Power Point - June 28, 2005

June 28, 2005

 

…for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.

                                                                             --Luke 19:10

 

There are four basic things that live in every person’s heart regardless of financial, physical, emotional, or spiritual well-being. They are: emptiness, loneliness, guilt, and fear of death. Luke 19 talks about one particular man who experienced all of these things. His name was Zacchaeus and he was a wealthy, well-to-do, tax collector.

 

Zacchaeus, who probably wasn’t liked very well in town, climbed up a tree one day to get a good look at Jesus, who was passing through Jericho. And despite the scorn and criticism he got from the crowd, Zacchaeus made his move in hopes to catch the attention of the Lord. Jesus stopped at the foot of the tree in which Zacchaeus was positioned, and asked him to come down so He could stay at his house.

 

This is a powerful story of the grace and mercy of our Lord. Jesus came to this world, not just to be a great teacher, or to perform miracles, but to reveal the very presence of God in His personality and to save the lost.

 

Zacchaeus was a lost man, he didn’t have any value without Jesus, but he experienced the simple saving grace of Jesus that day. This seems like such a simple story, but it has a powerful message behind it. Even though we may dislike the idea, Jesus loves the people like Zacchaeus who skim off the top, squeeze their victims, and swindle and scandalize others, just as much as the rest of us.

 

Even though people like that try everything they can, at other’s expense, to make it to the top, they are often the ones who experience the four basic things discussed earlier more than anyone else. We may not realize how we treat people like this—it is probably just like the people of Jericho treated Zacchaeus saying, “This man doesn’t care about God! He only cares about money and greed and himself!”

 

We make a mistake if we think that these people are too far gone for the Gospel of Christ to make a difference. You may have to deal with people like this in your life right now, but I assure you that they need and probably want some saving grace in their lives. Pray for these people and their vengeful attitudes. Ask God to make a difference in their lives as a result of your witness.

 

EVERYONE IS A CANDIDATE FOR THE POWERFUL SAVING GOSPEL OF JESUS

CHRIST. NO ONE—NOT ONE—IS BEYOND THE GRACE OF GOD.