Zacchaeus

Sermon - Sunday 1/25/25

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Dear brothers and sisters, today we hear the story of Zacchaeus, a story of

sin and God’s great mercy.

At that time, Palestine was under Roman rule. The Romans appointed local

people to collect taxes. These people were called tax collectors. Many of them

were dishonest. They took more than they should, making themselves rich, and

hurting others. People hated them. Tax collectors were seen as sinners, as people

far from God.

But not everyone was the same. Among the tax collectors, there were those

who still feared God. Zacchaeus was one of them. Yet, his wealth had made his

heart heavy. He knew that much of what he had gained was unfair. He wanted to

see Jesus, the one who forgives sinners, but he was short, and the crowd was too

big.

An interesting fact here is that chapter 18 of the Gospel tells us about a blind

man who could not see with his physical eyes. Jesus healed him and showed him

not only His spiritual richness, but even what He looked like physically. But in

chapter 19 we see the opposite case with Zacchaeus. He could see well with his

physical eyes, but he was spiritually blind.

It is clear that his name is originally Hebrew, but because the whole Gospel

was written in Greek, his name also came to us in a Greek form. At the end of the

story, it is said that he is a son of Abraham. Most likely, his name in Hebrew was

Zakkai or Zakkaiyah. In Hebrew, zakka means “pure” or “without guilt,” and ya is

a short form of the name of God, Yahweh. So the name Zacchaeus means “God is

pure” or “God is innocent.” However, his name did not match his life at all.

The main focus of this Gospel passage is on two things. First, the desire of the tax

collector, Zacchaeus, the strong desire to see Jesus. This desire pushes him

forward. His effort to go toward Jesus and to see Him makes him forget everything

else: his honor, his position, his pride. He even climbs a tree to fulfill this desire,

and he takes a step toward Christ. On the other hand, Jesus comes to save the Son

of Man, because Zacchaeus is also a son of Abraham.

A desire is born in the human heart, the desire to see Jesus. This Gospel

passage is often called “the Gospel of Desire.” Just before the beginning of Great

Lent, the Church reminds us how necessary this desire is. We must begin the fast

with desire. We must prepare and open our soul, the house of our soul, with this

desire.

Zacchaeus was a sinner, a man hated by everyone and loved by no one.

What kind of hell must there be in a person’s life, what kind of painful and tense

life, when everyone hates you? What must a person do so that no one is happy to

see him, and his presence awakens hatred in people’s hearts?

What did Zacchaeus do? He ran ahead. He climbed a tree like a child. He

forgot his pride, he forgot his status. He wanted only one thing, to see the Savior.

Brothers and sisters, do you see this? True repentance begins with humility.

True repentance begins with desire. When we really want God, no obstacle is too

big. No fear, no shame, no crowd can stop us.

And Jesus saw him. Jesus looked up and said:

“Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.”

Can you imagine? Zacchaeus had only wanted to see Jesus from a distance,

and now Jesus calls him by name. Jesus enters his house. Jesus comes to his heart.

And Zacchaeus receives Him with joy.

The people were surprised. They said, “Why does Jesus go to a sinner’s

house?” But the joy of Zacchaeus showed them the answer.

He said: “Lord, I will give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have

cheated anyone, I will pay them back four times more.”

This is true repentance, brothers and sisters. True repentance is not only

saying “I am sorry.” True repentance is changing your life. True repentance is

letting God’s grace guide you. And Jesus said, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is

a son of Abraham.”

Do you hear that? Even for someone seen as a sinner, salvation is possible.

God’s mercy is greater than our mistakes. God’s love is stronger than our sins.

Jesus came into the world to seek and save the lost. He comes to you today. He

calls you by name. He waits for your heart to turn toward Him.

So, my dear brothers and sisters, do not be afraid. Do not think you are too

lost. Like Zacchaeus, humble yourself. Desire God. Open your heart. And you will

receive Him. You will receive joy. You will receive salvation.

For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost. And He has not stopped

seeking. He is seeking you, today, now, this very moment.

You may also remember another story from the Gospel. It tells about a man

who was going from Jerusalem to Jericho. He was attacked by robbers, beaten, and

left half dead. A Samaritan saw him, helped him, and brought him to an inn. Now,

in today’s Gospel, we hear another story that also takes place in Jericho. But this

time it is about a man who himself was a robber in a different way, a tax collector,

and about Jesus, who comes as the Healer of this robber.

You also remember the story of the woman who was bleeding for many

years. She came to Jesus when there was a large crowd around Him. She touched

the edge of His garment and said to herself, “If I only touch Him, I will be healed.”

In the same way, during the Divine Liturgy, when the priest comes out in the Great

Entrance, people often touch the priest’s vestments with the desire to be healed.

Jesus felt that power had gone out from Him and asked, “Who touched Me?” The

Apostle Peter answered Him, “Master, the crowd is all around You and pressing on

You, and You ask, ‘Who touched Me?’” Jesus was not speaking about physical touch, but about touch with faith.

Many people may walk around Jesus or around the Church, but very few

truly touch Him with faith. In Jericho, there were thousands of eyes looking at

Jesus, but only one pair of eyes was filled with true faith, the eyes of the repentant

tax collector, Zacchaeus.

When we read the Gospel, we should not think that because one tax collector

or one sinner repented, everyone repented. No. This story shows us that among

thousands of people, only one truly felt his sin and truly wanted to change his life.

Zacchaeus heard that Jesus did not chase people away, did not insult anyone, and

did not oppress anyone. Instead, He ate and spent time with sinners and tax

collectors, with people who were rejected by proud and important members of

society. Because of this, Zacchaeus found courage in his heart and said to himself:

“This is the Man I need. If others do not accept me, He will accept me.”

Imagine this moment: two gazes meet. One is Zacchaeus, looking at Jesus from the

tree. The other is Jesus, who finds Zacchaeus in the crowd. Among the many

people around Him, Jesus sees the few who are truly searching for Him, and He

searches for them. That is why Jesus calls him by name: “Zacchaeus, come down,

for today I must stay at your house.”

This moment is very important. Jesus sees him for the first time and calls

him by name. Even today, if someone in America says to you, without knowing

you and without being invited, “I am coming to your house,” it would be

considered rude. But here the situation is the opposite. In that time, going to a tax

collector’s house and eating with him was considered shameful and unacceptable.

People believed that by eating and sharing joy with a sinner, his sin would pass

onto you.

They did not understand that Jesus came exactly to take our sins and to

cleanse them. This is what the Pharisees feared, that they would become unclean

because of others’ sins. That is why they asked Jesus’ disciples: “Why does your

teacher eat and drink with sinners?” Jesus answered simply: “Those who are well

do not need a doctor, but those who are sick do.”

The Church is not a place only for saints. For saints, we have icons, and we pray to

them. If someone is already a saint, tell us, and we will paint an icon. But the

Church is for those who need healing. When Jesus comes to Zacchaeus’ house, He does not call him to repentance and does not accuse him. Time passes, and then Zacchaeus himself says: “Lord, I

repent, and if I have wronged anyone, I will repay four times as much.” This

fourfold repayment comes from the Old Law. For example, if someone damaged

another person’s property or killed a sheep, he had to repay four sheep. Along with

the material payment, there was also a moral responsibility.

The Old Testament focused on law and repayment. The New Testament calls

us to repentance and confession. Christians went to confession once a week or

whenever they felt it was necessary, sometimes even every day, sometimes twice a

month.

Now comes something very important: if Jesus comes into the house of your soul,

repentance must follow. But if you do not leave your past pride, your old sinful

life, it means that Christ has not truly come to you, or if He came, you turned your

back on Him and did not care.

Jesus does not say to Zacchaeus, “I will visit your house.” He says, “I will

stay in your house.” Christ stays with us only when we truly desire to receive Him.

And how do we know that Jesus has entered our home and remained there? Not

through complicated rules or spiritual calculations. Jesus Himself tells us: when

you feed the hungry, when you visit the imprisoned, when you show mercy to the

forgotten, you did it to Me.

Christianity is not about ignoring people, and it is not about doing good in

order to receive something back. Yes, this is difficult—but this is the Gospel. What

matters most is not how much food we avoid during fasting, but how many lives

we touch, heal, and save, both spiritually and physically, through love. This is the

fast that brings Christ into our home, and this is the faith that allows Him to stay.

If you repent of your evil, it means that you have allowed Christ into your

heart. You heard His voice, and His hand touched you. If Christ was in your house,

it means you forgave your enemy. God knows you when you forgive, when you

help the unjustly oppressed and persecuted. But if you are the one who oppresses

others, who is merciless and who persecutes, then you are very far from God.

If your heart continues to insult, oppress, and hate others, then Christ has not

entered your heart. And if He did enter, you did not notice Him.

Zacchaeus was a man standing between life and death, and he chose Jesus.

When we are in great trouble and difficulty, we must cling to the Lord and not let

go. And the Lord will not let go of us. This is the feeling we must have.

Love is the beginning of all this. Love connects us to God. Zacchaeus’ eyes

fell in love with the Lord, and through his eyes this love entered his soul and his

heart. As long as we can change, let us change with love toward everyone, and then

we ourselves will be completely changed.

Let us not try to change others by force, only ourselves. The only thing we

can and must stop with strength is open injustice and violence toward others.

Amen.