Jesus is the name of Him who saves His people, the sacrificial lamb for the atonement of our sins. It has cleansing power and we trust in Him to remove our transgressions. It has transforming power, turning Saul from a persecutor to a lover of the faith, who is aware of his miserable spiritual condition, so much so at the brink of his martyrdom, he still considered himself the vilest of all sinners. What made Saul change? It is the power of Christ, for before we confess our love for Him, He has first loved us. Before we can find Him, He has long found us, for His excellent majesty has dominion over all powers in the world. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords. All power is given unto Him in heaven and in earth. (Matt 28:18) He is powerful, pure and righteous; His excellence comes from His attribute of holiness that radiates even under persecutions. There is no being greater than Him, no one perfect who is cleansed of sins. He is the lily of the valley, the honey of the honeycomb. He is wise, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:3), and He is the head of the church (Eph 5:23). The beauty of the Christian Church reflects the beauty of Christ.  He is the head from whom all of us grow and are nourished. So what is the reason for Christ to be the head of our home and family? We can refer to the account of Zaccheus in Luke 19:1-10. 

And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. And behold, there was a man named Zaccheus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus who he was; and could not for the press, because he was little of stature. And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him: for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zaccheus, make haste, and come down; for today I must abide at thy house. And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner. And Zaccheus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. 

Firstly, we need Christ to be the head because of our insufficiency. Zaccheus was chief among the publicans. He was able and had no lack of public recognition, worldly power and riches. However, publicans were hated then because of the nature of their duties, save the fact that Zaccheus was working for the occupying Roman forces. He could have been the master of his own life and decide his own destiny but he sensed a need beyond materialism. Something was missing, he was unhappy and sensed his spiritual insufficiency. He had this strong desire to meet Jesus. Verse 3 contains a seemingly strange account: how is his “little stature” of any edification to us? Why does the Holy Spirit make it a point to let us know that Zaccheus was short and thus could not see Christ because of the crowd? Compared to Zaccheus, the one he was seeking is such a giant. What makes a person, especially a person of his social status try so hard as to climb up a tree? The answer is his thirst for Christ! Or rather, it could be his sense of guilt, his acknowledgement of his own sins and transgressions. Everyone considered him a sinner; this sounds even more ironical since his name in Hebrew means the “righteous one”. Zaccheus had to face the guilt that he was a publican working for the Romans. Are we conscious of our sins? 

Secondly, we need Christ to be the head because it is of Divine necessity. We, like the Pharisees and Sadducees, always thought we know things although we actually do not. Zaccheus wanted something but he did not know what it was. He simply sought to see Jesus. It is easy for us to dismiss Jericho as just Jesus’ transitory pass to Jerusalem, but things never happen by chance. One can imagine the electrifying moment when Zaccheus found the Lord lifting His eyes up and meeting his. Jesus came to Jericho to meet him, His heart was fixed on Zaccheus, a love so divine for a man so sinful. And the Lord actually said He must abide in Zaccheus’ house. God does what He wills and wills what He does. No one can tell Him what He must do. But Jesus said He must abide in Zaccheus’ house, out of compassion for His people. The Good Shepherd does not miss out a single of His lambs. Amongst the crowd, Jesus knew Zaccheus’ by name. Before Zaccheus can love him, Jesus has loved him. Jesus calls His sheep one by one, name by name. So listen to the Word of God if you are called, open your heart and stand before God Almighty. It is our privilege to dwell and walk with Him; how could we have done it if not for His divine grace and love?  

Lastly, we also see a transformation in our lives. Jesus abiding in the house of a sinner has caused some disagreements. It is sad for sometimes we hear more criticisms from believers than non-believers. But the very fact that Jesus has called him has filled Zaccheus with love sufficient enough to face the criticisms. He has finally found a place in life. He confidently stood and told the Lord how he has been following Moses’ law of restoring fourfold to a man that he had taken unrightfully, and on top of that, he had given half of his goods to the poor. His life has been renewed.  Believe in the Lord for His will is our will, then every change in us is a blessing to our very soul, hence “whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God” (1Cor 10:31). The Lord must abide in our family so that we can serve Him as one. Amen.

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