Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Nider. We are located at 4137 Todd's
Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are
at 1030 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
945 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information, visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com.
Now here's our pastor, Hod Neibert. The Lord Jesus Christ was on
His way to Jerusalem to be crucified. This was His purpose for coming,
to die on Calvary's tree as the sin-bearing substitute. And His
face was set as a flint as He went toward Jerusalem to be crucified. On the way to Jerusalem, he went
through a town called Jericho. Now, if you would have gone through
the town of Jericho and asked, who is the most despised, disrespected
man in town? You may have got several answers,
but the answer that you would have got most often would be
Zacchaeus. Zacchaeus was a publican, the
chief publican, and he was very rich. He was a man who made a
living as a tax collector for the Roman government, and that
would have made the Jews despise him. And he had become rich through
dishonest means of getting money from his brethren, padding the
tax bill in order to enrich himself. Now, I doubt that Zacchaeus was
a religious man. He wouldn't have been a good
Jew and worked for the Roman government. And when people would
see him coming, perhaps they would turn their head or perhaps
they would even say things to him. He was a very wealthy man. We read in Luke 19, verses 1
and 2, And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. And behold,
there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the
publicans, and he was rich. Now, we know that Zacchaeus had
a very notorious reputation, because when the Lord Jesus went
into his house, we read in verse seven, when they saw it, they
all murmured, saying that he was gone to be a guest with a
man that is a sinner. Now, a publican was put in the
same class as harlots and Gentiles. They were looked upon as the
moral scum of the earth by the Jewish people. And Zacchaeus
was a very wealthy man, and by his own admission in this passage
of Scripture, he had ripped people off. Look what he says in verse
8, And Zacchaeus stood and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord,
the half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I've taken anything
from any man by false accusation, I restore unto him fourfold."
Zacchaeus was certainly a man who was morally challenged. He was a bad man, and he's someone
who you would not have liked. If you would see him, you would
have been resentful. Such is the man that the Lord
came to save. Now let's read in verse 3 this
man who is the chief among the publicans and very rich. It says he sought to see Jesus
who he was. Idle curiosity? Perhaps. But here is the one and the only
issue. Forget about Zacchaeus. Forget
about yourself. Who is Jesus Christ? That is the one issue. Who is Jesus Christ? This is even more important than
what you think of it. You know that scripture, what
think ye of Christ, whose son is he? As important as that is,
what you think of him is predicated upon you knowing who he is, who
is Jesus Christ. Now, perhaps Zacchaeus had heard
many things about the Lord Jesus Christ, and he now wants to find
out who he is. Now, I'm not asking you. if you believe
that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant Word of God. Perhaps
you do not, or at any rate, you're not sure. I'm not asking you
if you believe in the miracles of Scripture. I'm not even asking
you if you feel confident that you can prove the existence of
God. You can't. Here's the question,
who is Jesus Christ? That's the question I want to
address you. I'm asking myself, who is Jesus
Christ? Now, I know who he claimed to
be. In John chapter four, that woman
in the well said to him when she didn't know who he was, she
said, I know that when Messiah has come, he'll tell us all things. And the Lord looked at that woman
and said, I that speak unto thee am he. In John chapter 9, he
said to a man who was born blind that he restored his sight to. He said, Dost thou believe on
the Son of God? And the man replied, Who is he,
Lord? that I might believe. And the
Lord said, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh
with thee." Philip, one of his disciples, said, Show us the
Father, and we'll be satisfied. And he said, He that hath seen
me hath seen the Father. He didn't say, It's just like
he saw the Father. or one who's very much like the
Father, or even one who's exactly like the Father. He that has
seen me hath seen the Father. When the Pharisees replied to
his claim, Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and
was glad, they said, you're not yet fifty years old. Has thou
seen our father Abraham? And he said before Abraham was,
I am. That's who the Lord Jesus Christ
is. That's the name of God. Remember in Exodus 3.14 where
Moses said, who shall I say sent me? And he said, tell them I
am has sent thee. I am that I am. The Lord Jesus Christ claimed
to be the great I am. the eternal God, God the Son. Now, he's either who he said
he is, or he's a terribly deluded figure, or he's an imposter. Which is it? Who is Jesus Christ? This man Zacchaeus sought to
see Jesus who he was. You know, that's when salvation
begins in a man's experience, when he seeks to find out who
the Lord Jesus Christ is. Now, we read in verse 3, And
he sought to see Jesus, who he was, and could not. He was unable to see who he was. He could not for the press, because
he was little of stature. Now, when anyone first begins
to seek to find out who Jesus Christ is, the first thing they
find out is that they're unable to know who He is. They're unable
to find out. It's beyond their ability to
know who He really is. You see, the Lord Himself said,
no man knows the Son. but the Father. Now, yes, this
man was of little stature, but he was little in other ways. He was a sinful man, and that
rendered him unable to spiritually see who the Lord is. Now, this
is the state you and I are in by nature. We can't know who
He is. We can't know Him unless He is
pleased to make Himself known. We're completely unable to know
Christ, to know God, to know any truth regarding God unless
He's pleased to make it known. We're shut up to revelation.
You can't figure this out. The knowledge of Christ doesn't
come by education. It comes by revelation. And you
and I are in His hands. He can make Himself known or
He can be pleased to pass us by. Whatever He does is right.
But we find out that knowing Him is beyond our ability. We cannot know Him unless He
is pleased to make Himself known. Now let's go on reading. So after
He could not see who he was, we read in verse 4, and he ran
before and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was to
pass that way. Anything more than idle curiosity?
I don't know, but he did this anyway. So there he sits waiting
for the Lord to pass by. Now, he didn't know who he was.
He'd heard of him. He'd heard things about him.
He was excited about seeing him. He runs ahead of the crowd, climbs
up in a tree, and he's going to wait for the Lord to pass
that way so he can get a look at him. I love to think of Zacchaeus,
this rich, wealthy publican, a despised man, sitting up in
a tree waiting for the Lord. to come by. Now we read in verse
5, And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up. Now He's on His way to Jerusalem.
His face has set as a flint, and He is going to do what the
Father sent Him to do. And on His way there, He stops
at this place where this tree is, and he looks up at Zacchaeus. And he called him by name. And
when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and saw him. That
word saw has a whole lot more to do with a knowledge. It doesn't simply mean he saw
him physically. He knew him all together. He
knew who He was. He knew His name. He had known
Him since before the foundation of the world. This was an elect
sinner. This was somebody He came to save. This is somebody
He came to die for. This is someone whom He had set
His saving love on for eternity. He looked up and He saw Him.
And He knew Him altogether and He called Him by name. Zacchaeus.
You reckon Zacchaeus was shocked? He didn't know the Lord knew
His name. Oh, he was utterly shocked when
the Lord stopped and looked up in the tree and called him by
name. Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must abide
at thy house. Now here we have a beautiful
illustration of what is known as the effectual call. when God calls a sinner by His
grace. And not everybody is called.
He only calls the elect. He doesn't call all men without
exception. He calls the elect, those who
believe. Whom he did predestinate, them
he also called. Now he didn't predestinate everybody
to salvation, only the elect. And whom he did predestinate,
them he also called. Now let me give you some things
about this call. First of all, it was a most gracious
call. Zacchaeus was a bad man. He didn't
have anything about him that could recommend him to God. He
was an evil, sinful man that made a living through dishonest
gain. Nobody liked him. Everybody was against him. But
the Lord graciously called this sinful man. I'm so thankful the
Lord calls men like that because if He didn't, I would never be
called. Any sinner finds hope in this.
The only people who object to this doctrine are people who
think themselves to be righteous. But sinners will rejoice in this.
This was a most gracious call. And it was a personal call. You
know, a lot of folks look at The gospel is so generic. He's
dying for everybody, but that doesn't secure the salvation
of anybody because it's up to what man does. But that's so
contrary to the gospel. This was a personal call, Zacchaeus. It wasn't a generic call. It
was a personal call, Zacchaeus. make haste and come down. Today
I must abide at thy house." Very much like he said to Lazarus
when Lazarus was in the graveyard. Lazarus, come forth. And he that
was dead came forth. It was a personal call. Now somebody
says, well, how can I know if he's called me personally? Well,
you can know. And here's how you know. If he's
called you, you'll be calling upon him. You'll be calling upon
Him to save you. Whosoever shall call upon the
name of the Lord shall be saved. The called call. That's how they
know they've been called. I don't know I've been called
because I've heard my name audibly. But I'll tell you this, I'm calling
on the name of the Lord right now to save me. Lord, save me.
It was a personal call and it was a hastening call. He said,
Zacchaeus, make haste. Don't wait. Don't wait till tomorrow. Don't wait till you get better.
Don't wait till you understand more. Make haste right now and
come down. Now if you wait till tomorrow,
He hasn't called you. When He calls, it's a hastening
call. When He calls, you respond. And if I don't respond, He never
called me. It was a hastening call and it
was a humbling call. Zacchaeus Make haste and come
down. The way up in the kingdom of
heaven is down. Come down from your pride and
self-righteousness. Come down from your haughty and
high thoughts of yourself. Come down into the dust. Come
down from your self-sufficiency. The way up in the kingdom of
heaven is down. Remember, everybody that exalts
himself shall be abased. And he that humbleth himself
shall be exalted. And this call was a necessary
call. He said, Zacchaeus, make haste
and come down, for today I must abide at thy house. Now, there's only one reason
the Lord Jesus Christ must do anything. He must do his Father's
will. He said, I must be about my father's
business. Zacchaeus was an elect sinner
Christ would soon die for. Therefore, he must abide in his
house. He must call Zacchaeus. He must
save him by his grace. There's a divine necessity to
it. It's God's purpose. Today, I must abide at thy house. And it was an effectual call. Look what verse 6 says, after
the Lord said, Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today
I must abide at thy house. The Scripture says he made haste.
And he came down, and he received Him joyfully. This is an effectual call. You
see, when God calls like this, men always do what He tells them
to do. Now, if you can resist the call,
it's because you've never really been called. When He calls, you'll
respond. He made haste, and He came down,
and He received him. This is what people do to the
Lord's sake. They receive Him. They receive everything about
Him. They receive Him as He is. And He received him joyfully. The gospel came as good news
to Him. He came down, He made haste,
and He received him joyfully. Let's go on reading, verse 7.
And when they saw, who are they? The religious fellows, the Pharisees. When they saw, they all murmured,
saying that he, speaking of the Lord Jesus, is gone to be guests
with a man that is a sinner. Religious people Never like the Gospel. They murmur
at it like they murmured at our Lord at this time. Why? If He
can just be a guest with this man, that encourages bad behavior.
Why the Lord's ruining His testimony being around a man like that.
He's giving countenance to sin and saying it's okay by being
with this man. And when He says He's gone to
be guest with a man that's a sinner, it's literally a sinful man. This man was full of sin. If you cut him open and look
inside him, all there is is sin. Very much like Peter felt when
he said to the Lord, Depart from me, Lord. I'm a sinful man. You don't want to have anything
to do with me. I'm full of sin. That's all I am. Now they murmured
at him. He's gone to be guessed with
a sinful man. Now, if you're not a sinful man,
I suppose you'd be offended, too. But who is happy that he's
gone to be guest with a sinful man? A sinful man. In 1 Timothy 1, verse 15, Paul
the apostle said this is a faithful saying, and it's worthy of all
acceptation. that Christ Jesus came into the
world to save sinners of whom I am the chief. Now, while the
religious people murmured, let's see what Zacchaeus had to say.
Verse 8. And Zacchaeus stood and said
unto the Lord. He found out who he was. He said
unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to
the poor, and if I've taken anything by false accusation, I restore
unto him fourfold. Now, the Lord didn't tell him
to do any of these things, but they came uncoerced. This is
what Zacchaeus now wanted to do. He was doing what he wanted
to do when he said this to the Lord. And I love the way he found
out who the Lord is. Behold, Lord. He sought to see
Jesus, who He was. He found out He is the Lord. Now, no man can say Jesus is
Lord. but by the Holy Ghost, according
to 1 Corinthians 8, 3. And what that is a reference
to is really believing His Lord. It's not just talking about saying
audibly, but believing He's the Lord of creation. He spake the
world into existence. He's the Lord of providence.
He controls everything that takes place. He's the Lord of salvation. If I'm saved, it's because He
saved me. Salvation is of the Lord. Now, He did these things
freely and spontaneously he had been given a new heart and he
now desires these things. Verse 9, And Jesus said unto
him, This day is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he
also is a son of Abraham. Now listen to the language. Remember
when the Lord said, Today I must abide in thy house? And then
He says, after Zacchaeus makes this proclamation, Lord, half
my goods I give to the poor, and if I've taken anything wrongly,
I restore it. He said, This day is salvation
come to this house. The Lord Jesus is salvation.
Salvation walked into His house. This day is salvation come to
this house. You know, who the Lord is, is
seen in His salvation. In Exodus 3, 14, when He said,
I am that I am, they tell me, I've read certain writers who
say that the Hebrew has this implication, that means I save
in the manner which I save. If you want to know who the Lord
is, find out how He saves. All of His attributes are displayed
in His salvation, His justice, His wisdom, His holiness, His
power. I am that I am. I save in the
manner which I save. Jesus Christ is salvation. I
think of Simeon saying, Now, Lord, let us thou thy servant
depart in peace. For mine eyes have seen thy salvation
when he was holding the Lord Jesus Christ. He is salvation. Today salvation is coming to
this house because he made these confessions of I'm going to start
giving to the poor and so on. No. Here's why salvation is coming
to this house for as much as he also is a son of Abraham. Now he's not talking about a
physical son of Abraham at this time because there are all kinds
of physical sons of Abraham and daughters of Abraham in the right
there. He's talking about a spiritual
son of Abraham, one who believes, one that God has done something
for. Here is the true Jew. Here is
the true son of Abraham, that person who believes on the Lord
Jesus Christ. He's a son of Abraham. Not a
physical son, but a spiritual son, a child of the promise,
one of God's elect. This day, has salvation come
to this house? Forasmuch as he also is a son
of Abraham, verse 10, for the Son of Man is come to seek and
to save that which was lost. Now, here we have the mission
statement of the Son of Man. He has come to seek and to save
that which was lost. And let me say this before I
talk about this lost part. Whatever the Lord intends to
do, that's what He does. If he came to seek and to save
that which was lost, he sought out and he saved that which was
lost. Now, this thing of being lost,
what does this mean? He came to seek and to save that
which is lost. Well, all men were lost when
Adam fell. We were all condemned by what
he did and we were lost when Adam fell. But he didn't come
to save everybody that was lost in that sense. We're all lost
by our own personal sin. We're lost by practice. We've
all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Everyone is
lost in that sense, but He didn't come to save all those people.
The people He came to save are those who are lost in this sense.
I'm lost. I can't find my way back. I can't
get to God. I'm utterly helpless if God doesn't
do something for me. If He doesn't come to me, I'll
be damned eternally. I'm lost and I can't get back. I'm completely helpless. And
here's the people He came to save. Those people. The Son of
Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. The lost sheep of the house of
Israel. In Matthew chapter 1 verse 21,
the Lord Jesus, or the angel said concerning the Lord Jesus,
Thou shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people
from their sins. And that's exactly what He did.
On Calvary's tree, He saved His people from their sins. My sin
became His. He bore my sin in His own body
on the tree. He bore the penalty and the curse
against sin. He washed away my sins. His righteousness
is given to me, to every one of His people. He has saved His
people from their sins. When He said, It is finished,
mission accomplished. Not halfway finished. Not mostly
finished. But He completely saved His people
from their sins. He came to seek and to save that
which was lost, and He did in fact do this. Now we have this
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