Found

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For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.
Luke 19:10

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I have played hide-and-seek with many children over the years.  While older children understand the object of the game…when you are hiding, you try to not be found by the person doing the seeking, younger children view the game differently.  In fact, younger children don’t seem to understand the point of the game at all.  The biggest thrill for the hiding younger child is to be found.

Most of the time, when younger children are “hiding”, they giggle and talk, awaiting the exciting moment of being discovered by the seeker.  And then, when the seeker finally uncovers their hiding place, they erupt in giggles and squeals of delight…they revel in being found.

One of my favorite Bible stories found in Luke 19, is about a man named Zacchaeus.   Zacchaeus was a Jewish man who had exchanged the honor of his heritage for employment with the Roman government; a government that was oppressing his people. Zacchaeus was a tax collector for the Romans. 

Zacchaeus was not just any tax collector, he was the chief tax collector, the man responsible for gathering all of the taxes in the region of Judea, with tax collectors of lesser rank working under him.

It seemed the trade-off was worth it to Zacchaeus. He liked being rich.  And, Zacchaeus didn’t seem to mind being the object of contempt and disdain of his fellow countrymen.

But maybe the money couldn’t fill up the empty places deep within Zacchaeus.  Maybe the lack of friends left him wanting; wanting something that a nice house and gold coins couldn’t satisfy.

As the story goes, the tax collector heard one day that Jesus would be passing through his town of Jericho. Zacchaeus wanted to see this Jesus whom he had heard so much about.

Crowds of people were everywhere trying to get a look at Jesus; there was no way that a person of shorter stature, like Zacchaeus, stood a chance at getting a glimpse of Jesus.  Zacchaeus had an idea; he would run ahead of the crowds and climb up a sycamore tree that was beside the road.

It seemed a ridiculous idea for a man of his position to risk the humiliation that climbing a tree might bring if he were discovered. The people would surely mock him.  But Zacchaeus just had to see this Jesus for himself.

Zacchaeus ran ahead and climbed the tree. He stayed silent as he watched the crowd approach with Jesus in the center of the throng.  He caught a glimpse of the Rabbi.  The Rabbi’s steps came to a halt right underneath the tree.  Jesus looked up and into the eyes of the tax collector.  Jesus spoke and called him by name, “Zacchaeus!  You must come down from the tree quickly because I am on my way to your house.  I thought we would have a visit today.”

The surprised tax collector did just as Jesus  told him. With great excitement and delight the chief tax collector escorted Jesus to his home. 

We’re not told what the two men talked about that day.  But we are told that their conversation wrought a change in Zacchaeus.  Zacchaeus wanted to make restitution for all the money he had wrongly taken from his fellow citizens. Zacchaeus also wanted to give of his wealth to the poor.

On a day that Zacchaeus thought he would simply be a bystander in the crowd when Jesus came to town, he ended up playing host for the Rabbi. Zacchaeus gained a friend who changed his life forever.  When Zacchaeus climbed up into that tree seeking to see, he did not know that it would lead to him being found by a loving Savior.

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