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*A WEE LITTLE SINNER*
*Luke 19:1-10*
*Introduction*:
1.
Many Bible characters are relatively unknown, but even children know about one little fellow, though he appears in only one brief scene in the New Testament, Zacchaeus.
Most children’s Bible classes sing a song about him.
2.
Unfortunately, many of us stopped studying about Zacchaeus when we reached eight or nine.
The story of Zacchaeus contains beautiful and powerful lessons.
For instance, many would immediately recognize this verse: */“For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which is lost.”/*
(Luke 19:10).
Have you ever thought about what event prompted that great passage?
It is in the story of Zacchaeus.
3.
For a few moments, let us look at Luke 19 and study the story of this “wee little man” who was “a wee little sinner.”
As we do so, I want to pull from this text about “a wee little man” some great big lessons.
*1.
From this wee little man we learn A BIG LESSON ON WEALTH – *
*Luke 10:1-2*
1.
The chapter begins, */“And he entered and was passing through /**/Jericho/**/”/* (v.
1).
Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.
For months He had been traveling “/with his face toward //Jerusalem//,/” and now He was getting into the region of Jerusalem, into Judea, with Jerusalem less than 20 miles away.
2.
Jericho is one of the most ancient of cities.
If you were to visit that city today you would be shown vast mounds where ancient city after city had been built on top of each other.
In Jesus’ time it was a beautiful city, known for her palm trees and rose gardens.
Some of the streets were lined with what the Bible calls sycamore trees.
These were mulberry-fig trees, trees with leaves like mulberry trees.
They grew thirty to forty feet, had short trunks and spreading branches close to the ground.
They provided a welcome shade in such a land as Palestine.
3.
Jericho had many riches.
One source of riches were its date palms, whose fruit was sold around the world; it was famous for its balsam groves that provided a fragrant and soothing ointment sold around the world.
4.
Another reason Jericho was wealthy was her location.
It was at the heart and center of a vast trade route network.
Situated in the Jordan valley in control the routes east and west and north and south to such cities as Damascus, Tyre, Jerusalem and Ammon, and to Mesopotamia, Arabian, and Persian cities.
And it is important to remember that all goods passing through Jericho were subject to taxation.
5.
As Jesus began to pass through the city the events of the story began to unfold.
*/“And behold, there was a man called by the name of Zacchaeus”/* (v.
2a).
“/Zacchaeus/” is a Hebrew name meaning “pure” or “righteous.”
His name reflects the hope his mother had for her baby boy.
However, Zacchaeus was not looked upon as either pure or righteous by the citizens of Jericho.
The reason is given in the next part of the text... */“... and he was a chief tax-gatherer”/* (v.
2a).
6.
Tax collectors were no more popular then than they are now.
I’ve never know a parent to say, “My dream for my child is that he will grow up to be a tax collector.”
However, being a tax-collector today is an honored professions compared to what it was in the time of Christ.
7.
In Palestine, tax collectors were Jews who worked for the Roman government collecting taxes from their own people to support the nation that had overrun their country and occupied their land for about a century now.
To become a tax-collector, one had to get a concession from the Roman government (often a hefty bribe was involved).
The Romans then told him how much he was expected to collect each year; sometimes this had to be paid in advance.
He made his profit by charging enough to keep back to himself a very profitable percentage.
a.
It was a system ripe for greed, dishonesty, and corruption.
As a result, other Jews consider tax-collectors as traitors and turncoats, no longer true sons of Abraham.
According to the Jewish code, a tax-collector could not vote; he couldn’t testify in court; and he was not allowed to go into the synagogue.
b.
In the scriptures, tax collectors are invariably lumped with undesirables:
1) Matt.
18:17 .. */“tax-collectors and sinners/*”
2) Matt.
21:31-32 .. */“tax-collectors and harlots”/*
3) Luke 18:11 .. */“swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or... this tax-collector”/*.
c.
Zacchaeus was not merely a tax-collector, he was */“a chief tax-collector./*”
Barclay translates this phrase “/commissioner of taxes./”
Apparently Zacchaeus had purchased the tax-concession for that entire area, and he had tax-collectors working under him.
He would have received a percentage for each of these tax-collectors working in the region.
To the Jews in that region, Zacchaeus was the head of the local Mafia, the Jewish Godfather.
8.
Considering the widespread nature of Zacchaeus’ enterprise, we are not surprised to read the next words: “*/and he was rich.”/*
(v.
2c).
Zacchaeus had prospered from his lucrative position in Jericho.
a.
Had Zacchaeus’s wealth made him a happy satisfied man?
I don’t think I’m reading too much into the text to say that although Zacchaeus had money, he did not have happiness.
He was probably the most hated man in Jericho.
When Jesus went home with him, the text says, */“They all began to grumble, saying, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner” /*(v.
7).
b.
How would like to be the most despised man in town– a total outcast?
Imagine what this would do to your wife, to your children?
I’m sure that Zacchaeus wasn’t a happy with being the most despised man in town.
c.
I believe that, either consciously or unconsciously, Zacchaeus was seeking Jesus because he *wanted* Jesus to help him turn his life around.
Perhaps he had heard that Jesus was the friend of tax-collectors and sinners (Matthew 11:19).
Perhaps, he had heard that Jesus had called Matthew, a tax-collector, to be one of His disciples (Luke 5:27).
Perhaps Matthew had even been a friend of Zacchaeus’.
9.
Hear this little lesson on wealth: Money and things cannot buy happiness.
Possessions are quickly gone, and things do not comfort.
To be happy, we need relationships with others.
Especially do we need a right relationship with our God.
*2.
From this wee little man we learn A BIG LESSON ON SEEKING THE LORD -- (Luke 19:3, 4)*
* *
1. */“And he was trying to see who Jesus was”/* (v.
3a).
Literally, the text read, “And he was */seeking/ *to see Jesus.”
Wherever a form of the word “seek” is found in the New Testament it always indicates a diligent effort, it never denotes a half-hearted attempt.
Zacchaeus had heard that Jesus was passing through Jericho and he was *determined* to see Him.
2.
However, when he tried, */“he was unable because of the crowd” /*(v.
3b).
Many of the pilgrims going up to Jerusalem for the feast had gathered around Jesus and were traveling with Him.
In addition, word had gone ahead and people no doubt, lined the streets of Jericho, probably several deep as Jesus and the travelers passed along.
3.
Zacchaeus’ problem is stated in the last part of the verse: */“He was unable... for he was small in stature”/* (v.
3c).
To say it plainly, he was a short man.
We can imagine him trying to push through the crowd to get where he could see.
When people saw who it was, it was their chance to get back at the hated tax collector.
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