What happened not only to Zacchaeus, but also through Zacchaeus, in the sharing of his wealth and his turning round of any dishonesty into huge generosity, was a picture of this.
Prior to Jesus coming into his life, Zacchaeus' purpose had simply been to advance his own well-being, regardless of the consequences for others. Now this was turned right round.
I believe Jesus wants our salvation to be "consequential" for others as well.
Jesus by His Spirit gives gifts to His followers in order for them to multiply and when He returns there will be a personal accountability for the extent to which those gifts had actually been put to work.
The parable we will look at on Sunday has great relevance to us today. It shows the challenge and the responsibility, that we as Christians face. Which is to work with that which the Lord has given us.
In such an atmosphere, and with the sense that it may not be too long before the Lord returns, its very tempting to do exactly the same thing that the listeners to Jesus were tempted to do - which was simply to wait until He returns.
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