For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”
This week the story of Zacchaeus reminds us that each one of us is loved by Jesus, no matter how good or bad we are.
Read Luke 19:1-10. When you look at someone what do you see? Their gender? Their race? Their wealth? Their talent?
That’s not how Jesus categorises them. To Jesus, people are either saved or they’re lost. That’s it. Saved or lost. To him, nothing else matters.
What that means is that Jesus loves you and me enough to want us to be saved. God sent his Son, Jesus, to seek us out, to find us, and to save us. Why? Because he believes we are worth it.
The people categorised Zacchaeus in different ways: tax collector, traitor, and notorious sinner. But Jesus sought him out, because he knew he was lost. He wanted to find him and save him.
That’s Jesus’ good news: he came to seek and to save the lost. That’s the message behind his stories - the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. Humans are so valuable to God, Jesus would do anything to find and to save just one of them.
You matter to Jesus. He loves you and he wants to connect with you. He wants to be in relationship with you. The question is, are you willing to be found?
THINK IT OVER
Think about the following:
Who in your life needs to know they are loved by Jesus? How can you affirm their worth to him today?