Jesus and Zacchaeus 

Luke 19:1-27 (New Living Translation)

1Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

5When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name.“Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

6Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

8Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

9Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10For the Son of Man  came to seek and save those who are lost.”

11The crowd was listening to everything Jesus said. And because he was nearing Jerusalem, he told them a story to correct the impression that the Kingdom of God would begin right away. 12He said, “A nobleman was called away to a distant empire to be crowned king and then return. 13Before he left, he called together ten of his servants and divided among them ten pounds of silver,  saying, ‘Invest this for me while I am gone.’ 14But his people hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We do not want him to be our king.’

15“After he was crowned king, he returned and called in the servants to whom he had given the money. He wanted to find out what their profits were.16The first servant reported, ‘Master, I invested your money and made ten times the original amount!’

17“‘Well done!’ the king exclaimed. ‘You are a good servant. You have been faithful with the little I entrusted to you, so you will be governor of ten cities as your reward.’

18“The next servant reported, ‘Master, I invested your money and made five times the original amount.’

19“‘Well done!’ the king said. ‘You will be governor over five cities.’

20“But the third servant brought back only the original amount of money and said, ‘Master, I hid your money and kept it safe. 21I was afraid because you are a hard man to deal with, taking what isn’t yours and harvesting crops you didn’t plant.’

22“‘You wicked servant!’ the king roared. ‘Your own words condemn you. If you knew that I’m a hard man who takes what isn’t mine and harvests crops I didn’t plant, 23why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’

24“Then, turning to the others standing nearby, the king ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one who has ten pounds.’

25“‘But, master,’ they said, ‘he already has ten pounds!’

26“‘Yes,’ the king replied, ‘and to those who use well what they are given, even more will be given. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. 27And as for these enemies of mine who didn’t want me to be their king—bring them in and execute them right here in front of me.’”

What personal physical characteristics has most affected how you feel about yourself?

Judging from the crowd's reaction to him, Zacchaeus must have been a very crooked tax collector. But after he met Jesus, he realized that his life needed straightening out. By giving to the poor and making restitution--with generous interest--to those he had cheated, Zacchaeus demonstrated inward change by outward action. It is not enough to follow Jesus in your head or heart alone. You must show your faith by changed behavior.Has your faith resulted in action? What changes do you need to make?