And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” (Luke 19:5)

Zacchaeus was a wee little man

And a wee little man was he

He climbed up in a sycamore tree

For the Lord he wanted to see

And as the Savior passed that way

He looked up in that tree

And He said, “Zacchaeus, you come down!

For I’m going to your house today

For I’m going to your house to stay.”

We used to sing that ditty in Sunday school quite regularly. I was fine with that because it was a favorite of mine. It painted a neat word picture that a wee little kid could understand about a wee little man. Especially the part about climbing trees. The song also laid the ground work for little minds to get the drift that we had some things in common with the vertically challenged tax collector. We did bad things some times and we needed Jesus to make us right again with God.

Zacchaeus taught us about sin and repentance and recompense. He did wrong. He admitted it and agreed it was wrong. And he made his wrong right. Jesus went to Zacchaeus’ house to seek. Jesus stayed at his house to save. “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:10)

I am so grateful that Jesus came to seek me and find me and call me and save me. Aren’t you glad Jesus has done the same for you?

I wrote my own little verse:

I still feel like such a lad

As if yesterday were today

Such good memories of what I had

Making child footprints on my way

Remember me, Lord, still in those years

When innocence carried me along

Before sin brought me to fears

Before I jumped into such wrong

“Come and seek and save what I’ve lost

O’ thank You merciful God, You have at the Cross!”