By Pastor William F. Kumuyi

Luke 19:1-3 “And Jesus entered and passed through Jeri-cho. And, behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, be-cause he was little of statu-re.”

Kumuyi

There are people, today, just like Zacchaeus, who are longing to see the Lord, but because they are short, they find it difficult. If you think that you are tall, then raise up your hand and you will find out that still it will not get to heaven. Though I am not talking about your phy-sical stature, but the spiritual: all the same, you are still short at both ends.

The Bible has a better definition for that scenario. Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” It means that if you are into any form of immorality —be it fornication, adultery, pornograhy, incest—and or occultism, alcoholism, gambling/sport betting, smok-ing, kidnappings and other forms of stealing, then you have dug yourself this deep into sin and that you are now very far away from God; and because God is holy and you are unholy, and He is good but you are evil: you need someone to bridge that gap between God and you. Until you realize this all important issue, just as Zacch-aeus did, you will still remain far away from God and attract His judgment.

But Zacchaeus did not allow his stature become a stumbl-ing block in his path to divine encounter. You may be short in your own way, but if you put your limitations aside, you too will enjoy the great taste in having an encounter with the God of possibilities. He will not pass you by. You will experience it in Jesus name.

The truth must be told. You must demand for God. This is because without demand, there will not be a supply. If you do not ask from God, you will not receive from Him. If you fold your hands and you close your eyes, but you fail to pray to God, when you should be praying, Manna will not fall from heaven. But thank God that you will pray; and as you do, heaven will demonstrate and you will get something today. I say, you will have it in Jesus name! Amen.

Luke 19:4 “And he ran before, and climbed up into a syco-more tree to see him: for he was to pass that way.”

Zacchaeus was a rich man and wildly known by the peo-ple because he was the chief tax-collector in Jericho. He must have suffered a lot of insults from the commoners due to his tactics of collecting taxes from the people. Yet, his focus did not stray away from the price and that was the reason he had to run.

He did not care about his dignity, especially because he saw God as the ultimate search. So, he did not bother about what prating words babblers will be engaged in due to his sensational move. But there are some people who carry their dignity too far even in the presence of God. They carry their self respect and personal honour to the extreme. To the extent that when Jesus wants to save and or heal them and bring heaven into their soul, they let their dignity stand in the way.

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But Zacchaeus had other ideas and did not let his societal position truncate his desire for God. And I know that nothing will hinder you too. You will see Jesus today.

Luke 19:4-5 “And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycomore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house.”

Praise the Lord Jesus is coming to your place right now. He will not pass you by. I cannot begin to describe to you how much He loves you (for He sure loves you) and how much he wants to favour you. And how He really wants you to share in the joy of experiencing the goodness of heaven.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

You will not perish because He will save you today. Even if you are as despised, notorious and dirty-handedly rich as Zacchaeus, He will still save you. I know this because He saved Zacchaeus and also the thief at the cross. So, you see, you will not be an exception.

Luke 19:5 “And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house.”

You may think that Jesus does not know you by name, but, to state the obvious, as in the case of Zacchaeus, He knows every detail of your life. He knows your name. He also knows your needs and He knows that you are right here. He is calling you right now. He wants you to come out from the life of sin.

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Heed His call and disassociate yourself from sin. I know you can do it. I know you will do it. I see somebody there getting saved today and that person is you. Praise the Lord, it is happening.

Luke 19:6 “And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully.”

Zacchaeus left his past misdeeds behind him, confessed his sins, repented of them and yielded his life to the Lord. You too can emulate these decisive steps taken by this sincere seeker.