Tree People

August 11, 2013

Tree People

Luke 19:1-10       NOT EDITED

SIS—Responding humbly to the invitation of the Lord Jesus Christ will dramatically and wonderfully change one’s life.

Could you imaging the excitement of living in an eighth story penthouse apartment overlooking a city like New York or Chicago.  That’s sort how it feels to visit the Korowai people of Papua, New Guinea.  [SHOW PIC] These people build their houses 80 feet above the forest floor in one of the most remote, unexplored regions of the world.  Papua, New Guinea is the second largest island in the world just east of Indonesia.  Can you imagine the sacrifice a Korwaiian husband has to make when his pregnant wife has a “craving” for a midnight snack?  Down the ladder he goes!  And, we American husbands complain when the wife wants bubblegum-flavored icecream from Vons.

I’m not particularly afraid of heights, but I’m not overly thrilled by them either.  Living 80 feet up in a tree house isn’t on my “bucket list.”  I did love climbing trees as a youngster, but I’d have to think twice if the Tree People of Papua, New Guinea invited me for dinner.  Especially, since some tribes still practice cannibalism.

Today, we are going to look at the life of a man in a tree by the name of Zacchaeus.  Let’s read that text together:  LUKE 19:1-10.

For characteristics describe Zacchaeus:

1.  Zaccheus was a SHORT man (v 3)

He was a short man (v3).

The most identifiable feature of Zacchaeus was his “short stature.”  As the song says, “Zacchaeus was a wee little man, a wee little man was he.”

We can view his size both literally and metaphorically.  For sure, Zacchaeus was short physically.  He was also short socially and short spiritually. We need to connect some dots in this story to understand how Zacchaeus was short socially and spiritually.  In verse two we read,

² There was a man named Zacchaeus
who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich.

Being a “tax collector,” and especially the “chief tax collector” made Zacchaeus rich.  Verse 1 tells us that this incident takes place in Jericho, and that is very significant.  The first century Jewish historian, Josephus, referred to Jericho as, “a divine region,” and “the fattest in Palestine.”  Great palm forests and balsam (a fragrant plant) groves literally perfumed the air of Jerusalem.  The Romans made the palm dates and balsam a commodity traded world-wide.  This made Jericho a very wealthy—and tax rich—province.  As the Chief Tax Collector, this made Zacchaeus a very, very rich man.  However, being a tax collector made Zacchaeus a very hated man; it made hima social outcast or pariah.  A “pariah” is someone who is despised and rejected.   Zacchaeus was a Jew, but he worked for the Romans.  The Jews hated the Romans and anything or anybody associated with the Romans.  The Chief Tax Collector paid for the privilege of collecting taxes for Rome—he paid a pretty penny for the privilege we would say.  The Romans established this collection system so they would not have to deal directly with the people they ruled.  They required a certain amount from a district and the chief tax collector paid it, and then anything he could collect over and above that amount was his profit.  It was a terrible, corrupt way of doing business—much like our IRS.

The Greek construction of verse 2 draws attention to the meaning of Zaccheaus’ name.  A literal reading would be, “a man being called by name, righteous.”  Zaccheaus literally means, clean, righteous, or pure.  But the emphasis is that though his name labeled him righteous, his actions proved just the opposite.  He was righteous in name only. It is hard to understand the scorn and hatred the Jewish people had for tax collectors.  His traitorous actions made him short socially.   Connect this with verse 7,

“All who saw it [Jesus go to Zacchaeus’ house] began to complain. He’s gone to lodge with a sinful man.”

Not only was he a traitor, making him a social outcast, he was a sinner meaning that he came up short spiritually as well.  In fact, we all are short spiritually.  The Bible says,

Rom. 3:  ¹⁰There is no one righteous, not even one. ¹¹ There is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God.

By any meaure, Zacchaeus was a “short man.”  He was short physically, socially, and most of all spiritually.

Harry Ironside calls him a “come-shorter.”  When it comes to life he always “comes up short.”  The Bible describes such a man or woman:

“All have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23).

2.  Zaccheus was a SPOTTED man (v5, 10).

I don’t mean “spotted” like a Dalmatian, but spotted in the sense that someone was looking for him and found him.   Verse 5 says,

⁵ When Jesus came to the place, He looked up.

Jesus did not simply happen upon Zaccheus, he was looking for him.  See verse 10.

¹⁰ For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”

The Bible tells us he climbed a “sycamore tree.”  This tree is distinct from the North American Sycamore Tree.  This tree is related to the fig tree.  An important aspect of this tree is that it has leaves year round—many leaves.  At least some scholars believe Zacchaeus intended to remain hidden and was only curious about this traveling preacher who had become so popular among the common people.  He was not “seeking” salvation, but only seeking a show.

I believe this is the proper way to view these verses.  Zaccheaus was not the “searcher.”  Jesus was.  That is always the case.  Remember we read above,  there is no one who seeks God (Rom. 3:11).

If God does not pursue a man, that man will never be saved.  God is the iniator, the Seeker, in salvation.  The Lord spotted Zacchaeus because the Lord was searching for Zaccheaus.  The Lord called Zacchaeus by name.  The Lord was on a mission, and the mission’s name was, Zacchaeus. 

Throw away any foolish idea that you can contribute anything at all to your salvation—even if you are not as big a scoundrel as Zacchaeus.  The Bible teaches very clearly,

Eph 2: ⁸For you are saved by grace  through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift.

There are literally thousands, maybe millions, of people who will gather in Christian churches “looking for a religious show,” but without one clue that God is actually looking for them and inviting them to have an eternal relationship with Him.  Millions will climb the tree of religion and after all is said and done, remain hiding behind the fig leaves of their own self-righteousness without ever experiencing the soul-saving, life-changing salvation of God.

Man has been hiding behind fig leaves from the first sin in the Garden when Adam and Eve tried to hide their nakedness from God by sewing together fig leaves.  Zacchaeus wasn’t seeking salvation, he was just looking for a show.  But, Jesus spotted him hidden behind the branches, leaves, and fruit of the sycamore fig tree.

Growing up, I often heard of a method of hunting called, spotlighting.” Three or more men, or in my case teens, would get in a truck and cruise out into the back roads in the hills of W.Va.  One person would drive, one person would hold the high-powered spotlight, and another would hold the rifle.  To make the spotlight more effective, the driver would turn off the headlights.  The prey was whitetail deer.  Normally, hunting during the day, the whitetails sharp eyesight, acute hearing, and keen sense of smell make them a difficult target.  But, at night, when hit with a bright spotlight, they freeze in their tracks making them an easy target.

Spotting deer is an effective hunting tactic.  It is also stupid, dangerous and illegal.

In a sense, Jesus was “spotlighting” Zacchaeus.  When the bright light of God’s grace and the Lord’s purity fell upon Zacchaeus, he was captured.  He was like a “deer in headlights.” The light of God’s love was irresistible to Zacchaeus.  The love and grace of God, for any who acknowledge it, is always irresistible.

Glory to God, when God is looking for you, God will find you—just like the Lord spotted Zacchaeus.

So, Zaccheaus was not only a short man, but he was a spotted man.

3.  Zacheus was a SAVED man (v 9-10)

The matter before us could not be stated any more concisely,

⁹ “Today salvation  has come to this house,” Jesus told him, “because he too is a son of Abraham.  ¹⁰ For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”

Here we discover the essence of Christianity in wrapped up in a neat little package and tied with a pretty bow.  “Salvation.”  Churches do error greatly when any other program or purpose supersedes, sets aside, or any way diminishes the stated purpose of the Lord, “I’ve come to seek and to save the lost.” (v10)

We live in a world in which church has become little more than a religious version of a neighborhood bridge club, or a cheap imitation of a Las Vegas entertainment act.  Or, churches degenerate into a “social service” program or “political action committee.”  Our calling is, and always has been, “to seek and to save the lost!”

The central truth in this passage is this:  Zaccheaus was a SAVED man.  His eternal destiny was changed in one instantaneous moment that he surrendered climbed down out of his tree of pride and in humble submission surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

Money didn’t matter to him.  Power didn’t matter to him.  All that mattered to Zacchaeus was, “today, salvation has come to this house.”(v9).

Now, make no mistake about it, salvation had not come to Zacchaeus because he was willing to give away all his earthly goods.  Salvation is not the result of our good deeds, no matter even if we can stack them as high as a mountain.  Salvation come only as a gift of grace in response to putting one’s faith and trust in Jesus Christ.  Look at the second part of verse 9:

“because he too [that is Zacchaeus] is a son of Abraham.”

This means, Zacchaeus, like Abraham centuries before him, placed his full trust and confidence in the grace and goodness of Jesus Christ the Lord.  Galatians 3:6 tells us:

⁶ Just as Abraham believed God,  and it was credited to him for righteousness,  ^{v 7} then understand that those who have faith are Abraham’s sons.

Ephesians 2:8-9 reminds us:

⁸ For you are saved by grace  through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift— ⁹ not from works, so that no one can boast.

Everything changed in that one moment the spotlight of God’s grace fell upon the wretched soul of a sinful man.  It was not a change in moral behavior that brought salvation to Zacchaeus that day, but salvation brought the change.  Salvation changes everything—a man’s tomorrows, but also a man’s todays.  One preacher wrote of Zacchaeus:  “What a deliverance was that day! The wife of Zacchaeus had a new husband. Their children had a new father.  The community had a new citizen.”  Everything changes the moment a person is gloriously saved. 

In fact, one could argue strongly, “if everything has not changed, certainly eternity has not changed.”

Zacchaeus climbed high up the tree of worldly success.  He was a very rich man as the world counts riches, but before meeting Christ on that day that salvation entered his heart, he was eternally destitute.  He was still a small, little, wimp of a man spiritually.

Salvation changes everything, or nothing is changed.

4.  Zacheus was a SATISFIED man (vv 6,  8).

We know that Zacchaeus was truly saved because he was, in fact, demonstrably changed as I just said.  Look again at verse 8:

⁸ But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, I’ll give  half of my possessions to the poor,  Lord! And if I have extorted  anything from anyone, I’ll pay  back four times as much!”

If Zacchaeus was like every other unsaved man or woman, he simply could not get enough.  Even when he had more than he could possibly spend, he wanted more.  He throw away his integrity and scuttled any meaningful relationships just to get more coin. 

The lusts of the lost are never satisfied.

“Today, salvation has come to this house” and Zacchaeus goes from a self-serving, striving sinner to a joyously satisfied saint.  Verse 6 tells us:

⁶ So he quickly came down and welcomed Him joyfully.

No hesitation—no reservations!

Then, verse 8,  as we read above, demonstrates that Zacchaeus could not give away his stuff fast enough—and he had a lot of stuff to give away! He wanted to bless everybody.  He no longer sought to live like a parasite off the community, but wanted to give back to the community.  He didn’t need money and stuff to be satisfied, he was fully satisfied with Jesus.  The old hymn says,

I am satisfied with Jesus, He has done so much for me:
He has suffered to redeem me, He has died to set me free.

By the measure of the world, Zacchaeus was a huge success.  He had more money than he knew what to do with.  But, he was not satisfied.  He was a miserable, lonely, little man.

A popular story recounts a meeting that may have taken place at the Edgewater Beach Hotel in Chicago in 1923. There is debate whether the meeting in fact occurred, but what is not in question is the actual rise and fall of the men featured in the story, who were nine of the richest men in the world at that time: (1) Charles Schwab, President of the world's largest independent steel company; (2) Samuel Insull, President of the world's largest utility company; (3) Howard Hopson, President of the largest gas firm; (4) Arthur Cutten, the greatest wheat speculator; (5) Richard Whitney, President of the New York Stock Exchange; (6) Albert Fall, member of the President's Cabinet; (7) Leon Frazier, President of the Bank of International Settlements; (8) Jessie Livermore, the greatest speculator in the Stock Market; and (9) Ivar Kreuger, head of the company with the most widely distributed securities and investments in the world.

What happened to these powerful and rich men twenty-five years later? (1) Charles Schwab had died in bankruptcy, having lived on borrowed money for five years before his death. (2) Samuel Insull had died virtually penniless after spending some time as a fugitive from justice. (3) Howard Hopson became insane. (4) Arthur Cutten died overseas, broke. (5) Richard Whitney had spent time in a mental asylum. (6) Albert Fall was released from prison so he could die at home. (7) Leon Fraizer, (8) Jessie Livermore, and (9) Ivar Kreuger each died by suicide. Measured by wealth and power these men achieved success, at least temporarily. But it did not surely guarantee them a truly successful life (SermonCentral).

Zacchaeus avoided dying miserable and unsatisfied when he “made haste and came down out of that tree to become a disciple of Jesus.”

He was still a short man physically, but he was a satisfied man eternally.

Let’s reflect upon this story.  We can look at the tree in this story as like a prison.  Think of looking out through the branches and leaves as like looking out at the world through prison bars.  Pride, greed, and self-centeredness put Zaccheus in that tree and only humility and devotion to God brought him down.

To be sure, this story illustrates the wonderful grace of God who is always seeking for those who need to be saved.  But, our text also reminds us that the story doesn’t end when we come down out of the tree of our own self-centeredness and surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.  There is more to this story than just the saving of Zaccheus’ soul, as important as that is.  We must not miss the radical transformation that took place in Zaccheus’ life through salvation and how it spurred Zacchaeus to live a life of sacrificial service to others.

In another place and another time, a beloved pastor gave this invitation after telling the story of Zacchaeus.

Come down!  Come down out of that tree of selfishness—living as though Jesus had never lived , or as though Jesus had never died.  Com down out of the tree of unforgiveness and unkind attitude toward others.  Come down out of laziness and apathy toward the things of Christ.  Come down out of your tree of criticism.  Come down out of your tree of pride.  Come down out of your tree of skepticism.  Come down out of your tree of secret sin.  Come down out of your tree of doubt.  Come down out of your tree of indifference or procrastination.  (R.G. Lee).  Come down out of whatever tree is keeping you from joyfully and sacrificially following the Lord Jesus Christ.

Climbing trees is a rite of passage most of us have enjoyed in our youth.  But, we must not become at home in the trees.  God has called us to live out our salvation on the highways and byways of life.  Christians should never be “Tree People,” but always be “Street People.”

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