This is not the first time Jesus has welcomed sinners and tax collectors. We are beginning to see a pattern. Unlike the politicians of our day, Jesus does what he says!
Jesus does not merely make promises; he fulfills his words with action. When he said, “I am not here for the righteous but for the sinners,” he shows it by honoring Zacchaeus and inviting himself to dinner! That is huge. Jesus could have remained with the religious right—the Pharisees, teachers of the Law, and Sadducees. But Jesus is here to redeem the broken. Everywhere he turns, everyone who decides to follow him—his disciples, both men and women—are broken people.
Jesus does not gather healthy people around him; he has enough spiritual health for everyone. He gathers the weak, the cheating, the adulterers, and the sinners. He goes to the blind beggars, the helpless cripples, the lost sheep, the wayward women, and the infected lepers. If Jesus wanted to gather a dream team, it would be filled with the outcasts of society. Even the twelve disciples did not start off as anointed apostles. When recruited, not one of them was holy, righteous, or redeemed. But this is what Jesus does.
If Jesus started a local church today, you and I would probably be too prideful to attend. We would not want “those kinds of people” leading us. But once he calls, he cultivates. Once he invites, he disciples. He takes that which is broken and brings healing, wholeness, and restoration—and makes it well.
This is why inviting himself to the house of Zacchaeus was so shocking for those present. Jesus said, “I must stay at your house today.” We. Would. Never. Do. That. He might as well have been saying, “Zacchaeus, I am about to radically change your life, offer you my grace, save your very soul, and remind you of your purpose for being born!”
And yet we reject including those who are “sinners” in our ministries. Now don’t get me wrong—as I lead Revive, I need mature, faithful ministers to oversee. But those who are younger, developing, and growing can and will be broken. Healing does not come overnight; sanctification takes time. And so we who are more mature should encourage those who are not to walk the way of Jesus. As it says in Philippians 3:15: “Let those of us then who are mature be of the same mind; and if you think differently about anything, this too God will reveal to you.”
Jesus came to seek and save the lost, period. We as Christian servants and ministers are to do the same. We gather lost sheep and help mold them into his image through the power of the Holy Spirit. Not one of us has arrived fully formed and without sin. Some are further along than others, but Jesus receives and welcomes all. Just think: if he welcomed Zacchaeus, how much more will he welcome us?
“O Lord God, thank you for this reminder. You did not stop and remain only in the Temple around those who were holy. You went to people like Zacchaeus, a sinful tax collector, and you brought salvation to his house! Come now, Holy Spirit, fill us with your power. Help me know who to include and invite into your fold. I thank you, Lord, for the transforming work of grace, for second and third chances, and for the power to walk in your light. For you are good and your love endures forever.” Amen