Today I would like you to turn
in your Bible to the book of Luke, the gospel written by Luke,
chapter 19, verse 10. Luke 19, verse 10. Let's read
this verse together. For the Son of Man, that is,
our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who became the Son of
Man, He is come to seek and to save that which was lost. Now, our Lord Jesus Christ gives
to us a very bold and plain statement concerning his glorious coming
into this world. It is a mission of mercy to seek
out his lost sheep and to effectually save them from all their sin. The angel declared unto Joseph,
Call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sin. It's not a mission of search
and destroy, but he came on a mission of mercy to seek and to save
his people, his sheep, his elect from all their sin. Now listen
to me carefully. Contrary to what most people
think, God is not trying to save all men everywhere from their
sin. Now you heard me right. He saved
his people from their sin at the cross. He put away their
sin by his blood. The substitute died to justify
the ungodly. And he calls them to himself
through the preaching of the gospel, made effectual to the
heart of the sinner by the Holy Spirit. He said in John 10, My
sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow
me, and I give unto them eternal life." You see, in the covenant
of grace, God, in eternity, gave the Lord Jesus Christ to people.
He became their surety, their substitute, and He came as a
representative man to put away their sin and to save them and
to call them unto Himself. Now, Zacchaeus, in this story
in Luke 19, verse 10, Zacchaeus was one of these lost
sheep given to the Lord Jesus Christ in that coven of grace,
and the Lord was determined to seek and to save him. Our Lord
passed through Jericho on purpose to call Zacchaeus to himself.
Now, let's look at this story here just a minute. Luke 19,
verse 1, And the Lord entered and passed through Jericho, and,
behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, who was chief among
the publicans, and he was rich, and he sought to see Jesus, who
he was, and could not for the press, because he was little
of stature. And he ran the four, climbed
up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was to pass that
way." Now the first thing we see here, the Lord passed through
Jericho on purpose. Although Zacchaeus was hated
and despised by the Jews, he was a tax collector who collected
taxes from the Jews and gave it to the Romans. He was hated
by the Jews, hated by his own people, yet he was chosen, loved,
and given to the Lord Jesus Christ in the covenant of grace and
must be called from darkness to light, from death to life,
from bondage to liberty in Christ Jesus. Now let's look at several
key points about this call. And I pray God will teach us
and that we might learn this morning how God is pleased to
call and to save His elect. Now He calls them all. all His
chosen, all His people, all His sheep. He calls in the same way
He calls Zacchaeus. Now, let's look at seven things
about this call. The first thing we see in verse
5, it was a gracious call. A gracious call. When our Lord
Jesus Christ came to the place where Zacchaeus was, He looked
up and saw him and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste and
come down, for today I must abide at thy house. First thing we
see, it was a gracious call. Zacchaeus was a bad man with
a bad reputation, living in a bad city, and he was in a bad business. He was a notorious sinner. Yet
the grace of God came to him. The Lord came to where he was.
The grace of God reached down and called a guilty sinner to
Jesus Christ in faith. Now, it ought not surprise us
God calls sinners in grace. He said in another place, He
didn't come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. The
Lord Jesus Christ, my friends, died for the ungodly. Now, we see this illustrated
many times in Scripture. Let me give you these examples.
In John chapter 4, the Lord Jesus Christ passed into Samaria on
purpose to call a woman. You remember at the well, a woman
at the well who had five husbands, who was living with a man who
was not her husband at the time. And the Lord passed by. Though
she was a notorious sinner, the Lord passed by and called her
by His grace. He went another time into the
land of Gadarenes and called a wild man to salvation. You
remember, no one could tame Him. No one could do anything with
this wild Gadarene. And the Lord passed through on
purpose. And as far as we know, He saved
one man. This wild Gadarene, he was clothed
and sitting in his right mind when the Lord saved him by his
grace. See, it was a gracious call.
Here's another example. He went to the house of Simon
the Pharisee and saved, passed by Simon and all his house, all
the Pharisees, and he saved the harlot who washed his feet. He said, her sins which are many
are forgiven. Here's another example. He went
to Calvary, nailed there at Calvary, crucified. And while nailed to
the cross, he passed by all and called a thief. Called a thief,
and he said to this thief, today you'll be with me in paradise.
You see, my friend, it was a gracious call. God saves whom He will,
and my friend, never despair of the grace of God. He saves
sinners. It was a call of grace. The second
thing we see, it was a gracious call, but not only that, it was
a personal call. He said, Zacchaeus, Zacchaeus,
come down. In John 10, we read, he calls,
calleth his own sheep by name. There is a general call of the
gospel when it's preached. There's a general call whenever
the gospel is preached, the gospel of this truth, the gospel that's
true to his word and the saving gospel. There is a general call
when it's preached, but it's never a saving call, this general
call, nor does it reveal the gospel. There is a general call
of the gospel, but my friend, there is a personal call that
God sends out to his sheep, and they quickly respond. Let me
give you several examples. When he, another publican he
called, another tax collector he called, Matthew, he came to
the receipt of customs and told Matthew, Matthew, follow me. Matthew arose and followed him.
He called his disciples, his apostles personally, Peter and
Andrew, James and John, and immediately they left their net and followed
the Lord Jesus Christ. In John chapter 11, Lazarus had
died and was stinking and rotting in the grave, and he walked in
front of that grave and told them to roll away the stone.
And he personally called, powerfully called, Lazarus come forth, and
he that was dead came forth. You see, it's a personal call.
When He calls His sheep, they also receive a revelation of
who this is that calls. He reveals Himself as the altogether
sovereign Lord when He calls. He calls in power, and He calls
with a revelation of Himself that He's the altogether lovely
One, that He's the altogether sovereign Lord. And sinners respond
to this call. It's a gracious call. It's a
personal call. Something else we see. Thirdly,
it was a humbling call. He said to Zacchaeus, make haste
and come down. It was a humbling call. This
gracious and personal call to the gospel humbles and strips
and slays the sinner before the throne of Almighty God. Do you remember what Job said?
Job said, I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but
now mine eye seeth thee, wherefore I abhor and I hate myself. Zacchaeus came down with high
thoughts of self-glory. At one time, Zacchaeus thought
himself to be somebody, going somewhere. But he came down with
high thoughts of self-glory, self-righteousness, and self-worth. My friend, when God saves a sinner,
He strips him before he clothes him with the righteousness that
is found in Christ. Before he justifies, he condemns
and convicts. Before he exalts the sinner and
justifies him in Christ, he humbles him and strips him and lays him
in the dust and shows him what he is by nature, birth, and practice,
guilty before God. Isn't this example of Saul of
Tarsus on the road to Damascus? This was his experience. And
all those whom God saved, God unhorsed him. God put him in
the dust. And this proud Pharisee, Saul
of Tarsus, cried out, Lord, what would you have me to do? You
see, it's a humbling call. Zacchaeus, come down. Come down. Something else we see, fourthly,
it's an affectionate call. He said, I must abide at thy
house. Now, the Lord went home with
Zacchaeus that day and the people that were standing around, the
Pharisees and others, and they said, this man's gone to be a
guest with a... the Lord went home to be a guest
with a man that's a sinner. The Lord went home with Zacchaeus
that day and stayed for a while. But listen to me, the Lord took
up permanent residence in Zacchaeus' heart. This is what happens when
God saves a sinner. He constantly dwells within the
believer. He said, I'll never leave you.
I'll never forsake you. In John 14, he said this, I will
pray to the Father and he shall give you another comforter that
he may abide with you forever. My friend, when God does a work
of grace, Regeneration in the heart. He saves those with an
everlasting salvation, and He abides in the heart and soul
of the sinner forever. He says, I give unto them eternal
life, and they shall never perish. It's a humbling call. An affectionate
call. I must abide at your house. Fifthly, we see this. It's an
effectual call. Effectual call. Verse 6, He made
haste. and came down and received him
joyfully." Zacchaeus was made to receive the Lord Jesus Christ
joyfully in his heart. Our Lord said, No man can come
to me except the Father which sent me draw him. That is the
effectual call of the gospel. When God speaks to a sinner's
heart, He speaks in power. in power, and they immediately,
these words of Christ in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ,
when they're blessed by God the Holy Spirit, sent to the heart
of the sinner, they effectually call the sinner. They immediately
awaken the conscience and affect the mind and draws them effectually
to the Savior. You hath he quickened who were
dead. David said, This blessed is a man to whom thou choosest,
and calls us to approach unto thee." God's call is never resisted
by the sinner. He calls powerfully, affectionately. In Psalm 110, verse 3, we read
this, "...thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power."
It's an affectionate and an effectual call, a humbling call. Next we
see it's a converting call. Notice verse 8, "...Zacchaeus
stood and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, The half of my
goods I give to the poor, and if I have taken anything from
any man by false accusation, and be assured he did, I restore
him fourfold." Zacchaeus became a changed man when God did a
work of grace in his heart. He had a new master, a new Lord.
He had new motives. Here we see evidence of repentance
and regeneration. This covetous, oppressor, hard-hearted
tax collector became a kind, tender-hearted, gracious, and
generous giver to others. And that's what happens when
God saves a sinner. He gives a sinner a new heart,
a new nature to worship and to love and to serve Him. Paul the
Apostle wrote this in 2 Corinthians. 517, if any man be in Christ,
and that's the work of God's grace. He is a new creature,
a new creation. Old things are passed away, and
behold, all things are become new. Lastly, let me give you
this. It's a covenant call, a converting
call, a humbling call, an effectual call. It's a converting call,
and it's a covenant call. A covenant call. Notice verse
9. The Lord said unto him, This day is salvation come to this
house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham. It's a call
by the covenant of grace. Zacchaeus was a natural son of
Abraham, just like all the Jews which were gathered around the
Lord that day. But this is not why salvation
has come to his house. Zacchaeus was a son of Abraham
in a spiritual sense. Now turn to Romans 9. Let me
read this to you. Romans 9, verse 6, 7 and 8. Not as though the word of God
had taken none effect, for they are not all Israel which are
of Israel, neither because they are the seed of Abraham are they
all children. But in Isaac, in Christ, shall
thy seed be called. That is, they which are the children
of the flesh. These are not children of God,
but the children of the promise. There's the promise of the covenant
of grace are counted for the seed. Zacchaeus was a spiritual
son made that way by the covenant of grace. He was unconditionally
chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, given to the Lord
Jesus Christ in the covenant of grace, predestinated to be
conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why
God crossed His path. That's why He was called and
justified and made one with Christ. Our Lord prayed in John 17, The
Father hath given me power over all flesh, and I should give
eternal life to as many as the Father hath given me. God saves
whom He saves according to His purpose and grace in Christ Jesus.