Read : Luke 19:8,9 Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.  And Jesus said to him, today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham

Examine : Jesus once came to Jericho. There was a man there, Zacchaeus, a rich tax collector. He wanted desperately to see Jesus, but the crowd was in his way—he was a short man and couldn’t see over the crowd. So he ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus when he came by.

When Jesus got to the tree, he looked up and said, Zacchaeus, hurry down, today I must stay in your house. Everyone who saw the incident was indignant and grumbled. But Zacchaeus said Master, I give away half my income to the poor—and for all defraud I did, I will pay four times the damages.  Jesus said today is salvation day in this home! Here he is Zacchaeus, son of Abraham! For the Son of Man came to find and restore the lost.

Application : When you hear of Jesus, act fast, the sense of urgency of Zacchaeus, running and climbing. Jesus looking up and calling, changed Zacchaeus completely, though Jesus did not ask him, he made corrections for his past mistakes though it was very costly. Also, we see Zacchaeus not responding to people who grumbled. The greatest miracle is true conversion, it is the gift of God, and true confession leads to transformation.

When Jesus says – Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. We do not realize Jesus came into this world for my sin to be forgiven and I will live a blameless life and have victory over sin. It is also surprising religious people could not comprehend the fact Jesus could accept a wretched sinner. What prompted Zacchaeus to take such a drastic decision, the answer is a simple encounter with Jesus, did I really encounter Jesus?

Decisions :

• Sin to Avoid – I am committing, never to judge or grumble when I see the mercy of God working in unexpected persons (Luke 19:7)
• Promise to Keep – Salvation is the greatest miracle, it comes by the grace of God alone (Luke 19:9) Lord let me have a true encounter with you.
• Example to Follow – Lord, please help me to immediately obey when the Holy Spirit promotes like Zacchaeus. Ran ahead (Luke 19:4), Drastic change, Salvation leads to Transformation
• Command to Keep – Lord even if it is costly, I want to obey and please you alone. Luke 19:8