Title: Zacchaeus' Confession of Salvation
2013. 5. 19 Sunday morning worship service
Bible: Luke 19:1-9
Title: Zacchaeus' Confession of Salvation
Luke 19:1-10 ‘1. Jesus went into Jericho and passed by, 2. There was a man named Zacchaeus who was a tax collector and was also rich.
8. Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I will give half of what I have to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone, I will pay back four times the amount.
9. Jesus said, “Today salvation has come to this house, for this man is also a descendant of Abraham.” - Amen.
Jericho goes through customs on the road of ordinary people, and in verse 2 of the text, Zacchaeus is introduced as a rich man, so I guess that the tax collector's job at that time was able to raise a lot of money. At the time of Jesus, the tax collector was treated like a whore in the expression of Matthew 21:32. The sycamore tree is a tall tree. Zacchaeus was short, so he wanted to climb the tree and see Jesus. Finally, he was called by Jesus to take him to his house and he was saved.
1. I wanted to see Jesus
He might have gotten rich by collecting taxes, but when he heard about Jesus, Zacchaeus seemed to wonder if Jesus could heal his soul condition. His earnest interest can be seen in the explanation in verse 4 that he wanted to run forward and look. I couldn't see Jesus properly in the crowd, so I wanted to go up to the sycamore tree and see him even if he lost face. The word to see, eijdw', does not simply mean to observe, but to understand and understand.
Text Luke 19:3-4 ‘3. He wanted to see what kind of person Jesus was, but he was short and there were too many people, so he could not do it. 4. He ran forward and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, for Jesus was passing by.”
Proverbs 8:17 “I love those who love me, and those who seek me earnestly find me.”
With what kind of heart do you come to Jesus? With what interest...?
2. Specific Repentance of Sins
As Jesus passed, Zacchaeus was sitting on a tree and looking at him, saying, “Come down,” and he said that he should stay at your house. There was criticism from many people, but I didn't care. And, importantly, the fruits of repentance were seen.
Luke 19:8 “Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I will give half of what I have to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone, I will pay back four times as much.”
According to the Old Testament law, when returning the drunken thing, you had to repay it by adding 1/5 (Leviticus 6:57), and you had to pay back 4 times the stolen thing (Exodus 22:1).
This confession was not by coercion. As if standing before the Lord and taking an oath, or as a witness before a judge, as if reading a prepared manuscript, he admits his wrongdoings, will to pay back four times what he has defrauded, and first gives half of his fortune to the poor. you will see
It was not in response to Zacchaeus receiving any phenomenal saving grace, healing or miracle from Jesus. It was an amazing conversion to the essential spiritual salvation of life that cannot be explained to others.
Verse 9, “Jesus said, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man is also a descendant of Abraham.”
Salvation must be accompanied by such a clear confession of spiritual change and must be able to show such will. Unlike the Jewish elders, scribes and Pharisees, who viewed Jesus as a villager in Nazareth or a heretic in Judaism, he was the one who knew the turning point in his life, and to Zacchaeus, Jesus became the master of his life.
Jesus, who is coming to a world like Jericho today, the sound of the gospel passes us many times. Jesus, who takes care of himself, recognizes Zacchaeus and calls down from the tree to those who truly need salvation, is still calling the earnest souls. I pray that you will receive the proclamation of salvation through a change like Zacchaeus in that calling.