Jul 21th, 2023:
And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house…” Luke 19:9
Jesus comes to the house of Zacchaeus, a sinner, and says to him: ‘Today salvation has come to this house’. He proclaims the good news of the Kingdom of God. Jesus models the ministry of preaching the gospel. He first reaches out to the sinner who was yearning to see and know him. Zacchaeus was longing to see Jesus climbing the sycamore tree to have a better view of him. Then he brings great joy into his life and thus transforms it in a moment. Zacchaeus was joyful when Jesus came into his house, vowing deeds of charity and repaying the wrongful acquiring of money. Finally, Jesus preaches to him the gospel and saves him.
This blueprint has been given to each one of us to obey God’s command: ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.’ The blueprint being: reaching out to the sinner, sharing the joy of the Lord, and preaching the good news of a savior. Christ being the first minister of this Gospel (He 2:3b). The ministry of sharing the Gospel has been given/passed on to each one of us. It is the commandment of Christ. It is not given to the Angels to preach (Acts 11:13,14). We are blessed to be the ministers of God’s kingdom, and his messengers of love, peace, and joy.
The Gospel can be as simple as Acts 16:31: ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved- you and your household’ or it can be as complex as the book of Romans, and everything in between. The Lord says ‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.’ Exactly like the day of Zacchaeus. He can come in, and he will dine bringing great joy. But to those who reject and ignore this salvation of God, how shall we escape the wages of our sin?