Jericho, best known as the place where the Hebrew nation, led by Joshua, began their conquest of Canaan with a march around the walls of Jericho, strategically central to inland trade routes to the Mediterranean.

Along a barren highway to the west, about a 15 mile walk to Jerusalem after an ascent from the small town of Bethel. Galileans, Judeans, Samaritans and of course, Roman soldiers, traveled these highways through Jericho. It would be the path to the festival of the Passover, this one the time of the Sacrifice of Jesus.

The crowds have traveled with the popular Rabbi, Jesus of Nazareth. In just days they would lay palms before His triumphal entry into the gates of Jerusalem. Like Joshua, His Hebrew Name means: “Jehovah is salvation.” 

Jesus IS the Christ, the Messiah.

Into the town of Jericho crowds enter. People allign the streets as if awaiting a King with riches or celebrity you must see once in your mortal life. One of the town’s lesser citizens is a resented tax collector. (Perhaps you have heard how the Jews hated the men who collected taxes for Rome.) In fact, one of the purported followers of Jesus used to be a tax collector. Perhaps you have read his Gospel.

Luke 5:

After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.” And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.

And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

The Messiah came to save sinners: seductive women, adulterous men, liars, thiefs and even tax collectors.

Jesus did not come to save the regular attenders of church (synagogue). Jesus has tax collectors and sinners following Him as Disciples and as part of the crowds – sinners like you and me – sinners like Zacchaeus.

In fact, Luke reports a parable Jesus had told about a Pharisee and a tax collector. Here is a story we can relate to about good ‘church’ people and the corrupt public official in their midst:

Luke 18:

The Pharisee and the Tax Collector

⁹ He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: ¹⁰ “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee,standing by himself, prayed thus:

‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

¹² I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’

¹³ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying,

‘God,be merciful to me, a sinner!’

¹⁴ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Do you, dear claimant of Christ, good observer of God’s ordinances, come to the LORD pleading for mercy while showing no mercy for your fellow sinners?

Matthew, the tax collector who quit to follow Jesus, and the other repentant sinners of the crowds knew that the Messiah, the Christ, Jesus, was a merciful teacher. Not only the Gospel of His miracles preceded Jesus as He entered Jericho, but also the wisdom and compassion of His teaching of scripture. A tax collector like Zacchaeus might just have a chance to see this man of mercy traveling to Jerusalem through his town of Jericho.

Luke 19:

He entered Jericho and was passing through. ² And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. ³ And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. ⁴ So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way.

⁵ And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.”

Imagine, the leading teacher and prophet comes through town with crowds of followers. Jesus pauses where you are and looks up to you! He calls you by name. Further, this well-known teacher boldly tells you (in front of all of the witnesses around Him) that He has to come to your house for dinner. Unthinkable! Nobody wants to associate with tax collectors and corrupt politicians, let alone have dinner.

Have you ever been looked down on by others, rejected by everyone of importance?

Jesus did not think himself to be so important as to not interrupt His journey to Jerusalem to have dinner with a sinner. Zaccheaus

⁶ So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.

⁷ And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.”

⁸ And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.”

⁹ And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham.

¹⁰ For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

Jehovah is salvation: Jesus has interrupted the journey of His high sacrifice about to take place at the Passover. The Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, has come to the house of a sinner for a feast.

What is your response to Christ Jesus? Have you repented of your sins and accepted the grace of God?

Lord have mercy on us. Christ have mercy on us.

Therefore, let us keep the feast, beloved fellow forgiven sinner.