The Purpose of Christ’s Coming

These words were spoken by the Lord Jesus Himself to a ruler of the publicans, namely, Zaccheus, when Jesus heard those who were annoyed that He was willing to go into the house of such a sinful man. In those days, the Jews generally considered publicans and the heathen to be cut from the same cloth. They said that Jesus had come to abide in the home of one who was a sinner.

This sinful man, Zaccheus, had received such an inexpressible benefit, and that was salvation. The words he heard were not said by man who can see only what is before his eyes. Zaccheus heard it out of the mouth of Him who is the Truth. He who knows the heart and who trieth the reins, the Lord Jesus said, “This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.”

Zaccheus was able to say, I have heard it from His own mouth. That is the desire of all those who have been made upright before God. Such people ask, being made averse to having men laying their hands upon them or considering them saved, “Lord speak Thou to my soul, ‘I am Thy salvation.’”

Zaccheus was desirous to see Jesus, and he was seen by Jesus and drawn with cords of love out of the might of Satan. This Zaccheus was a man who had come under the influence of a desire and greed for money. There was only one purpose which filled his thoughts and life and that was to gather riches while here upon earth. He was a ruler, one of the important publicans. What a publican was is so clearly described in God’s Word. By abusing his power, he tried in unlawful ways to enrich himself. Zaccheus was rich; he had already gathered much together. Yet, he was so namelessly poor, for he was a servant of sin under the power of greed for earthly riches.

The Lord, however, seeks him and has mercy upon such a servant of sin. There was not a single reason in Zaccheus that he would be shown mercy and would receive the greatest riches. The cause lies outside of Zaccheus, who was the chief among the publicans, the chief of sinners. The cause of his salvation and the wonder of grace can be found only in God’s eternal good pleasure.

That is also what the text relates to us, “For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” He is come in the flesh so that that God’s good pleasure could happily go forth. All mankind is lost, without exception, because we have all disobeyed our Creator in Paradise. We have become so depraved, by nature, that we can only be servants of sin. That is not only true of those who lead a life like Zaccheus in longing and striving after the goods of this world in whatever way we have chosen. We all, no matter how blameless we may appear in the eyes of others, have become objects of God’s wrath against sin because of our sins.

It is an incomprehensible wonder that Christ is come to seek that which is lost even though there is no one who seeks or asks for Him. He comes to seek that which is lost in the hour of His good pleasure, and He draws them with love. Nothing stands Him in the way, whether we lie in the ravine of iniquity or in the shrubs of our self-righteousness, or whether we are a publican or a Pharisee. He seeks and knows where to find them, calling them with the enlivening voice of His Word and Spirit from death unto life. How does He find them? As sinful and lost ones in themselves. That is now a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to all those who with all of their doing and avoiding, show in whatever manner it may be, that they are not willing to go unto Him. People who are annoyed like those who said, “He has gone to be with a man who is a sinner,” show themselves to be of the opinion that they are not sinful people—for them Jesus is a rock of offense, and they despise His teaching.

As the Servant of the Father, accomplishing His will and good pleasure, Christ comes to save those who have sinned it all away. That is why there is the possibility to be saved by Him, even for Zaccheus, the chief of sinners. What this has meant for Zaccheus can hardly be put into words. When he wished to hide himself, he was called by name.

The omniscient One, before whom nothing is hidden, declared unto him his sinful life just like He did with the Samaritan woman. When Jesus described her life, she said, “Come see a man which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?”

This is true even today when the Lord seeks such lost ones. Then such will see themselves as guilty of transgressing all of the commandments of the Law. They cannot exist before God. Their outward obeying of the law, their duties and virtues, yea, their best works seen in the light of God’s justice, become as filthy rags. Such agree that they are worthy of the well-deserved punishment. Then they are lost. It is to such that Jesus wishes to reveal Himself; He is come to save that which is lost and to restore them into the atoned relationship of God’s favor. This is what grace is— in and through Him those who are lost because of sin are restored. He still stretches out His hand to lost ones by means of the preaching of His Word.

What a God-glorifying and righteous purpose is the coming of the Son of Man, the only and complete Saviour— a Saviour of those of whom it is said not only by people that they are sinful but those who know themselves to be lost. It is for such that Christ has come to seek and to save. He came to save those who are not saved—those who are lost— to keep them from perishing eternally.

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