At sinabi sa kanya ni Jesus, “Ang kaligtasan ay dumating ngayon sa sambahayang ito sapagkat anak din ni Abraham ang taong ito. Ang Anak ng Tao ay naparito upang hanapin at iligtas ang naligaw.”

Lucas 19:9–10

Have you ever wanted something so badly that you went to great lengths to get it? You spent many sleepless nights kakaaral para pumasa sa board exam. Ginive-up mo ang maraming pagkain para maging healthy. Hindi ka gumastos for 6 months to buy your dream phone.

How about umakyat ng puno para lang may makita?

Ito ang ginawa ni Zacchaeus, the vertically–challenged tax collector. He learned that the Great Teacher was coming. Since the crowd was too thick and he was short, he only had a slim chance to see Jesus. So he ran ahead to where he knew Jesus would pass and climbed a sycamore tree. Hindi nasayang ang effort niya. When Jesus reached that spot, He looked up, referred to him by name, and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today” (Luke 19:5, ICB). The excited tax collector joyfully welcomed Jesus into his home.

As expected, not everyone was happy about this. Maraming hindi makapaniwala that Jesus would go to the house of a sinner. Notorious ang tax collectors noon for being corrupt, and in the case of Zacchaeus, traydor pa siya sa bayan niya for working for the Roman government, considered an enemy by the people.

But just like the many who had close encounters with Jesus, Zacchaeus was dramatically changed. He said to the Lord, “I will give half of my money to the poor. If I have cheated anyone, I will pay that person back four times more!” (Luke 19:8, ICB) What a transformation!

Jesus is still in the business of reaching sinners today. He sees us and calls us by name. Just ask Zacchaeus. That day, umakyat siya ng puno. The same day, binago ng Diyos ang kanyang puso.