Corruption or a Changed Heart

Luke 19:8-9

Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.” Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house.”

I sometimes wonder if the fear of using good works to earn our salvation has destroyed any motive for us Christians to work any good at all with our resources. Good works save no one. But one who has been reconciled to God through faith and repentance will, by the power of the Holy Spirit, become a fountain of good works – of love, of mercy, of generosity. In other words, our salvation transforms us into the good stewards Jesus calls us to be.

When Jesus said to Zacchaeus: “Today salvation has come to your house,” it was because Zacchaeus had repented. He had changed his priorities, his agenda, his behaviour, and his life. He gave half of what he had to the poor, and to those whom he had defrauded, he restored fourfold what he had taken. Did Zacchaeus have to do these things in order to be saved? There is nothing in this story to indicate that earning salvation was the issue. Instead, Zacchaeus changed his life because he had met Jesus.

If we are genuinely born again, then we will bear a family likeness with our Older Brother and our Heavenly Father. As the apostle John put it: “Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure” (I John 3:2-3).

We demonstrate the reality of our faith, of our relationship with Christ, not with our religious words but by the way we love God and love our neighbours. If we are saved and are following Jesus as his disciples, it will be obvious from our joyful stewardship.

Reflection Questions

Read the story of Zacchaeus in Luke 19:1-10 again. Reflect on your priorities, your agenda, how you steward what God has given you. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you any areas where you need to change. If you have defrauded anyone, ask God how you should restore what you have taken.