[0:00] Shall we now turn to Luke chapter 19. Luke chapter 19. I want to take a break this evening from a study of Joel. Might help us as we approach it later on just while we break away from it. Luke chapter 19 and we can read from the beginning.
[0:36] And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Behold there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief among the publicans and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who he was and could not for the press because he was little of stature. And he ran before and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place he looked up and saw him and said unto him Zacchaeus make haste and come down for today I must abide at thy house. And he made haste and came down and received him joyfully.
[1:15] And when they saw it they all murmured saying that he was gone to be a guest with a man that is a sinner. Zacchaeus stood and said unto the Lord Behold Lord the half of my goods I give to the poor and if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him this day salvation come to this house for so much as he also is a son of Abraham for the son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. Particularly these words in verse 10 in the light of the illustration before for the son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
[2:07] You know this sums up the gospel. It certainly sums it up for Luke. You'll know yourselves that each one of the gospel writers has a different purpose in writing. We are presenting the gospel from a different angle. The gospel of John for example is presenting it with a view that he's showing how Jesus is both God and man.
[2:37] The gospel of John for example is presenting the gospel of John for example. The gospel of Matthew would seem to be presenting Jesus very much as a teacher. But this gospel of Luke is presenting salvation as being the reason why Jesus came. It's made very clear by the references to salvation in this gospel.
[3:00] And in one way this is the closing part of Jesus' ministry before he moves on towards the walk to the cross. The son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.
[3:19] The son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. I just have three points tonight. The first is that there's a lost sinner who seeks the saviour. A lost sinner seeks the saviour. We read in Ezekiel chapter 34 and you'll have noticed there was a lot of talk about shepherds.
[3:45] Now these weren't literal shepherds looking after sheep on a hillside This was the way that God was speaking to those kings and priests and elders who were to be caring for God's people Now these shepherds of God's people had not been doing what they were called to do Instead they were doing the very opposite They were devouring the flock and living off them And God was not happy with that situation quite understandably And he decided to punish these shepherds And he says that he himself will come And he will look after his flock He will go out and seek those sheep who are lost and bring them back into the fold Now that's the background to this statement in verse 10 of chapter 19
[4:45] It's Jesus speaking as a shepherd who is coming to seek and to save a lost sheep Now each one of the Christians who are here tonight were at one time lost sheep Jesus came to seek them Jesus came to save them And those of you tonight who are not believers You are at the moment lost sheep You are lost, you are strayed from the fold And Zacchaeus was very much like you Zacchaeus was a lost sinner seeking a saviour What can we say about this lost sinner or the lost sheep?
[5:38] Well look first of all at the character of Zacchaeus We are told that he was the chief tax collector Or as it says here in the authorised version Chief among the publicans A publican was one who collected taxes You remember that this was a very unpopular work The Jews did not like people like this Why?
[6:06] Well you imagine how you would feel If some American came over here And gathered taxes from the people in Dingwall You wouldn't like it You would have said This is our land You have no right to gather taxes from us Well you see that's what the tax collectors were doing They were collecting money on behalf of the Romans The Jews used to live in their own land But then the Romans came and conquered them And when the Romans conquered them They said you will pay taxes to Rome And we will send tax collectors To gather that money from you And the tax collectors were normally Jews And these Jews who would do such a work Were very selfish people They were people who would often
[7:06] Cheat more money out of the people They weren't just happy to charge The standard tax They would charge more So they could make a better living Out of it So not only were they despised By the normal Jews Because of their work for the Romans They were despised because they were chiefs They were deceitful people And they were usually among the roughest people In a wealthy sense In fact Zacchaeus wasn't just an ordinary tax collector He was the chief one He was the chief one in the area of Jericho Which meant that probably he was the most selfish of them all He was certainly the wealthiest of them all And he was probably the biggest cheat of all You'll actually notice
[8:09] That later on The people call him A sinner In verse 7 They were murmuring That he was going to be guests With a man That is a sinner Do you know who else They would call sinners?
[8:27] Prostitutes If they saw a prostitute They would call a prostitute A sinner It was that kind of class They were talking about So when they called this man a sinner They were ranking him In the same immoral level As a prostitute They were the scum of society Those who had no real care for themselves Those who had lost all shame And they were so brazen in their ways Zacchaeus was a hated man He was a wicked man Very likely a selfish man And a very rich man In one way he had all that this world could offer him That was his character But look at his desire now He had a desire He had a desire To see Jesus He sought to see Jesus
[9:31] In verse 3 Who he was Now why would someone like Zacchaeus Want to see Jesus? Well Zacchaeus probably heard news about Jesus In the first part of news you would probably have heard Was that here was someone who spoke kindly About tax collectors Jesus once told a parable About a tax collector And a Pharisee Who both went to pray And when Jesus had finished speaking that parable Everybody knew That Jesus thought more highly in that instance Of a tax collector Than he did to a Pharisee And I'm sure any tax collector Who would have heard that parable of Jesus Would have said to another one
[10:32] Did he hear what he said? He actually said that we could be better Than the Pharisees And I'm sure some tax collectors Would have said this to Zacchaeus The chief of the tax collectors That here was someone telling a parable That a tax collector Could have a greater place In God's eyes Than a Pharisee There was never anyone Who preached like that before There was never anybody Who gave hope To lost sinners Like this before That was one part I'm sure of the news That Zacchaeus heard But he also heard Something else I'm sure Something that happened Just outside Jericho You see not only Was Jesus speaking kindly
[11:34] Of the rich tax collectors And saying that the rich people Could come into the kingdom of God He was also healing beggars Beggars like Bartimaeus You see people like beggars were poor Probably the poorest people In Jericho They had to sit at the gates Where the people were passing by In order that they might gain some pennies To buy some food And here was someone Who would come along And speak kindly To such a poor man And he would heal This poor beggar And give him back his sight Give him the power to walk You see it's marvellous Zacchaeus thought Here is someone
[12:35] Who can speak to all sorts of people Who can address them Despite what they are Whether they are The richest, wicked The tax collectors Or whether they are The poorest beggars That no one wants to know That's the kind of news That's spread To Jesus' Zacchaeus One who could speak kindly Of tax collectors One who could heal The poorest beggar And there had never Ever Been anyone like this before You know Sometimes I wonder Do we really take in Just how unique The ministry of Jesus is I wonder if we really realise That he did speak to people Of every class The most righteous
[13:37] To the most wicked The most loved And the most despised He spanned them all Because he had a gospel That was relevant To every single one of them Well you and I Have heard the same kind of message You here tonight Who are lost sinners You have heard a message You know that there is a Jesus Who can save the richest man And who can heal the poorest beggar You know that there is a Jesus Who will speak to you No matter what you are And what people will think of you But you know something more Than Zacchaeus did You have heard of a Jesus Who went to such great lengths Out of love for the tax collectors
[14:38] And out of love for the beggars You have heard of a Saviour Who went to the lengths Of the hell and the cross Has there ever Has there ever been anyone Like Jesus Never And Zacchaeus heard these things And he had a desire Because of that To see Jesus We have looked at the lost sinners character We have looked at his desire To see Jesus Now let's look at his difficulty Zacchaeus wants to see Jesus But all doesn't go easily The first problem is That he is a despised man He is one that people call Apsinath And if Zacchaeus went out
[15:41] Among the people He would be sure To be not only nudged But kicked He was a hated man And it wasn't very easy For Zacchaeus I'm sure To go out among the crowd He would be one that would love Staying in his wealthy home But he overcomes that difficulty Because he needs to see Jesus But the second difficulty he has Is his height He's a small man He's a very short man We don't know how short But he was so short That he couldn't see Over the shoulders of the people He wasn't a tall man Who was able to tower over the people He couldn't see Jesus He was a short man That presented a very real difficulty To one who wanted to see Jesus
[16:44] Passing by So what he did was He ran onto the sycamore tree What I'm wanting to do Is to show you That it's not easy for you It's not a plain path To go and see Jesus There are always difficulties In the way There were difficulties for Zacchaeus There are difficulties for you also You are hearing about Jesus You are impressed by Jesus You want to see Jesus You're seeking Jesus But the way is not smooth Could it be perhaps That there is someone here tonight Who is in that situation You are a lost sinner Seeking a saviour You know your character
[17:47] You know your vile You know in many ways That you deserve to be despised You are a sinner You also know full well If you will admit it Your desire Is to see Jesus Because you are impressed And you know also The difficulties you have had In seeking Him It hasn't been easy Has it?
[18:20] Could it be that there is someone here In that situation You are a lost sinner Seeking the saviour Well for you I have good news Because the saviour secondly Seeks the lost sinner That's what we have in verse 10 The saviour is seeking you The lost sinner You might feel that you are alone In your search You might feel that Jesus Is so far away from you But I have news for you If you are seeking Him With all your heart He is seeking you
[19:20] That's what happened With Zacchaeus Zacchaeus was seeking Jesus But do you know that Zacchaeus Would never have sought Jesus Unless Jesus was seeking Zacchaeus It was Jesus who was seeking Zacchaeus And because of that Zacchaeus began to seek Jesus You are seeking Jesus tonight And why are you doing it?
[19:59] It's Jesus' way of coming to you He is making you seek Him Because He is seeking you The Son of Man has come to seek the lost How does the saviour seek the sinner?
[20:25] First of all He makes you interested Jesus made Zacchaeus interested In himself And in the gospel He made him interested By spreading the word to Zacchaeus That there have been people Who have been changed By Jesus Zacchaeus heard Of what Jesus had said About the tax collector Zacchaeus had heard Of what Jesus did To the beggar And because of that He begins to think There must be something special About Jesus Zacchaeus heard About the teaching Of Jesus A teaching that spanned All classes And all sorts of people A teaching that was radical And that would meet
[21:25] The true needs Of the people Now you are in the same boat You are interested In Jesus tonight Why?
[21:42] Is it because you have seen What Jesus has done To your loved ones? Is it because you have seen What Jesus has done To the roles of being one?
[21:58] Is it because you have seen What Jesus is saying That his teaching Has something special About it That it matches the needs Of all sorts of people?
[22:15] You see You have heard these things Because Jesus has sent Preachers Also to tell you And through these preachers And through the witness Of those who have been Changed by the gospel You have begun To think About Jesus Just like Zacchaeus And you've begun To want to know more Isn't that true?
[22:48] You're wanting to know more About Jesus You are also beginning to see That you have a need That only Jesus can meet You are seeing You are seeing You are seeing You are seeing That you are not ready To meet with God Should he take you home Away from this world At any rate This night You know you are not ready And you are seeking And I'm saying And I'm saying And I'm saying That the saviour Is seeking you He is the one Who has given you That interest Just like he planned That Zacchaeus Would have that interest But the second thing That the seeking saviour Does for the lost sinner
[23:49] Is that he makes The sinner overcome The difficulties In the way He made Zacchaeus Courageous To go out And to face the people He made Zacchaeus Try and find a way To climb the sycamore tree To overcome the problem Concerning his height Jesus made Zacchaeus Overcome these difficulties And has that not happened To you Who are seeking Jesus Have you not seen One difficulty Move out of the way After another difficulty Have you not seen The path being cleared For you Perhaps first of all You began to think Yes I'm interested In Jesus And I want to know more But then you thought
[24:50] But I'm so vile I'm such a sinner If I begin coming out To the church now They're going to laugh They're going to say What a hypocrite he Or she is If I begin coming out To the prayer meeting now What are people Going to think of me They're not going to Think it's natural Or normal I'm far far too sinful In the sight of others You see You haven't been worried About what you are In the sight of Jesus You are convinced Really I believe That Jesus wants you But you have been afraid Of what people will think You are afraid Of how people will laugh At you Oh sinner Coming To Jesus
[25:51] You are afraid Of those in your own home Perhaps What they will think Of you But you have been able To overcome that difficulty Why Because Jesus Is seeking you Perhaps also You have had the difficulty In that you are tempted To prepare To meet Jesus Can you imagine Zacchaeus And all his vileness Knowing it's been achieved Knowing his defrauded And extorted money Can you not imagine Him saying When he's Developing this interest In the saviour Maybe I should Say things right first Maybe I should Give this money Back to the people Who have been cheated Maybe I should Set my life right Now
[26:51] Before I go and see Jesus Maybe you're the same You know That you have sinned You know That there are glaring Faults in your life You know That you've made a mess Of so many things And you're tempted To say There are so many things I must sort out Before I go and meet With Jesus He can't want me The way I am now And anyway People will laugh If I don't But you've overcome That difficulty You have decided To seek him As you are And that's the right way Zacchaeus Said things right After he came to Christ Not before Jesus has enabled you
[27:54] To overcome That difficulty So what is the Saviour Doing for the sinner The Saviour is seeking the sinner By making him interested in Jesus The Saviour is seeking the sinner By helping you By helping you To overcome difficulties Now the Saviour is seeking the sinner By placing you In his path Jesus went into Jericho That day Knowing he would meet With Zacchaeus Jesus went into Jericho Knowing full well That he was going to bring salvation To Zacchaeus And he made Zacchaeus seek him He made him interested
[28:54] In Jesus He made him overcome The difficulties And Jesus made sure That Zacchaeus was in that Thickamore tree Right in the path Where Jesus would pass by The Son of Man You see Is seeking the Saviour Seeking the sinner And he places him Right in his path Right in his path He is going to pass by He is going to go through Jericho But Jesus knows That there is someone Who will be saved And he knows That it will be Zacchaeus And he places him Right in his pathway Where he could be seen By Jesus Where he could speak
[29:54] To Jesus You look at the word That is used In verse 5 Zacchaeus make haste And come down For today I must abide At your house I must That word must Is very interesting Not I will Or I shall Or I should But I must This has all Been planned out It's all By divine Appointment That you should Meet me Zacchaeus It's all Been planned I have Placed you In my path And I must Now Eat with you In your house Don't you see How Jesus Is seeking The lost sheep He's putting forth
[30:56] His voice So the sheep Will begin to listen And he'll begin To seek He's helping the sheep Overcome the difficulties To get over the dikes And he's This sheep Is able to see That the saviour Is coming That the shepherd Is coming And he goes Right in his path Because the shepherd Is seeking The sheep He will bring The sheep Into his path Why are you Here tonight?
[31:33] Why are you Under the preaching Of the gospel Tonight? Why have you Heard these things? Could it be That Jesus Has placed you Tonight In the path Of the seeking Saviour?
[31:53] You have been Wondering Surely Jesus Doesn't want Anything to do With me Surely he doesn't Want me The vile sinner But this is The truth He has brought You here Tonight It's no accident And if he's Saying to you Tonight I must Abide in your house I must Do it Do you feel That constraint On yourself?
[32:29] Do you feel Jesus' call To be Irresistible? Do you feel That must Where you know That you must Take Jesus?
[32:41] You're seeking Him And it's Dawned on you That he Is seeking You And that all Along the reason Why you were Seeking him Is because It was his way Of bringing Himself And yourself Together The Savior Seeks the lost Sinner By giving Them an interest By enabling Them to overcome Difficulty By placing Them in his Path And also By speaking To them As soon As Jesus Came To Zacchaeus He mentioned His name Zacchaeus Make Haste And come Down But we're Told at the Beginning of The chapter That Zacchaeus
[33:43] Was seeking Jesus Who he Was Zacchaeus Had never Met Jesus And Jesus Had never Met Zacchaeus But as Soon as Jesus Comes to Him He calls Him By his First Name Zacchaeus He knows All about Him All about His desire All about His fears All about His longings All about The difficulties Jesus Knew it All He had His name And he Knew all That man's Thoughts And he Knows Your thoughts Also He knows Your name He knows Your desires And your Longings And just Like with Zacchaeus How lovely Jesus Put him At ease Hurry up
[34:44] Zacchaeus Come down I must Abide At thy House This day And he And he And he And he And he And came Down And received Him Joyful That man Was put At ease By the word Of the gospel Addressed to him That Jesus That Jesus Wanted to do A fellowship With a Sinner That Set That man At ease Could it be That the gospel Address to you Tonight Where Jesus Says to you That I Must Abide At your House Could it Unmatch Your situation So clearly So what you Are saying Yes I'll have him If he Want me Then I Certainly Have him If he Is seeking Me Then I
[35:44] Want to be One of his I want to Feel his Embrace I want to Enjoy his Fellowship Do you Want to Receive him Joyful The Saviour Seeks You But the Saviour Doesn't Just Seek The Lost Sinner The Saviour Saves The Lost Sinner Remember The picture The picture Of the Shepherd Going out Looking For the Lost Sheep Except This Shepherd Is special He knows Where the Lost Sheep Are And he Is able To make The Lost Sheep Come To him Not That Zacchaeus Was aware That it Was Jesus That was Calling Him He Never Knew That Until He Met With Zacchaeus And Zacchaeus With Jesus
[36:44] But the Thing Is That Once Once Once This Sheep Has Been Placed In His Path Once That He Has Spoken Those Words That Put Him At Ease The Shepherd Doesn't Turn Back Then And Say I Know Where You Are The Shepherd Doesn't Just Say I Have Found You That's It What Does The Shepherd Do The Shepherd Saves The Sheep Then The Word Save Means Preserve The Shepherd From That Moment On Preserve That Sheep So It Is No Longer A Lost Sheep He's A Found Sheep He's No Longer A Lost Sheep Living A Lost Life You See When You Come To Jesus When The Saviour Seeks You He Will
[37:44] Come To You And He Will Take You To Be With His Own And You Will No Longer From That Moment On Be A Lost Sheep Look Around You In The Church Tonight There Are People Around You Who Are Not Lost They Found They Belong To Jesus But You Are Lost But If You Come To Jesus You Will No Longer Be Lost Lost At At The Moment You Are Living The Life Of A Lost Sheep The Life Of One Who Has Strayed Away From The Fold You Got The Wounds As A Result Of It You Got The Bruises You Got The Scars But Jesus Says I Will Take You As
[38:45] You Are And You Will No Longer Be Living A Lost Life You Will No Longer Feel That You Are Separated From The Other Sheep You Will Feel At Home Don't You Want To Feel At Home Don't You Want To Be One Of Those Sheep Is He Calling You Away From The Lost Life But It That He Will Preserve You From That Will Never Be Yours Again But He Will Also Preserve You From The Death Of The Lost You See The Sheep That Stray Eventually They Will Fall Eventually They Will Stumble Eventually They Will Die They
[39:45] Will Die Because They Will Never Have Satisfaction They Will Die Because They Are Away From The Shepherd But You Know When You Come To Jesus He Will Never Allow You To Die The Death Of A Lost One Never Will You Die The Death Of A Lost One There Is No Christian Here Tonight Who Will Die The Death Of A Lost One There Death Will Be An Opening In To God's Very Presence Into Greater Pastures Than They Ever Knew But Jesus Will Also Save You From The Wrath Of The Lost Lost Not Just Death He Will Save You From He Will Save You From The Hell Of
[40:46] The Lost Sheep That Where You're Going My Friend If You Haven't Got A Saviour That Where You Are Going You're Going To A Place Which Is Called Hell Where All The Lost Sheep Will Go To Bear The Wrath But Jesus He Saved Zacchaeus From That Zacchaeus Would No Longer Have The Life Of A Lost One Almost Immediately He Wants To Make Himself Better I Will Give Back Four Times What I Took I Will Go Over Board And Make An Amen That Is Not The Life Of A Lost Sheep Any More And Jesus Zacchaeus When He Died He
[41:47] Went To Glory As A Saved Man Jesus Himself Promised That He Would Preserve Him From The Life Of A Lost Sheep From The Death Of A Lost Sheep And From The Hell Of A Lost Sheep But Jesus Doesn't Just Preserve From A Lost He Preserves To A Foundness He Doesn't Just Stop You Being A Lost Sheep He Brings You Into The Fold He Doesn't Just Pass The Sheep On Its Head And Say You're One Of Mine He Takes The Sheep Home He Takes That Sheep To Be Where He Is And Where His People Are You Realize This Friend That Jesus Can Give You A
[42:47] Life In The Fold That Is So Beautiful So Meaningful He Can Give You The Sense That He Cares For You Eternally No Matter What Experiences You Go Through No Matter What Difficulties You Will Be Cared For Because You Are In His Fold But Not Only That But You Will Receive All The Blessings That He Could Possibly Give You As He Says Briefly In Verse Nine This Day Salvation Come To This House For So Much As He Also Is A Son Of Abraham Abraham Was Promised Great Blessings He Was Promised A Godly Name He Was Promised A Land That Would Be His Forever And
[43:48] He Was Promised The Presence Of God Forever Abraham Receives That Along With All His Sons In Jesus Everyone Who Becomes A Christian Will Have A Godly Name That No One Can Take Away They Will Have A Name In Heaven That No One Can Blot Out Everyone Who Comes To Jesus Will Be Living In The New Heaven And In The New Earth The Promised Land And None Shall Ever Snatch Them Away From There Those That Come To Jesus They Will Live In God's Presence Forever And Ever Hearing God Speak Into Their Hearts Throughout Eternity I Am Your God You Are My People I
[44:49] Am Yours You Are Mine I Am My Beloved And He Is Mine And His Banner Over Me Is Love Jesus Saves Jesus Saves Doesn't Just Save You From The Lost Life He Saves You To A Life Of Blessing You See He Came To Seek You And To Save You Who Are Seeking Him With All Your Heart Could It Be That That Means You Could It Be That There Is Someone Tonight Or Some People Who Really Feel Like Zacchaeus Well
[45:50] Take Courage The One Who Saved Zacchaeus Is The One Who Has Come To Seek And To Save You May God Bless His Word Let Let Let Us Pray Oh Sovereign God We Pray That Thou Would Bless Thy Preaching Of Thy Word And That Thou Would Encourage Those That Are Seeking Thee By That Greatest Of Truths Of The Bible That The Son Of Man Came To Seek And To Save Ab To Jesus Poison Your For These Resilient In The Life packages that be families
[46:56] P Watch B Be