CLIMBING DOWN

The wonderful story of Zaccheus the ‘chief tax collector’ who was wealthy (Luke 19:1-2) has long been a favorite to many. He was obliviously not very tall (I think that might mean he was short) (19:3) and could not see Jesus coming through town because of the crowd. He climbed up into a Sycamore tree so he could have a better view (19:4).

One application I have considered from this story is in verse 5: “When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house. And he hurried and came down and received Him gladly.”

What prompted Zaccheus (a despised Roman civil worker, though a local Jew) to ‘climb down’ and become radically changed is mysterious if not miraculous. He climbed down from his high position as tax collector, from half his possessions, from defrauding others and denying his Lord, his community, his people and perhaps his family and certainly the denial and deception of himself… probably all for money and position. When he climbed down from his tree where he could see Jesus, Jesus said, “Today salvation has come to this house.”

I believe the Lord stops everyday and asks us to climb down out of all our junk and what has us falsely elevated and trapped us so he can come ‘and stay in our house.’ We climb down to be restored to level ground from all that has been broken.

“Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham.” Jesus