The God Who Seeks

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.”

Sound familiar? Many of us baby boomers grew up singing that song in kids’ church. It is a song that tells a lot about a man and a Savior.

Zacchaeus was a “wee little man.” Scripture describes him as “small in stature.” But what he lacked in physical stature, he made up for in financial status. He is described as rich, a chief tax collector—and thereby one who is separated from his people. He was not admired or well-liked by his Jewish brothers and sisters. He was likely seen as a traitor to his people. 

I wonder what it was like for Zacchaeus as an adolescent. His peers were growing tall and strong, and, at some point, he stopped growing. He stood out among his peers for what he lacked. Maybe it set him on a course to prove himself, to show himself as more . . . more than how his friends saw him, more than what his culture said about him. More. 

And then there was Jesus. His reputation was growing. Word of His teaching and his healing was spreading like wildfire. And Zacchaeus wanted to see him. He probably didn’t know exactly what he was looking for, but he knew he wanted to lay his eyes on this Jesus. And so he made a plan. He would run ahead of the crowd and position himself in the highest place he could find, the branches of a sycamore tree. 

But this story isn’t about a man who climbed a tree to see Jesus. It’s about the Savior who saw him. He saw him in the sycamore tree, but, even more, he saw his need, his heart’s desire. And Jesus told him to come down, quickly. Don’t hesitate. The one you’re looking for is talking to you. 

Because Jesus is Jehovah Roi, the God who sees. 

And, just as He saw Zacchaeus, he sees me. He sees me in my doubt, my fear, my disappointment, and my grief. He sees my heart that wants more . . . more than this broken world has to offer. 

And He says, “Come quickly.” 

He has all that I need, all that I desire. 

Why would I hesitate?