THE HUNGER ADVANTAGE

LUKE 19:1-7 NKJ 
1 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. 2 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. 3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way.  5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, "Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house." 6 So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. 7 But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, "He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner." 

OBSERVATION:

Because we tend to look at the life of Jesus through different lenses, we do not recognize just how counter-cultural He was.   

We see the risen Savior and Lord. The Jews of His day saw a prophet at best and a rebellious sinner at worst. Very few had a revelation of who He really was.   

In our story today, Jesus encounters a tax collector named Zacchaeus. Tax collectors worked for the Roman government and became rich at the expense of their fellow countrymen.   

But even though Zacchaeus was rich, there was a hunger in him that money had not satisfied.  

We see Zacchaeus' hunger revealed in his efforts to see Jesus. He could not see over the crowd, and they certainly were not going to make room for him. So, he ran and climbed a tree in order to see Jesus.   

If Zacchaeus was barely interested in seeing Jesus, he would have left for home at the first obstacle. With no interest, he would not have even bothered to show up. But there was a hunger in Zacchaeus that caused him to put forth some effort, even at the expense of looking foolish. We have no indication from the scriptures that anyone else was up in the trees.   

When Jesus saw him, He invited HImself to Zacchaeus' house to stay. That self invite would have annoyed a person with no desire for Jesus, but Zacchaeus was pumped. He received Jesus joyfully.   

APPLICATION: 

Jesus said that those who hunger and thirst are filled. Mary said in her famous song that God fills the hungry but sends the rich, the satisfied, away empty-handed.   

We never see Jesus barge in where He was not wanted. God does not force, but He responds to the hungry heart.   

How is your hunger level? Is reading your Bible a joy or a chore? Do you look forward to church, or do they drag you in? 

If your hunger has faded, this is a good time to stir yourself up and get hungry again. Let your hunger move you closer to God, not a big need or difficult event.   

There is an advantage to spiritual hunger. The hungry are filled.   

PRAYER: 

Lord, I have a hunger to know You more and see more of You in my life.