Luke 19, Part One

Zaccheus, the rich tax collector (vs. 1-10)--Another lengthy chapter in Luke begins with the well-known story of "wee little Zaccheus." He was a "chief" tax collector (v. 2), which means he presided over others and passed their collections on to Rome--after taking his fair, or perhaps unfair, share. Yet there was something good in him, because "he sought to see who Jesus was" (v. 3), and the rest of the story indicates that this wasn't just idle curiosity. However, Zaccheus was a short man who couldn't glimpse Christ because of the crowds. So he used some ingenuity. Knowing the direction Jesus was headed, he went and climbed a tree (v. 4) so that he would be in a position to spot Jesus when He came by. The Lord knew him (v. 5), probably miraculously, and also knowing his heart, invited Himself to Zaccheus' house--something a little beyond the pale of hospitality, but the Lord can go anywhere He wants. Plus, He was about to convey a far greater blessing on Zaccheus than Zaccheus was to Him. The tax man "received Him joyfully" (v. 6). Because of Zaccheus' profession, "they" complained (v. 7); who the "they" were is not mentioned, but almost surely the same leaders who had been complaining about everything else Jesus had done. Zaccheus gave abundant evidence of his repentant attitude (v. 8), and Jesus blessed him with salvation. It's interesting that, unlike the rich ruler of chapter 18, Christ didn't require Zaccheus give up the totality of his wealth. God knows the heart and apparently realized that Zaccheus wasn't as tied to his money as the young ruler had been. The section closes with Jesus announcing to all who would/could hear why He chose to eat with someone most Jews despised: "the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost" (v. 10). The Pharisees would never have touched Zaccheus; if left in their hands, he would have been lost. But it is the heart which is important to God, and anyone, regardless of how wicked, can be accepted if they truly repent.

The parable of the pounds (vs. 11-27)--The term "kingdom of God" can be somewhat confusing and often needs the context to identify it. In this case, Jesus is speaking of the eternal reign of God in heaven; the parable He tells indicates that. As noted many times in my blog articles, the Jews were expecting an earthly kingdom; their Messiah would bring that when He came. Thus, they anticipated Jesus would establish it and that was one reason so many of them were upset at Him--He didn't do it. Yet, many of the features of that expected earthly kingdom were the same, in principle, as the eternal reign in heaven--peace, protection, sustenance, worship of the one true God, and so forth. That kingdom was not near in time. Verse 12 indicates the "nobleman" (representing Christ) went into a "far country"--it would thus take him a long time to return. The "far country" represents Jesus' current abode, heaven, where He "receive[d] for himself a kingdom"--He now reigns over His earthly spiritual kingdom, the church (I Tim. 6:15; Col. 1:13). This also indicates the two uses of "kingdom"--Jesus went to heaven (the nobleman went to a far country) to receive a kingdom. He has that kingdom now and will return in the future to settle accounts with His servants; those who have been faithful will enter the eternal home where God reigns forever. Before he had left on his journey, the nobleman had laid responsibilities upon his servants to "do business till I come" (v. 13); we have a duty to work for the Lord while we are on this earth. Some of the nobleman's new "citizens" did not wish to have Him rule over them (v. 14); some people, in and out of the church simply do not desire to submit to the Lord. They will get theirs in the end.

This parable is similar to that of the parable of the talents in Matthew 25. Various amounts of money ("pounds" in the KJV, "minas" in the NKJV) had been left with various servants. Three servants are illustrated here (as in Matthew 25). The first two served well, the third did not. That which had been given to the third servant was transferred to the first (v. 24), indicating that the Lord will reward great service with even greater blessings; we cannot outgive God and He is fully aware of what we do for Him. The grand blessings we enjoy on earth, if not used properly, will not exist in eternal damnation (v. 26). And as for those who refused to let the nobleman serve as their king, "bring here those enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, and slay them before me" (v. 27). Failure to submit to Him will result in punishment when He does return. They will get what they deserve for refusing to recognize Him as King.