Warriors Arise: February 12, 2022
Luke 19:1-8 (NKJV) Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. 5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” 8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.”
One of the most loving things we can do is to make right our wrong. I remember an episode from Happy Days where Fonzy is trying to apologize. He can't quite get out the words, "I am sorry." He tries several times and several different wordings but when it gets to having to say he is sorry, he can't do it. Everything in us fights against having to say those words. We will rewrite the scenario in our mind, changing how the conflict came to be and our reaction. It is natural to always make someone else blame as the victim.
I do not say this to minimize horrific wrongs that have happened to us. Maybe we were only 5% of the problem. However, I am not so blind to believe that over time I have screwed things up in my mind to make my 55% wrong diminish to 5%. They say time heals all wounds. I have never believed that. Or we can go the quick way and be healed in an instant. Most of us like the quick way, but is doesn't mean it is easy.
Zacchaeus has seen Jesus up close. I am guessing he has not only made sure that everything Jesus and His disciples need has been taken care of. but he has heard them speaking to one another. They are resting and being refreshed. They are speaking freely of the day's events. Jesus not only taught His disciples of His Father's ways when they were serving the multitudes, but while they were walking on the road and visiting with friends (Lazarus, Mary and Martha); so why not when they are resting and eating at Zacchaeus' house? Remember, Zacchaeus sought to see what kind of a man Jesus was. He would not be one to miss the opportunity to oversee up close and personal. He had heard too many things and wanted to know what was true. Something compelled him to stand up and call to Jesus. Something provoked him to make a declaration, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.”
A little two letter word can be extremely significant. The word if. After hearing Jesus, Zacchaeus is willing to have his records checked. He is a tax collector. He knows how to run the numbers. He knows how to find where someone is altering the records. He would be able to find out the truth.
He is not admitting that he has taken from anyone by false accusation. But he is willing to allow his records to be searched. Remember what the people said when Jesus said he was going to Zacchaeus house? But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.”
There are times you cannot change what people think of you, but you can present yourself to God and He allow Him to be the judge. Do you remember what David prayed?
Psalms 139:23-24 (NKJV)
Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
24 And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting.
This can be a difficult prayer to pray. Most of the time we know what we have done wrong or said that has hurt people and ultimately hurt God by the way we have acted. The conviction of the Holy Spirit leads us to make things right, to apologize and make a change within us. The Holy Spirit does not led us to apologize so they make a change. He leads us to apologize so we make a change. I have found when I apologize, I am faced with the reality of my yuck, my sin. I have to own it so it will be exposed. Then I can confront it and seek the Lord to remove it from me (Romans 12:1). When I go all the way, placing myself upon the alter, allowing the Lord to cut it out of me, then I will be free from repeating the sin again.
Zacchaeus does not admit to do anything wrong but he is willing to check his records and make sure. If anything is found, he has declared a hefty restoration! He isn't just going to pay them back, he is going to pay them back with interest. He is going to make a statement that the recipient never forgets. He is going to use his wrong to bring a turn in the finances of the one he wronged. Again, his heart to have his finances checked, his business dealings, and set the record straight. The position, a tax collector, does not make the him a sinner, sin makes a person a sinner.
Father, this can be a difficult. It is so hard to lay down everything before You. It is difficult to apologize without Your help. But in Your presence all is revealed. In Your presence, we cannot hide who we are and what we have done. I pray I would not be afraid to go into your presence. I pray I would be willing to open my heart to You and allow You to speak to me. I pray I would hear what is on Your heart and see what I can do to join You in great exploits. I pray I would not be blind to my sin. I want to be clean before You and respond in love toward others. If I need to apologize I ask for the courage to do so quickly. I pray if there is restoration that needs to happen, I will give wholeheartedly in Jesus' name amen.
A Warrior in the Lord’s Army,
Veridee Joy Hand
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