“And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him.” Luke 19:5a
We are looking at Jesus’ encounter with a man named Zacchaeus to discover how much we matter to God. When we begin to see ourselves through God’s eyes, God can make the greatest changes in our lives.
Last time we saw that Zacchaeus was a wealthy man living in the city of Jericho who was probably quite miserable. His misery was connected to his appearance and his actions. He was a “short” or small man who probably received a lot of teasing all his life for the way he looked (Luke 19:3). He was also a “chief tax collector” which meant he got rich by stealing from people (Luke 19:2). So he was not liked by others because of his profession. It is likely that Zacchaeus did not even like himself because of his guilty conscience. He knew that he was making his own wealth at the expense of other people. He was deceitful and dishonest. He had lost all of his self-respect and his zeal for life. Most likely he felt all alone and unwanted.
Can you identify with Zacchaeus? Have you lost your self-respect? Have you experienced pain and rejection because of your appearance and/or your actions? Do you feel all alone and unwanted? Or do you know someone who does? If so, then I think you will be very interested in what happens next in this account of Zacchaeus. We are going to look at three profound truths the next few days which can change our lives forever.
The first truth is NO MATTER HOW INSIGNIFICANT I FEEL, JESUS NOTICES ME (Luke 19:4-5a). When you transition to a new phase in life – graduate from high school and go to college, start a new job, move to a new community, or retire – you may feel lonely and insignificant, like no one notices you. But know this, Jesus Christ notices you.
When Zacchaeus heard that Jesus had come to the city of Jericho he did two things that no wealthy Middle Eastern man would do. “So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way.” (Luke 19:4). One, he “ran” through a crowd, and two, he “climbed” a tree. These were things that little boys do in crowds, not wealthy well-known government officials. But Zacchaeus wanted to get ahead of the crowd and he found “a sycamore tree” where he hoped that Jesus would pass by and then he climbed up in that tree.
“His desperation caused him to do something a bit below his dignity. But Zacchaeus was willing to endure some public scorn to see the one everyone had been talking about.” 1
“Luke may have been presenting Zacchaeus’ actions as a commentary on Jesus’ words that unless people become like little children they cannot enter the kingdom of God (Luke 18:17).” 2 Constable also draws attention to this when he writes, “It is interesting that Zacchaeus did some childlike things, namely, running to see Jesus and climbing a tree, unusual activities for an adult government official. Jesus had formerly commended the tax collector in His parable for childlike faith (18:13). He had also taught the importance of childlike faith (cf. 18:16-17).” 3
Another commentator notes, “The crowd as [a] physical barrier and Zacchaeus’ strange position up in a tree can serve as spatial symbols of his isolation from his community.” 4
What Zacchaeus did was shocking, but what Jesus did was even more shocking. Jesus walks straight through the city past thousands of people packed in that crowd, and He walks right up to that tree and He stops. “And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him” (Luke 19:5a). In a packed out crowd, Jesus notices Zacchaeus. Christ looks up into that tree and fixes his gaze on this miserable man.
I can just imagine Zacchaeus’ heart starting to pound or more probably, feel like it was going to explode! Adrenaline was flowing through his body. His throat was all constricted. Zacchaeus may have turned around to see if someone was behind him up in the tree because he can’t believe Jesus would stop this parade just to look up at him. Then Zacchaeus realizes, “Jesus is looking at me! Out of all the people in Jericho, He is looking at me! Why did He stop here? Why did He look up? Why is the Son of God looking directly at me!” At that point in time I imagine Zacchaeus was in shock.
Why did Jesus do this? Why did Jesus stop right at that tree and look up? Because He knew Zacchaeus’ heart and He knew exactly where Zacchaeus was. Luke presents Jesus as the Savior who has come into the world “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). Zacchaeus was isolated and lost. Jesus knew this. So He took action.
And you know what? God knows exactly where you are today. You may be up in a tree. You may be out on a limb. You may be in a dark hole. You may think God has forgotten you and that He is thousands of miles away from you. But He is not. He has got His eyes on you (Psalm 17:8). There has never been a moment when God took His eyes off you. Never! He has seen every breath you have ever taken and every thought you have ever had. He has heard every word you have ever said and seen everything you have ever done – good or bad (cf. Psalm 139:1-18). And He has constantly looked at you with eyes of love.
It is may be difficult for us to imagine that God pays that much attention to us because we don’t pay that much attention to Him. We don’t notice God twenty-four hours a day. But every moment of every day God has His eyes on us. Jesus said, “… But God never overlooks a single [sparrow]. And He pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail—even numbering the hairs on your head!” (Luke 12:6-7 MSG). For some of us, it is not very difficult to number all the hairs on our heads! God loves us with a love we have never imagined. He has always paid attention to us. He has never taken His eyes off of us.
When our daughters were much younger shooting baskets behind our house, they would constantly say, “Watch me Daddy! Watch me!” All of us have a deep need to be noticed. We want to be seen. So we say, “Watch me Daddy!”
Adults do this all the time. We are constantly saying, “Watch me! Watch me!” We don’t say it that openly. We do it by the kind of clothes or makeup we wear; by the way we fix up our houses or decorate our lawns. We may also do this by the way we talk or style our hair. We try to accomplish big things so people will pay attention to us. Deep down inside we are saying, “Watch me! Pay attention to me!” We do this because we have a deep need to be noticed. And only God can meet this need all the time.
Most of us – even those of us who have been Christians for a long time, have not fathomed how awesome the love of God is. It is like an ant trying to figure out a human being. Our brain is not big enough to figure out how much God loves us or how much He pays attention to us. God is teaching us that NO MATTER HOW INSIGNIFICANT I FEEL, JESUS CHRIST NOTICES ME. May God the Holy Spirit massage this truth into the depths of our souls so we can stop striving to get attention and rest in the loving gaze of our heavenly Father.
Prayer: Precious heavenly Father, thank You for this wonderful encounter between Jesus and Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus did nothing to deserve Jesus’ loving gaze. If anything, he deserved a look of judgment and wrath. But instead, the Lord Jesus gave Zacchaeus something he had probably never received before – a look of compassion and understanding. Yet are any of us really any different than Zacchaeus? We also have a deep need to be noticed and understood. We too have felt ignored and unwanted. Perhaps our sin and shame has left us isolated and all alone. Thank You, our Lord and our God, for noticing every detail in our lives. Thank You for never taking Your loving eyes off of us. Others may have ignored or neglected us, but You have always noticed us. Our value comes from Your constant loving gaze which could never be earned. Thank You for knowing where we are and what we need. We love You, Lord Jesus. Please help us keep our eyes on You. In Your mighty name we pray. Amen.
ENDNOTES:
1. Tony Evans, CSB Bibles by Holman. The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (B & H Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2019), pg. 1717.
2. John A. Martin, The Bible Knowledge Commentary Gospels, Editors John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck, (David C Cook, 2018 Kindle Edition), pg. 506.
3. Tom Constable, Notes on Luke, 2016 Edition, pp. 271-272.
4. Ibid., cites Robert C. Tannehill, The Narrative Unity of Luke-Acts: A Literary Interpretation. Vol. 1: The Gospel according to Luke, (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1986), pg. 123.