When Jesus Invited Himself to Dinner
Have you ever invited yourself to the home of someone you just met? Most of us haven’t. Can you imagine inviting yourself to the home of someone who had a bad reputation in the community and was unpopular and even despised? This week’s message is about a man named Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector who desired to see Jesus. Zacchaeus was regarded as a sinner by all who knew him. Jesus could have been a guest in almost any home. Why did he invite himself to Zacchaeus’s house? It wasn’t because he knew the food would be the best available; it was because his mission is to seek and save the lost. We hope you’ll be with us as Pastor Doug shares a joyful story of grace, repentance, salvation, and generosity, and what it teaches us about following Jesus and how we treat other people, especially “the lost.”
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When Jesus Invited Himself to Dinner
This is the sixth week of our Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner series about meals that Jesus shared with tax collectors, Pharisees, friends, and disciples, and my sermon title today is, When Jesus Invited Himself to Dinner.
What’s funny about this is that last weekend, we were in Maine because I was preaching on Sunday and leading Bible Study on Monday and Tuesday, and we thought we were going to have some family members over for brunch on Sunday after worship.
However, we ended up with more and more relatives making the pilgrimage to Ocean Park, and, after receiving a few, “I hope it’s okay if we come… I hope it’s okay that I invited…” texts, we ended up having 18 people at our cottage for dinner on Saturday night. Jill and I were doing our best “Martha” imitation — cleaning, buying and preparing food, getting a canister of propane for the grill, and so on.
I felt very much in the spirit of that story, as well as today’s.
Have you ever invited yourself to someone else’s house? It seems kind of forward, doesn’t it? It’s one thing to invite yourself to a family member’s home, or even that of a good friend, but can you imagine inviting yourself to the home of someone you just met? Can you imagine inviting yourself to the home of someone who had a bad reputation in the community and was unpopular and despised? I didn’t think so.
This week, we’re going to hear the story about a man named Zacchaeus, who was a chief tax collector who desired to see Jesus. Zacchaeus was regarded as a sinner by all who knew him. Jesus could have been a guest in almost any home; why did he invite himself to Zacchaeus’ house?
It wasn’t because he knew the food would be great, and I’m sure it was; it was because his mission was to seek and save the lost. Listen to a joyful story of grace, repentance, salvation, and generosity, and what it teaches us about following Jesus and how we treat other people, especially “the lost.”
“He entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.’ So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, ‘He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.’ Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, ‘Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.’ Then Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.’”
The story of Jesus meeting Zacchaeus in Jericho is found only in Luke’s Gospel, and it’s connected to the passage that precedes it. This is the second of two consecutive stories Luke shares about men who want to see Jesus and can’t. Their lives couldn’t be more different.
Luke 18 ends with the story of a blind beggar who wants to see Jesus and asks Jesus to show mercy to him. A blind beggar had a hard life, dependent on the compassion and generosity of others to have enough to scrape by one more day. Zacchaeus was likely one of the wealthiest persons in town.
Both the blind beggar and Zacchaeus were persistent. The blind beggar was sternly told to be quiet, but he shouted even more loudly to Jesus, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
Zacchaeus was short of stature and was concerned he couldn’t see Jesus when he passed through town — and being in the middle of a large crowd wasn’t the safest place for a physically small man who was regarded as a terrible sinner by his neighbors and despised for collaborating with the occupying Roman government.
One is poor and the other rich, but both are blessed with salvation (Luke 18:42; 19:9-10).
The story of Jesus and Zacchaeus has similarities to when Jesus called Matthew, who was also a tax collector. With both Matthew and Zacchaeus, Jesus talks with a tax collector, is a guest in their home, is criticized for associating with such a person, and, in response, offers a pronouncement.
“Go and learn what this means, I desire mercy and not sacrifice, for I have come to call not the righteous but sinners. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”
It’s hard to overstate how radical it was for Jesus to eat in the home of a tax collector. That Zacchaeus was “a chief tax collector” (verse 2, a term that appears nowhere else in Greek literature) implicates him even more deeply in the corrupt tax system of the Roman government.
Then, as now, in a corrupt system, the loftier one’s position, the greater one’s complicity in that system. While we learn nothing of Zacchaeus’ private life in the story, no one can be privately righteous while participating in, and profiting from, a program that robs and crushes other persons.
As much of a sinner as Zacchaeus was, he still possessed qualities on which a disciple’s life can be built. It’s important for us not to write people off or dismiss them as hopeless. We’re to look for the good that God can build on. Zacchaeus’ intense desire and persistence in wanting to see Jesus — overcoming the risk of ridicule, physical harm, and embarrassment — is fundamental to the happy conclusion of the story.
Apparently, he has heard — and believes — the Pharisees’ description of Jesus as “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 7:34). I wonder if Matthew knew him, or knew of him, or if he told Zacchaeus about Jesus, or told Jesus about Zacchaeus, or both.
Whether or not Zacchaeus had found the cost of the personal rejection, social exclusion, and religious condemnation of how he acquired his wealth too high, we don’t know. What we do know is that, as soon as Jesus invited himself to his house, Zacchaeus extended hospitality to Jesus, and because of their time together, he is a new man.
He goes beyond the law’s requirement for making restitution. Voluntary restitution called for a return of the original amount plus 20% (Leviticus 6:5; Numbers 5:7). Compulsory restitution called for doubling the original amount, and, in some cases, repaying four or five fold (Exodus 22:1, 3-4; 2 Samuel 12:6).
Zacchaeus’ offer of giving half of his possessions to the poor and a generous restitution to anyone he may have cheated, is evidence of heartfelt repentance in response to the radical grace and kindness Jesus shows him.
In Luke’s Gospel, grace is always joined to repentance, and repentance isn’t just a matter of the heart. Repentance bears fruit; this was made clear in the preaching of John the Baptist when the crowds, soldiers, and tax collectors came to John and asked him, “What shall we do?” (Luke 3:10-14).
The encounter of Jesus and Zacchaeus is the story of the salvation of a man whose lifestyle as a rich tax collector, and the treatment he received from his community as a result, had not moved him beyond the reach of God’s seeking love. And, if even Zacchaeus is a child of Abraham, as Jesus says, so are those who grumbled against Jesus — and, as children of Abraham, they need the grace of God as much as Zacchaeus does.
Long time church people, like me, must be careful we don’t become like the folks in the critical, grumbling crowd, who readily identify other people as sinners, while forgetting — or neglecting to see — our own need for grace, forgiveness, and repentance.
The words of John the Baptist continue to echo and speak as appropriately as ever (Luke 3:8):
“Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.”
Jesus says,
“Today salvation has come to this house.”
The concept of household salvation is an important one for Luke, and we see it repeatedly in the Book of Acts (Acts 10:2; 11:14; 16:15-31; 18:8). However, the phrase that’s become most widely used in the church, from the story of Jesus and Zacchaeus, is “to save the lost” — even though the phrase “the lost” is a rare term.
It’s found here, and in Luke 15 in the parables of the sheep, the coin, and the loving father. However, the use of the phrase “to save the lost” has become much narrower than in Luke.
One hears it almost exclusively in terms of conversion, or saving a soul for heaven. In the case of Zacchaeus, “being saved” refers to a conversion, but not in any private sense, nor in the sweet by and by. Not only is his household involved, but also the poor, who will be beneficiaries of the generosity sparked by his conversion, as well as those people whom he defrauded.
His salvation has personal, domestic, social, and economic dimensions, and so should ours. Following Jesus impacts every aspect of our life.
In other stories in Luke, “saved” is translated “made well,” “healed,” and “made whole.” Luke would object to limiting the word to a condition of the soul. The whole of life is affected by Jesus’ ministry. Jesus’ closing statement, in verse 10, makes it clear that his visit to Zacchaeus’ house was not a delay or detour on his journey to Jerusalem and his final days; this was, and is, the purpose of his journey.
“For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”
In Luke 18:18-30, there’s a story of Jesus and a rich man that ended sadly. In Luke 19, the story of Zacchaeus ends happily, with joy, salvation, and generosity.
Two Lukan themes are present in this brief episode that teach us about Jesus and how we’re to live our lives as his followers. First is the simple act of noticing.
Jesus has a gift for seeing what others do not (Luke 5:27-28; 13:12; 20:1-3). It’s unclear, however, if Zacchaeus wants to be seen or noticed. Luke only says that he wants “to see who Jesus was” (verse 3).
In contrast to those who directly approach Jesus, like the blind beggar and others (Luke 5:12-16; 9:37-43; 18:35-43), Zacchaeus appears to seek a comfortable distance. Some of us can be like that with Jesus.
We can be curious about Jesus and want to know more, but we don’t want to go crazy, or for people to think we’re religious fanatics or anything. We’d just like to get a closer look, to see what he’s like, if he’s as good and special as so many people say he is.
If that’s you, first, I want to thank you for being here or being with us online. Second, I encourage you to keep taking steps to get closer to Jesus. Just like Zacchaeus climbed down out of the tree and hosted Jesus in his home, bring Jesus into your home and into more of your life. You will be glad you did.
All of us can learn from Jesus the importance of noticing — especially noticing people who are on the margin, the edges, who may be outsiders. They may not be up in a sycamore tree, but they are everywhere.
Zacchaeus’ actions are extraordinary enough (running and climbing a tree were not proper adult behaviors in that culture) to suggest a desire for something more with Jesus. Jesus doesn’t need a direct request or invitation to notice someone in need of fellowship.
He meets even the most hesitant to approach with the same compassion and mercy. In the same way, even in the fullness and busyness of our lives, practicing the discipline of noticing, seeing, and hearing the people around us is an important skill to develop that helps people to feel valued.
Another theme throughout Luke’s Gospel is social outreach and inclusion. In this uniquely Lukan scene, Zacchaeus’ marginalized status stems from his occupation as chief tax collector. Tasked with collecting Roman tariffs on transported goods, tax collectors held a less-than-virtuous reputation in first-century Jewish society.
While the mere fact of Roman tariffs upset those living under Roman occupation, many tax collectors earned their reputation through over-charging. This seems to be the case with Zacchaeus.
Jesus tells him,
“Hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.”
When do you think was the last time anyone wanted to be seen with Zacchaeus or to have folks know they’d been a guest in his home? The language of “hurry” mirrors Zacchaeus’ initial excitement in running ahead of the crowd (this is the same Greek word Luke uses to describe the shepherds’ “haste” in seeking out the baby Jesus in Luke 2:16).
The language of necessity (“I must stay at your house”) suggests Jesus’ fellowship with Zacchaeus flows from God’s will for his life. This is no random encounter, but an important moment in Jesus’ kingdom mission. Who would have thought a chief tax collector could experience such a transformation? Jesus did. You never know who you can reach with good news of God’s love and salvation.
I was reminded yesterday of the inspiring story of Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, an Irish priest who was responsible for helping to save 6,500 Allied soldiers and Jews in Italy during World War Two.
He hid them in various Vatican extra territorial residences and institutes. He evaded repeated traps by Colonel Herbert Kappler, the head of the Gestapo in Rome, who sought to capture him and anyone assisting him, some of whom were tortured and executed.
After the liberation of Rome, Italy, Canada, and Australia honored Monsignor O’Flaherty. He was given the US Medal of Freedom and made a Commander of the British Empire. We saw a statue in his honor and a memorial that highlighted his courageous and faithful work when we were in Killarney, Ireland, in 2023.
Meanwhile, Colonel Herbert Kappler was sentenced to life imprisonment for war crimes. In the long years that followed, in his Italian prison, Kappler had only one visitor. Every month, year in and year out, Monsignor O’Flaherty came to see him.
In 1959, fourteen years after the end of World War Two, the former head of the dreaded Gestapo in Rome was baptized by the hand of the Irish priest.
No one is beyond the reach of God. The story of Zacchaeus moves us to ask who among us, both in our congregation and outside, are those who have been left on the margin, who have been ruled out of bounds, who might surprise us by their generosity and faith, who just want to see Jesus but have been kept at a distance.
Keep noticing, especially those on the margins or those other people have given up on. Keep sharing and living the good news of God’s love in Jesus, which is available to all, even the worst sinners, and even to us. And keep showing evidence of the change Jesus has made in your life, through your love, kindness, compassion, and generosity.
Questions for Discussion or Reflection
- Why do you think Jesus invited Himself to Zacchaeus’ home, instead of waiting to be invited? What does this tell us about Jesus’ character and his mission?
- How do you think Zacchaeus felt when Jesus called him by name and asked to stay at his house? Have you ever experienced a moment when Jesus “called you out” in a personal way?
- The crowd called Zacchaeus a “sinner.” What does their reaction reveal about human judgment, compared to Jesus’ grace? How do we sometimes respond when Jesus reaches out to people we consider unworthy?
- Zacchaeus responds to Jesus with radical generosity. What does this tell us about true repentance or transformation? What changes in our own lives might show we’ve truly encountered Jesus?
- Jesus said, “Today salvation has come to this house.” What does that say about the impact of one person’s faith on their home or community? How can your faith influence those around you?
- Jesus says He came “to seek out and to save the lost.” How does this story reshape our understanding of evangelism or outreach? What would it look like to “invite ourselves” into someone else’s life, in love, like Jesus did?