As Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through it, a man named Zacchaeus appeared. He was a leading tax collector, and a rich one at that! He was trying to see who Jesus was, but he couldn’t do so due to the crowd, since he was a short man. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see Jesus, who was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the tree, he looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today.” Zacchaeus came down quickly and was glad to welcome him into his home. But all the people who saw this began to complain: “Jesus is going to be the guest of a notorious sinner!” Later, Zacchaeus stood up and announced to the Lord, “Look! I’m giving half of my possessions to the destitute, and if I have accused anyone falsely, I’m repaying four times as much as I owe.” Then Jesus told him, “Today salvation has come to this home, because this man is also a descendant of Abraham, and the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:1-10
The story above is about a man named Zacchaeus, a leading tax collecter and a rich man who was known to have exploited the poor and have cheated others in the course of carrying out his work as a tax collector. He had become so rich out of ill gotten gains.
Nobody wanted to identify with him because of his sinful life and how he has enriched himself by taking advantage of others. If the Bible says he was a rich man then he was indeed rich, a man who had everything or could get anything he wantss from this life due to his affluence.
Despite the fact that he had everything that could make one happy or satisfied in life, he still needed something. He heard so much about Jesus that he really wanted to see His identity.
Who was Jesus, what made a lot of people follow him everyday?, Is he as rich as him? what is so strange about this man that has made has made some of his colleagues in tax collecting business his disciples?
Perhaps these were some of the questions that flaunted the mind of Zaccheaus and made him seek for Jesus.
A man can have evrything in this world but without Jesus he will still not be satisfied. Our souls need to be connected to its maker and until we get connected we will still have an unquenchable thirst that makes us to probe and search for satisfaction always.
Something was still missing in the life of Zacchaeus for he really needed salvation. He needed someone to save him from heading to hell, a place of torment made for sinners.
Jesus didn't exploit anyone to enrich himself like how how Zacchaeus has done but there is is something peculiar about him that made Zacchaeus realised tehe need to seek him.
Until Jesus become the center of our life nothing will satisfy us, nothing will profit and nothing will give us joy. I have seen many people like Zacchaeus who are very rich yet abuse it, live carelessly or lose all eventually and end up miserably or die in shame or die in shame in the long run.
That is what happens to anyone who doesn't make Christ the center of his life but lives for himself.
Christ is standing at the door(heart) and he is seeking that you open it so he can enter and be your Lord and Saviour.
Salvation is now!