You're not going to call the doctor tomorrow if you're feeling well.
You're just not going to do it. You're going to call the doctor tomorrow if you're sick. You're going to go to the hospital if you're injured. You're going to go to the hospital if you have some issue.
You don't just show up there willy-nilly. And doctors don't just visit your houses and say, wow, it's good to see that you're healthy and well. That wouldn't be the right use of his time. He comes not for the healthy.
He comes for the sick. He comes not for those who are polished and those who are perfect as far as it goes and in their own thoughts and minds. He comes for the Zacchaeuses. He comes for the thieves on the cross.
He comes for the likes of you and I. Everybody should understand that particular emphasis. And then he underscores it again with the same emphasis from Luke 19.10. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
Now, Jesus doesn't suppose there's actually a class of righteous persons. He doesn't think that, say, over there in, you know, whatever part of the world, there's this enclave of righteous people. I didn't come for that. No, it's the self-righteous.
It's the deluded. It's the wise and prudent, according to Matthew chapter 11. It's those who are pretty satisfied in their accomplishment. It's the kind of guys like the Pharisees and the scribes that complain that this man receives sinners and eats with them.
He didn't come for them, but He comes for sinners. He comes for those who understand the holiness of God. He comes for those who understand, again, by God's grace, not only His holiness, but their own sinfulness and their own unholiness. He comes for the likes of you and I.
And brethren, that is the gospel that we preach. That is the gospel that we proclaim. And that is the gospel we can have a confident expectation that God most high will bless. This blessed Savior came into this world to save sinners.
Paul says, of whom I am chief. So if you ever think you're too sinful to be saved, ask Paul. If you think you're too wretched to be saved, ask Zacchaeus. If you think you're too filthy to be saved, ask the thief on the cross.
The answer is, God is in the business of saving sinners. Well, let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Our Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you for this blessed account of our Lord's gracious dealings with Zacchaeus. And God, thank you for your gracious dealings with us. We know that we are worthy of punishment.
We are worthy of rejection. We are worthy of abandonment because of our sin and transgression against a holy God. But lo and behold, you've shown us our sin. You've shown us our Savior.
You've given us an interest in Him. And we rejoice in your goodness, we rejoice in your grace, and we rejoice that you are in the business of saving sinners to the uttermost, all that draw nigh unto you through your beloved Son. May this word be proclaimed throughout the earth today. May it run swiftly and be glorified.
May it encourage our brothers and sisters in the persecuted church. May it be a means of encouragement not only for their own state, but for their persecutors as well. And in our own context, God, we know we live in a day and age where there is much need for our Lord Jesus. There is much sin at a wholesale level.
And God, we pray that faithful pulpits all over this country would be proclaiming the truth of Christ and Him crucified. And we ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, let's stand and sing the doxology of praise to God number 570, hymn number 570 in the hymn book. ♪ Bless his foe ♪ ♪ Praise to your creatures here below ♪ ♪ Alleluia, alleluia ♪ ♪ Praise to God on the heavenly host ♪ ♪ Praise to our good star and holy host ♪ Alleluia Alleluia Alleluia Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.
And they sang a new song, saying, You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, for You were slain and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God, and we shall reign on the earth. Amen. Father, thank you for this blessed Redeemer. Thank you that it was through His blood.
We know without the shedding of blood there is no remission, and you sent the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world. We give praise to you for making us benefactors of this. Thank you for that grace that taught our hearts to fear, and we pray that grace would go out profusely among sinners that we know and love, among sinners throughout this earth, and that you would change men, women, boys, and girls to be from Christ-haters to Christ-lovers, to those who joyfully receive Him. And God, in our own context, for any and all who are not in Christ, we pray they'd make haste and by grace would come and know that He is good.
And we ask in Jesus' blessed name, Amen. We'll close with a brief time of meditation.