Zacchaeus: Tax Collector to Gospeler

When we hear the name Zacchaeus, we’re likely to picture a “wee little man” and sycamore trees. Though the childhood song we learned in Sunday school helped us to know a little bit about this tax collector in Scripture, the song ends before the most significant part of Zacchaeus’s life begins. Granted, Zacchaeus gladly welcomed Jesus into His home when Jesus stopped to talk to him, but in Scripture, we learn what happened after that.

Although “all the people saw this and began to mutter, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a sinner,’” that did not stop Jesus from this opportunity to reach Zacchaeus. And while many people might not change so suddenly, Zacchaeus did. Luke tells us that Zacchaeus stood up and declared, “Here and now I give half my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount” (19:8). Jesus then said, “Today salvation has come to this house….For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (vv. 9–10).

The good news of Jesus changes us. Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “If anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: the old has gone, the new is here!” Scripture doesn’t tell us what happened to Zacchaeus after his encounter with Jesus and his bold declaration. But we can imagine that his changed life was a testimony to those around him. It surely made people wonder what had happened to cause such a shift in his priorities. Our lives may often be the first encounter with Jesus that people have. And that opens doors for us to share the gospel with the lost.

Consider: How is your life reflecting Jesus? When you interact with others, can they see something different in you that leads them to hope in Christ?