The Wee Little Man...

Zaccheus was a wee little man; a wee little man was he...
He climbed up in a sycamore tree for the Lord he wanted to see...
And as the Lord passed that way, He looked up in the tree...
And He said, "Zaccheus, you come down - for I'm going to your house today...

Remember that little ditty from pre-school Sunday School? We teach that song to our children, but do we really know the meaning of that event in Luke 19? Let's examine Jesus' encounter with this tax collector and discover the Truth that's in it for us.

Jesus and his disciples and the multitudes that had been following them were traveling to Jerusalem, where He would eventually be formally accused, tried, and crucified. On their way, they passed through Jericho and were met with a huge crowd. Now we know that these huge crowds that frequently mobbed Him were full of people who had heard about Him and the miracles He had performed. However, the vast majority of these people saw Him as an oddity that they wanted to get a glance at. Most had no idea or belief that He was the Messiah. Others followed and got excited because they thought He was going to set up a new government, thus, overthrowing the Romans. And still a few followed Him because they truly believed.

Zaccheus was a chief tax collector - meaning he was a supervisor, the big cheese among tax men. Tax collectors were not "Citizen of the Year" type men. They had a reputation for extracting more money from the citizens than was really owed. Some used all methods of extortion; they were not liked. The overage lined their personal bank accounts. As for Zaccheus, the scripture notes that he was rich, so he most likely was one of the dishonest tax guys. He probably even took a cut from the those under him since he was in a supervisory role. One other item the scripture tells us about him is that he was "small in stature." I think it is interesting that we are given that detail. How many characters in the Bible, especially the New Testament, do we get a physical description of? When something unusual pops up like that, we'd best take note.

Have you ever heard of the "Little Man" syndrome? In our culture, the "Little Man" syndrome is when a man who is physically small, projects a large personality, perhaps to compensate for his size. That large personality ususally comes across as offensive and arrogant. It's hard to like a "Little Man." I see Zaccheus as a "Little Man."

As the street in Jericho became more congested with people trying to get to Jesus, Zaccheus was unable to break through the crowd. He wasn't large enough to muscle his way through, and people certainly weren't going out of their way to help him. This situation begs the question, why did Zaccheus want to see Jesus so badly? What had he heard that made him so curious? Was there something deep in his heart that was wounded that Jesus might heal? Was he beginning to doubt his wealth and his eternal security? We are not privy to his thoughts, but we do know he desperately wanted to see Jesus. So he runs around and ahead of the crowd and climbs up into a sycamore tree. He made himself a tall perch from which he could watch for and see Jesus. There is no indication that he wanted to talk to Him or touch Him - he just wanted to see Him.

When Jesus came to the tree, He stopped, looked up and spoke directly to Zaccheus, calling him by name. He told him to hurry and come down because He was going to stay at his house! That's a WOW! Scripture says he hurried down and received Him gladly. Zaccheus goes on to say, unprompted, I might add, that he would sell his possessions and give half to the poor and repay those he had defrauded by four times. By-the-way, paying them back four times what he had taken was the harshest penalty under their law, and he chose to do that on his own. Jesus replied that salvation had come to Zaccheus that day.

What Truth can we glean from this familiar story?

Those who seek Jesus - even when they are not sure Who or What He is - will be found by Him. Zaccheus was driven to find Jesus. Driven by something he may not have understood, but still driven to the point of running through the streets and climbing a tree! That's pretty drastic, especially for someone who had wealth and position in the community. It takes a lot for a "Little Man" to lower himself to do something so drastic. But look closely at the passage. Zaccheus positioned himself in the tree, but it was Jesus who stopped and looked up at him. Jesus found him! Jesus invited himself into the man's home. Jesus desired a relationship with Zaccheus, a man who lived his life as a cheat and a crook.

Jesus' eyes pierce our hearts and souls - in a life-changing way. When He looked up and into the face of Zaccheus, Zaccheus was a changed man. He was convicted of his sin to the point of repentance. It's the same thing that happened when He looked into the eyes of Peter, James, and John at the seashore and they immediately left their old way of life and followed Jesus. He knows us by name and sees into our very hearts. He has the power to change us forever - if we will come down from our perch and let Him reside in our hearts (homes). The "Little Man" became a humble, repentant man who became a "son of Abraham," meaning, of course, a child of Faith. That's about as Big as one can get!

Personally, I have no doubt that He invited Himself to my home and I received Him gladly! I hope you have already been found by Jesus and experienced that life-changing look into His eyes. If you are not sure, I pray that you will come down from that tree and take Him into your home (heart). You will be glad you did, and you'll be changed forever.