repent

Luke 19:8

"And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold."

Accept Jesus's invitation and repent. Zacchaeus is a pattern for all of us to follow. Like Zacchaeus, we hear about Jesus and we are curious. We know some of Jesus's teachings. We may even be well-versed in the Holy Scriptures, and we may even think Jesus is the Messiah! Like Zacchaeus, we need to prepare our hearts and minds for the moment Jesus invites Himself into our homes.

Like Zacchaeus, we should JOYFULLY Accept Jesus's invitation. Knowing that Jesus is the Savior of your soul! Let the bystanders sneer and jeer. Like Zacchaeus, they will think you are not worthy of Jesus's invitation. They might know you have helped the occupying forces. They might know your shortcomings. They might see you climbing a tree just to get a better view. They also know that Jesus came to call you by name. Calling you out of your tree. Asking to come home with you and break bread with you.

Like Zacchaeus, we are all sinners. We are morally corrupt and honestly outside the bounds of religious acceptability. And, we are who Jesus came to save. Jesus chose to come home with us. This changed Zacchaeus's life, and it needs to change ours. Following Zacchaeus's example, we need to repent. Like Zacchaeus, we can try to right the wrongs we have done. Not to justify ourselves, rather to sincerely demonstrate our repentance. Knowing we will all stand before our Lord and be judged by Him. Like Zacchaeus, we will address our God and not the bystanders. Knowing that our actions will affect what the bystanders think about our God. This is the cross every Christian must bear.