The Bible is from God (II Timothy 3:16). Each event which is recorded has importance attached to it because it is from God. We read from the Old Testament to learn about God and to establish with power the truthfulness of the New Testament (Romans 15:4; Acts 17:11). We do injustice at times by referring to some events as stories as if they are not true. Zacchaeus is a case in point. It was an actual event which occurred in the life of Jesus. It is not some story or allegory, but rather a factual event which took place in human history.
We learn from Luke 19:2, that this man Zacchaeus was rich. How did he reach this level of financial security? One might argue that the ones who collected taxes for Rome were dishonest and always took more than they should have. This is the same kind of false reasoning people use regarding Pharisees. Some today use the word “Pharisee” to mean anyone today who does not give in to liberal thinking. It is prejudice of the highest order to read the New Testament and assert that all Pharisees were self centered, self righteous people who judged others. Once you make such an assertion, you run in to a Nicodemus (John 3).
Contrast this, which is speculation on our part, with what we can know about this man. Based on verse 3, he was little of stature and hence could not see over the crowd. What if I told you he was like Saul, the first king of Israel who was a tall man by the standard of the day? You would rightly conclude such would be false because the evidence does not back up such a statement. Zacchaeus was a man of small stature because that is what the Bible states.
Zacchaeus knew which way Jesus was coming. How do I assert such? The Bible states through Luke that Jesus “…was to pass that way”. What if I said, Zacchaeus went home and Jesus happened by? Oh, that would be incorrect? Why is that the case? Because the Bible shows us that Zacchaeus knew which way Jesus was going and ran ahead to position himself to see the Lord.
This rich man went ahead of the crowd and climbed up in a sycamore tree (verse 3). Whatever logic one uses, if you have Zacchaeus up in some kind of tree other than a sycamore tree you would prove that you are not reading your Bible. What possible difference could it make? This is an actual event in history and, therefore, because it is in the Bible, which is from God, the statement must be accurate. Luke had to write which tree it was and if I teach from God’s Word, I must tell anyone who will listen that Zacchaeus climbed up in a sycamore tree. By the way, what kind of wood did Noah use to build the ark?
The religious world wants to point to the book of Genesis wherein God declares that Abraham believed and it was imputed to him for righteousness. Likewise they go to the book of Romans for the same purpose. Zacchaeus was a “child of Abraham”. Did he believe in God? The evidence shows that yes, he believed in God. Was he therefore a righteous man?
Surely if this man was a child of Abraham, he must have been righteous just like Abraham? We come then to a very strange statement on the part of Jesus. Jesus said, this day is salvation come to this house (verse 9). If salvation comes then it was not already there. What this case of Zacchaeus teaches us is that being declared righteous by God is not without conditions. Who is a wise man? Jesus says it is the man who hears and keeps the sayings of Jesus. This will no doubt offend some today but keeping what Jesus says means doing what Jesus said (Matthew 7:24).
Men today are declared to be righteous if they obey the Son of God (Hebrews 2:9). They are obligated to so live that Jesus could be in their homes.