A Wee Little Man

Last year, I preached on the story of the day that the wee little man named Zacchaeus met Jesus. Of course, the fact that I preached this story is most appropriate. I am a wee little man myself, and Zacchaeus is the patron saint of short people.

Just so everyone knows, having people laugh about my height doesn't bother me in the least. I enjoy joking about it. I really didn't think about that much growing up. Honestly, I was often oblivious to it. In highschool I remember thinking, "I wonder why I'm always attracted to tall girls."

The only difficult moments I've had related to my height have come when people have tried to comfort me about it. Take my dear grandmother for instance. One day when I was a teenager, out of the blue she says very seriously, "Josh it's okay that you're short." Uh, thanks grandma. "No, really it's perfectly fine. There have been lots of famous men who were short." Like, who? "Well, like Mussolini, Hitler, Emperor Hirohito." Thanks, Grandma that's really encouraging. Some wonderful role models there. All the evil guys from World World II. They should have called it the Axis of Short Guys.

So what is the significance of the story of Zacchaeus? Is it in the Bible just to comfort the vertically challenged of the world? I think we're going to discover that there's a much more important purpose in it—this story contains truth that every one of us needs to understand and believe. Over the next several posts, I'm going to be examining this remarkable story of how faith in Jesus can completely transform a man. (If it's been awhile since you've read the story you can find it in Luke 19:1-10.)

The final statement of Jesus in verse 10 is considered by many to be the theme verse of the book of Luke. Jesus says that he came "to seek and save the lost." That's his mission. That's his purpose. That's why he came. That's why he died. Jesus didn't come into the world to condemn or destroy, he came to search for and save lost people. And Jesus' love extends to every person—even the most unlikely. Even those who are despised and hated.

And that's what the story of Zacchaeus so clearly illustrates. Over the next several posts, I'll consider this story in three parts: Zacchaeus' character, his example and his Savior.