Thought from today’s Bible reading from Luke 18:15-19:48.
There were many who did not understand why Jesus would associate with tax collectors and sinners. Yet the reason why He did was because of the mission He had in coming to earth. Notice the example of Jesus with the tax collector Zaccheus who climbed a tree in order to see the Lord as He passed by.
“When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, ‘Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.’ And he hurried and came down and received Him gladly. When they saw it, they all began to grumble, saying, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.’
“Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, ‘Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost’” (Luke 19:5-10).
Those who grumbled about Jesus meeting with Zaccheus may have been right that the tax collector was a sinner. But this was the type of person Jesus came to save. When others grumbled earlier on a similar occasion, Jesus said, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32).
Zaccheus needed a Savior. Jesus came to seek and to save ones like him. Of course, those like Zaccheus – sinners – would include all men. Paul wrote, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
Yes, Zaccheus needed a Savior. But those who grumbled against Jesus needed a Savior, as well. Today, we also need a Savior. This is why Jesus came. John wrote, “He Himself is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world” (1 John 2:2).
However, there was an important difference between Zaccheus and the grumblers – Zaccheus was penitent (Luke 19:8). If we want to be saved by Christ, we must repent of our sins (Luke 13:3, 5; Acts 17:30) then follow Him in faithful obedience (Acts 2:38; Romans 6:6-7).
Tomorrow’s reading: Mark 11; John 12
[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]
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