The story of Zacchaeus the tax collector (Luke 19) has always been one of my favorites, especially as a child. It's a story children can relate to because they know what it's like when you're short and you're in the middle of a crowd. It's frustrating - you want to be tall but you're not. That was the problem for Zacchaeus that day in Jericho. "He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way." Why was he so determined to see Jesus? The Bible doesn't say, but I think the answer can be found in what Jesus said to him: "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today." John 2:25 tells us that Jesus "did not need man's testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man." The Lord knew what was in his heart and the reason for his determination: a desire to repent from the evil in his life. Zacchaeus realized the key to this was the one he was trying so desperately to see from his perch in the sycamore-fig tree. After he welcomed Jesus gladly, Zacchaeus stood up and said, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount". At that point, even though he was physically short, in God's sight he was twice as tall as Goliath.
Compare the story of Zacchaeus with that of Peter the night Jesus was arrested (Luke 22). After Peter's third denial of Jesus, "the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times." And he went outside and wept bitterly." Peter must have felt like he was an inch tall at that point, spiritually. Even though Jesus forgave him and Peter went on to be a pillar of the early church, I have to believe not one day (maybe not even one hour) went by that Peter did not remember the events of that night. What a powerful motivator this must have been for him! Having denied the Lord three times, he was determined that it would never happen again, no matter how much he suffered as a result.
So what do these stories have in common? An awareness of our sins and a desire to change are the keys to reconciliation with God. Even though our sins are forgiven through faith in Jesus, refusing to acknowledge our sins or an unwillingness to change is not acceptable. As John notes in 1 John 1, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives." Also, awareness of sin should be a motivator for change, not a reason to feel guilty for the rest of your life. God has forgiven you, who are you not to forgive yourself? You may feel like you're an inch tall when you become aware of a particular sin in your life, but confessing your sin and trusting in God to help you change makes you ten feet tall in the sight of the Lord.
