Daily devotional · June 22
Come Down, Zacchaeus
“Then Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. And there was a man named Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector, who was very wealthy. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but could not see over the crowd because he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see Him, since Jesus was about to pass that way. When Jesus came to that place, He looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry down, for I must stay at your house today.” So Zacchaeus hurried down and welcomed Him joyfully. And all who saw this began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinful man!” But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, half of my possessions I give to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone, I will repay it fourfold.” Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.””
Zacchaeus was a wealthy tax collector, disliked by his neighbors, and curious enough about Jesus to climb a tree. Everyone else saw a cheat; Jesus saw a person and invited himself to dinner. The surprising order matters: acceptance came first, and the change followed. Zacchaeus gave half his goods to the poor and repaid those he had cheated, not because he was told to but because he had been welcomed. Grace does not excuse wrongdoing; it makes repentance possible. Today, consider whether there is something you need to make right, a debt, an apology, a promise left unkept. Take one concrete step toward it. And ask yourself who in your life you have written off as beyond reach. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and he began with a lunch invitation.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you for welcoming me first. Show me what to make right.