Life Between The Trees: The Sycamore Tree - Luke 19:1-10

They are a precious gift as part of God’s creation.  They are serve as symbols our faith, reminders of God’s promises, and place markers God’s faithfulness.  As we journey between Eden and New Jerusalem, we have found the gift of Free Will in the dual trees of Eden; the promise of God’s sustaining and recusing presence in the olive tree; the assurance that God’s promises cannot be thwarted with the cedar tree; the call to sacrificial hospitality under the oak; the reminder to trust in God to bring the victory as we encountered the palm; we discovered God’s comforting and providential presence under the broom tree; and the fig tree called us to turn from lives consumed with what Paul would call the works of the flesh, leaving us barren, to lives that fully bear the fruit of the Spirit.  How many of you are ready to be called a tree hugger now?

As Jesus journeyed between the trees, he passed through Jericho.  There, Jesus encountered a tree-hugger.  Zacchaeus was a tree hugger, though he was a tree-hugger for a different reason that we have been talking about.  Zacchaeus was a tree-hugger because that vertically-challenged guy was hanging on to a sycamore tree for dear life.

What is it about Zacchaeus?  What makes him and this sycamore tree so important?  What do we know about good ol’ Zack?  We know he was a wee little man, and a wee little man was he.

One of the things that we have to note is that at the beginning of this story from the Gospel of Luke, is that Zacchaeus was definitely not “good ol’ Zack.”  He was a scoundrel.  He was a traitor to his people.  Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector.  We talk a lot, especially this time of year, about how much many of us really, really dislike the IRS and having to pay taxes.  Some of us may even label the IRS collectors among the most dreadful of folks.  However, they are not for us what they were for the Hebrew people.

First of all, for the Hebrew people, Zacchaeus wasn’t just an IRS agent for Jericho.  He wasn’t collecting taxes for Israel.  He was collecting taxes for Rome.  He was a Jew working for the Roman Empire—for the occupying enemy.  He wasn’t just taking money from the people, he was collecting money from his own people on behalf of the enemy.  Zacchaeus was a traitor.  To make matters worse, he was a traitor who had given himself comfortable living conditions.  The Roman government didn’t pay Zacchaeus.  Zacchaeus had to make his living off of adding his fees to the taxes he collected for Rome, and from the description we get, Zack didn’t add just enough to support himself, he had made himself wealthy.  So Zacchaeus wasn’t just a traitor to his people…he was a traitor that used and abused his people to lift himself up.  He had made a name for himself…the little man making himself big…just not in a good way.  If there was a sinner in Jericho, the people were sure it was little ol’ Zack—the man everyone loved to hate.

Zacchaeus was a man who kept his ear to the ground.  He circulated enough among the people to be able to hear all the whispers and rumblings.  He knew the people didn’t like him.  He knew they didn’t like Rome.  Most of the time they lived each day dejected and depressed.  Most of the time, he didn’t really care.  He was glad they felt as low as he was short.  Yet lately there seemed to be hope and excitement building among the people…rumors that things were about to change, and all of those rumors and all of that hoped seem to center around one name.  He kept hearing it over and over again…Jesus.

Then the rumors and hope burst forth into proclaimed excitement.  This Jesus was coming to Jericho.  People began lining the streets.  Zacchaeus had to see who this Jesus was…this name folks were now praising more than they were cursing his.  He tried to work his way to the front of the crowd, but no one, unsurprisingly, would make room for the hated tax collector.  Zacchaeus grew desperate.  Then he saw it.  The sycamore tree.  He would be able to see who this man named Jesus was.  He strained and struggled and finally reached the lowest of the branches and pulled himself up.  He continued climbing and worked his way onto a branch that jutted out over the crowd, almost over the street itself.  It was a sturdy branch, but Zack didn’t like heights, so he hugged that tree branch tightly.

That’s where Zacchaeus was when the unbelievable happened.  It was almost as if it happened in slow motion.  Zacchaeus saw him.  You could definitely tell there was something different about this man.  He couldn’t pin his finger on what it was.  He just knew.  Then he noticed this man Jesus notice him.  From the moment their eyes connected he knew things were about to change.  Jesus stopped walking, adjusted his angle, and began walking directly toward that sycamore tree.  He kept walking until he stood directly below Zack.  He looked up through the leafy branches of the tree, everybody along the road also turning their eyes to the sycamore to see what had captured the attention of Jesus.

“Zacchaeus,” Jesus said.  “What are you doing up in that tree.  Get down here.  Don’t you know, I’m going to your house to eat today.”  That’s all it took.  Zack’s life was forever changed.  It was as if light radiated from Jesus.  It penetrated the darkness of Zacchaeus’ heart and convicted him of all that he had done wrong.  The longer he spent time with Jesus the more he was sure he needed to change.  By the time the meal was done, Zacchaeus was a brand new man…not only convicted of his sin, but ready to make reparations to all of those he had wronged.

My brother and sisters, for any here who are struggling with their sin, the good news is that we don’t have to get our lives right in order to encounter Christ.  He loves us and accepts us right where we are, even if it is hugging the branch of a sycamore tree.  He not only loves and accepts us, but He comes seeking us out.  He desires a relationship with us, despite our sin.  He wants to spend time with us, and in spending time with Jesus, we will find our lives transformed…His grace and holiness breaking the bonds of sin and encouraging and empowering us to live changed lives.

However, that is only part of the power of this story involving the sycamore tree.  There is also a strong and powerful message, my friends, for those of us who have already surrendered our lives to Christ…and that is how we respond to the sinners we encounter in our lives.  As disciples of Christ, as those who have given our lives over to Christ, surrendering to Him as Lord and Savior, our response to sinners has to be Christ’s response.

Jesus did not come to judge sinners.  Jesus did not come to condemn sinners.  Jesus did not come to look down His nose at sinners.  Jesus did not shun sinners.  Jesus did not distance Himself from sinners.  Jesus did not ignore sinners or pretend they weren’t around.  Jesus did not avoid sinners, think of them as gross, or even get angry with them.  Jesus sought out sinners.  He spoke to them.  He touched them.  He sat with them.  He ate with them.  He became their friend.  He defended them.  He came to save them, “for the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”  Thanks be to God that was the reaction of Jesus to sinners, for we were, and maybe still are, counted among “them.”  And, my brothers and sisters, His reaction should be our reaction.  When we see those that would be classified as sinners, our response should not be that of judgment, fear, shunning, condemning, or ignoring—it should be one of compassion, befriending, defending, and offering the loving, saving, holy grace of God.

As Jesus broke bread with tax collectors, prostitutes, and other sinners…Jesus shared the most sacred of meals with those who would desert Him, and even Judas who would betray Him—as we share this meal that Christ has prepared for us, let us hear how He might be calling us to seek out those who need to experience His grace today.

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