Before we consider God's word, let us pray. O Lord God Almighty, thou art our sure portion alone. And we pray, O Lord, that thou at this time would feed us by thy word. We pray, O Lord, that thou would enlighten the minds of our understanding. that we may receive the truth of God, that we may receive these words of everlasting life. We pray, O Lord, that thou would help each one in our hearing. Lord, thou dost know each of us, the frailty of our human bodies and of our minds, of the anxieties and worries of life. But we pray, O Lord, that thou would remove every distracting and wandering thought. every competing desire, and that thou would be a companion unto us now, those who fear thee. And may we fear thee in the hearing of thy word. Undertake for us, we pray. Grant us, we pray, the Holy Spirit in these holy things through Jesus Christ our Lord. We'll return again in the word of God to that portion of scripture that you heard read in your hearing. And we take up the words of verse four, as we find them in the final clause, for he was to pass that way. For he was to pass that way. And our theme for our time remaining is that Jesus will pass this way. Jesus will pass this way. Dear congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ, the truth stands. Christ is always with his people. I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. I will be with thee all way, even unto the end of the world. And so does the truth that when the gospel is preached, that Jesus is present among his people. He's present among his people by his word. in his office of prophet, he makes known unto us the will of God for our salvation by his word and spirit. So that truth stands also, that when the word is preached and considered, there is Christ among his people. And yet, dear friends, we acknowledge that during times of his instituted remembrance, during times of the Lord's Supper, that Jesus Christ passes this way. And he does so in both word and sacrament. He passes this way in the visible elements, but also in the spiritual experience of his people. As his people draw nigh unto him by his appointed means, he draws nigh unto them in his grace and in his mercy. It is important for us to note at the outset is that Jesus Christ does not pass by. He passes this way, but he does not pass by. but he abides with his people. He abides for a while with his people at his own table. It is not the table of the storn away congregation. It is the table of the Lord. And he invites us to his table. We do not invite him to ours. Jesus passes this way. and to aid us in our preparation for his passing this way. We can learn something of this blessing from this account of Zacchaeus. In verse one, chapter 19, we find Jesus nearing Jerusalem, nearing the end of his earthly pilgrimage. the completion of the work to which his father had sent him. And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And then verse 11 reminds us again that Jesus is nearing on to Jerusalem. because he was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the kingdom of God should immediately appear. And then in verse 37 and 38, we find him. And when he was come nigh, even nigh at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice. for all the mighty works that they have seen, saying, blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord, peace in heaven and glory in the highest. So he's nearing on to the hell of Golgotha. The Lamb King is entering Jerusalem, due to enter Jerusalem, to institute that meal that sets forth his death. that which was the sacrifice for sin he was shortly to undertake. But as he traveled to Jerusalem, he passed through Jericho. But let us remind ourselves, he didn't pass by. Firstly, we note then, Zacchaeus, a great sinner of little stature, a great sinner of little stature. And the first thing we learn of this man was that he was a wretched and great sinner. We read that Zacchaeus was chief among the publicans and he was rich. Not only was Zacchaeus a publican, but he was the chief among such a corrupt and despised bunch of rascals, the publicans. The problem wasn't that Zacchaeus was rich, but it was the manner in which he acquired his wealth. You see, a publican was two things. Publican was corrupt, but he was also a trader. He was a tax collector for the Roman authorities. And children, he would collect double what he was due to collect and he would keep half for himself. So he was dishonest. The Roman authorities required 100 pounds. Zacchaeus took 200 and kept 100 for himself. So he was corrupt. He was a thief. He acquired his riches unlawfully. He abused his position, but he's also considered a traitor because publicans were Jews. And they were seen as being those who corrupted the Jewish faith. They were apostated in the way in which they acted. So they were frowned upon by the Pharisees. And Zacchaeus being the chief among such would never have attained to the righteousness of the Pharisees, to the requirement of the Pharisees as chief publican. He was but a wretched sinner in the eyes of the multitude. But the second thing we learn is that he had a desire to see Jesus. He had a desire to see Jesus, but he could not because he was of little stature. Verse three, and he sought to see Jesus, who he was and could not for the press because he was little. Oh, stature. You see, Zacchaeus had obviously heard about Jesus Christ. For we read here in verse three that he wanted to see who he was. Who is this man? He had heard of his teaching. He had heard of his miraculous works. He made the blind to see, the deaf to hear, and the lame to walk. Who is this man? Who was this man passing this way? Who preached of a righteousness that was different, a different righteousness than that of the righteousness held so dear by the Pharisees. What righteousness did they hold so dear? It was self-righteousness. It was their own righteousness. And yet here is one passing by who preaches another righteousness that Zacchaeus had heard of. And we remind ourselves at this point, dear congregation, that in preparation for the table, that Jesus Christ preached a righteousness that is a gift of God's free grace and is accepted by faith. And this righteousness is still preached. in his word, but also in his sacrament. You may say to me, well, how is this righteousness preached in the elements? Well, it speaks of his passion. It speaks of his death. We read in 1 Peter 3. For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the spread. What do the elements speak to us of? That Christ has brought his people near. by his death. And do we draw near in our own righteousness, the righteousness of the Pharisees? No, we draw near in this righteousness that is a free gift by God's grace, that by God's grace and Christ making us willing, what do we do? We apprehended by faith. We take hold of Christ and the promise of Christ and the gospel. This is this free gift, this righteousness of God. He was a man, Zacchaeus, who knew and felt his own inability to see Jesus. He felt his own inability to see Jesus. Why? Well, he was a man of little stature and he was squeezed in by the press of people who wanted to see Jesus. Therefore, he was quite well aware In and off of myself, I can't see him. It's a great inability. Of little stature. It is here, I believe, that we see grace preparing Zacchaeus to make preparation to see Jesus. What does he do? Well, how great is his desire to see this one passing by? Passing that way, well, verse four, and he ran. He ran before and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him. To see who? To see Jesus and who he was. He knew his own inability. And dear friends, it is right and proper for us to see our own inability to see Jesus. But it is not right and proper to allow that knowledge of our own inability to see him, to prevent us from seeing him, from prevent us to coming to him and seeing him as he is offered to us freely. We all are well aware of our own inability. We need the grace of Christ to see Christ, Let not this known and felt inability to keep you from seeing the one who is passing this way. You see, dear congregation, I suggest to you that if you desire to see Jesus pass this way, and yet you are quite willing to continue to walk with the world, your sight of him will be obstructed. You see Zacchaeus here, if he had a continued walking with the crowd, walking with the world, his sight would have been obstructed. He would not have saw the one who was passing that way. Zacchaeus was graciously enabled to make preparation to see Jesus. Has he passed that way? Dear saints, Jesus Christ will pass this way tomorrow. And he will pass this way in his appointed means in the Lord's Supper. Will we see him pass this way? Will you, by faith, behold him pass this way? Will you, with the mouth of the soul, taste and see that the one that passes this way is most gracious, most merciful, and most good? Have we made preparation to see him? Zacchaeus, a great sinner of little stature, he made preparation to see him. But secondly, we know Jesus, the great seeker of sinners. We have this in verse five and verse 10. In verse five, we read, and when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and saw him, and said unto him, seek haste, make haste, and come down, for today I must abide at thy house, for the Son of Man is come to seek and to save. that which was lost. We learn the great truth that in fact it was Jesus that had been seeking Zacchaeus. This is a most wonderful thought for us to ponder. The grace of Christ is here magnified for us We have noted Zacchaeus's preparation to see Jesus and all along it was Jesus who sought Zacchaeus. We are taught two things. Zacchaeus prepared by grace, yes, but also the gracious intentions of Jesus Christ in passing that way. the gracious intentions that he had for Zacchaeus. One writer remarked, for it was God who led everything in this way. It is God who has led everything this way in your life today. It is God who has ordered your steps, brought you here under the preaching of the word of God. to hear that there is one and that he will tomorrow pass this way. Now, we note the urgency of the Savior's invitation to this man. He says to Zacchaeus, make haste. Make haste, do not delay. Come down quickly, speedily. Make haste. And it's important for us to note that Zacchaeus doesn't invite the Savior to his house, but rather the Savior invites Zacchaeus to his own house. So not only does the Savior have an immediacy with his invitation to Zacchaeus, but it is the Savior who invites Zacchaeus. And that's the same with the Lord's table. He invites us to feed on these fat things. We do not call upon him to come to our table. His gracious intention towards his people is to draw them nigh unto his, that they may feast on him. We should mark this truth in our own preparation to feed on Christ. We don't invite Jesus to our table. but rather when he passes this way in a season of communion, he invites us to his. Dear congregation, how do we receive this gracious invitation? You may say, well, where is this gracious invitation? Well, you find it in the words, do this in remembrance of me. That is a command, yes, but it is also a gracious invitation to come in new obedience and to do this in remembrance of him. How did Zacchaeus receive this invitation? Well, look at Zacchaeus' reaction in verse six. He did exactly as the Savior commanded. He made haste. He came down. and he received joyfully. Now, this is interesting for us to note. This great sinner, Zacchaeus, receives this invitation from the one who is the great seeker of sinners. And with haste, he receives it with joy. What can we learn from this? Well, Zacchaeus did not argue with Christ's invitation. Zacchaeus did not argue with Christ about his own unworthiness to come. He simply, by faith, made haste and came down. He knew, dear congregation, that he was not worthy. He was well aware that he was not worthy. Everyone else around about him knew that he was not worthy. Look at what they say of him in verse seven. When they saw it, they all murmured saying that he was gone to be guessed with a man that is a sinner. So Zacchaeus knew that he wasn't worthy. Those around about knew that he wasn't worthy. Did that prevent Zacchaeus from making haste and coming down? No. No. You see, dear congregation, we who come to the table see and feel our own unworthiness. We know of our own unworthiness. And we learned yesterday morning of being made willing and we are made willing in our unworthiness, and we remain unworthy in our willingness. We don't all of a sudden become worthy, no. We are sinners saved by grace. We remain unworthy. But the one who invites us, the one who we feast upon, is worthy, and he is worthy to receive an infinite number of sinners. He is worthy. Dear friend, do not allow your own feeling of unworthiness to prevent you from making haste and from feeding on Christ as he passes this way tomorrow. avail yourself of him and his gracious provision of redemption. Zacchaeus received him by faith. And so we unworthy communicators, we are all unworthy communicators at the table, but we do the same. We receive him by faith. He who is altogether worthy, altogether lovely, is passing this way. Will we see him? Thirdly, we note that Jesus abides with his people. Verse five in the final clause, for today I must abide at thy house. Verse nine, Jesus said unto him, this day is salvation, come to this house. or so much as he also is a son of Abraham. You see, Jesus, when he passes this way, he just doesn't pass on by. When he passes this way, he stops and he abides in the gracious provision that he has made for his people. Jesus passed through Jericho, yes, but he did not pass by the house of Zacchaeus, but rather he abided there in his saving efficacy, his saving efficacy, the power that he possesses in the salvation of sinners. In Jesus abiding at his house, salvation came to that house. What a wonderful thing it is for salvation to come to a house. What a wonderful thing for a family to experience household salvation. Salvation came to this house of Zacchaeus. Dear saints, when salvation comes to a soul, there will always be that evidence of saving grace in the life. And we have evidence of Zacchaeus. and saving grace in his life. In verse eight, Weary and Zacchaeus stood and said unto the Lord, behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, you see, he knew what type of sinner he was. He knew where his sins lay. And here he confesses them. He says, I restore him fourfold. Now, why is this important for us to notice about Zacchaeus? What relevance has it for us in our preparation for coming to the Lord's table? You see, Zacchaeus here in verse eight, he does not speak of future actions. He does not say, behold, Lord, the half of my goods I will give. No, I give. It was an immediate intention of his to do. He does not show any delay in his faith, but rather he says, I do. And dear friends, what do you say to this invitation of Christ to remember his death till he come? Is it, I will, but not yet? Has it been, I will, but not yet? And yet it remains, I will, but not yet. Remember, Zacchaeus knew his own inability to see Jesus. Zacchaeus knew of his own unworthiness. But he did not say to Christ, when he said unto him, make haste and come down. He did not say, I will, but not yet. How many times have you yourself said, I will, but not yet. Dear friend, make haste like Zacchaeus. Remember this truth. When you see the people of God gathered to feast, and you have said, I will, but not yet, remind yourself that none are worthy, but by faith they sit. And those whom you observe sitting Communing with the Lord, they are not worthy. But the one whose table they sit at, who is passing this way, he is worthy. Dear congregation, it is a truth that Christ abides in saving efficacy. and His appointed means. This does not mean that we believe the ordinance of the Lord's Supper to be a mystical converting ordinance. No, that's not what I'm saying. But at the same time, the Lord abides in His ordinances and His saving efficacy. Why do I say that? Because they are means of grace. The sacrament of the Lord is one that conveys renewing, sustaining grace for his people. It is the visible gospel instituted for what purpose? For the salvation of his people, for the saving of his church, for those whom he has purchased with his own blood. Is this not the end of all the ordained means of grace? It is. It is to bring his people onto salvation. Therefore, we must avail ourselves of these means. God has ordained them for the saving of sinners. It is an outward visible sign whereby we show that salvation has come to this house. And we do so individually as well as corporately. It is an outward sign from the individual. Yes, salvation has come to my house. The Lord has saved my soul. And so in obedience to him, I come and I take of the bread and of the wine. but also collectively as a congregation. What a wonderful thing it is to testify to all around that this is what this congregation is about. It is about the public acknowledgement of Jesus Christ. He who has come to seek and to save that which is lost. We publicly align ourselves with the one who has saved us and give himself for us. we publicly confess that Jesus is Lord. And when he passes this way in his ordained means, what greater opportunity have we to avail ourselves afresh of this public testimony and confession that Jesus, the Son of Man, came to seek and to save that which is lost. Unworthy sinners such as we are yet partaken because of his worthiness. William Bradshaw, the Puritan, remarked, by eating this bread and drinking this wine, Christians are to testify and profess, and, after a sort, to preach to others, even unto the world's end, the mystery of the gospel. Dear friend, if you are saying, I will, but not yet, as you observe your friends partaking at the table, what are they doing? They're preaching to you. They're preaching to you afresh of the mystery of the gospel. It's gospel of salvation. Tomorrow, Jesus will pass this way. Christ himself, not only instituted, but also blessed, this means. We read that he took the bread, he blessed the bread, he gave thanks for the bread. And there is something in this for us as we prepare our hearts to partake, a stirring and deeply meditative thought. It is that we should not understand that blessing of Christ. to only have touched that particular supper on the night of the Passover, but rather that that same blessing, as one Puritan remarked, cleaves inseparably to this sacrament, to the end of the world, so that it shall be a blessed sacrament to every worthy receiver thereof. Think of that. initial blessing of Christ in the taking of the bread. That is the blessing that still remains. And that is the blessing that we receive when we partake of the bread. It is inseparably cleaving to this sacrament to the end of the world. So when you see the minister take the bread and break it, go beyond the minister to Christ. because it is his blessing. He has so blessed us onto the end of the earth, the end of the world. Dear saints, it remains a great instrument of blessing to the church because of this blessing of Jesus Christ. And I remind you again, tomorrow, this is how Jesus will pass this way. And as we close, let us consider verse 10. For the son of man has come to seek and to see of that which was lost. You see, Christ finds us just as he found Zacchaeus. And he finds us in our unwillingness as we learned yesterday. And he makes us willing in the day of his power to make haste and to come down and to have that right and sincere desire to seek him. But he not only finds us, but he clothes us. And that text that we considered yesterday, thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power. In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning thou hast the Jew of thy youth. In the beauties of holiness, there speaking of the ones of which he has made willing. You see, he clothes us with the garments of salvation. He clothes us with the robes of his righteousness. So you see that we who are unworthy can come to the table because he has clothed us to sit at his table, in these garments of salvation, in these graces with which he dresses his people. But he not only finds us and clothes us, but he also feeds us at his own table. You see the great gospel provision that we have in Jesus Christ. No greater provision will you find for the soul. No greater satisfaction will you find for the soul. Each man is seeking satisfaction for the soul. He might find it in this thing and in that thing, but true and abundant gospel provision is only found in Jesus Christ. The priest King Lamb is coming this way. Therefore, dear saints of God, let us prepare ourselves. Let us prepare our hearts to consider Christ afresh. As we see the elements, as we taste them, let us taste and see that the Lord is good. Jesus is passing this way. Let us pray. Oh ever-blessed and most glorious God, we thank thee for the gracious provision that has been made for us in Jesus Christ. And we pray, oh Lord, for grace to avail ourselves of this great provision made. We thank thee for the everlasting gospel both in word and sacrament. And we thank Thee that these means have been ordained unto the end of the world for the saving of His people. We pray then, O Lord, that we would see that measure of grace, that saving grace in our own lives and in the lives of one another. And we pray, O Lord, that we would all, being enabled to see our own inability, our own unworthiness, but that grace would prevail, and such would be overcome. And let thy people hear me achiest, and feed with Christ. For he alone is worthy, he alone is to be praised. Glory be unto his name. This we pray for his sake. Amen.