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Climb a tree for Jesus
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So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way.
When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today."
-Luke 19:4-5
Jericho...now that was a big city. Full of bustle and boom, it's streets packed with people with places to go and things to do. It was as congested as any first century metropolis could be. Jesus walked among these crowds of people; he, himself, likely surrounded by his own followers and on-lookers, who were also pushing through the waves of busy denizens. It makes sense that Zacchaeus, a short man, would need to climb a tree to get a good look at the man that everyone was talking about.
I must put forward the uncomfortable questions: What lengths have we gone to in order to sin? How many trees have we labored to climb, that we may revel in something we ought not to? It's true. In the grip of earthly desire, we sin with only a passing regard for the cost. It would seem that there are not many boundaries left, uncrossed by a determined sinner; if any.
We are saved; saved by the Son of the Author of Everything. Remember that? This isn't a fleeting experience. This isn't a fad or a chapter in human history. No, this is the single most spectacular thing that has ever happened to any of us. Yet, over time, we can sometimes forget what it's all about...being edged out by the noise of everyday life and the chaos of the crowd. If even a fraction of the energy that we used to spend on sin was, instead, spent on pursuing Jesus, well...you get where I am going.
Climb a tree for Jesus. Sometimes, we need to make an effort and seek Him out, despite the hustle, bustle or monotony of life. We can willfully rise above it and gain a better perspective. Once we do, He just might tell us that He wants to stay in our houses, too.
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