A Little Man's Big Change

Zacchaeus was a guy everyone loved to hate. Not only did he collaborate with the hated Roman government as a tax collector, he was crooked to boot! Zacchaeus was the lowest of the low-a greedy villain who didn't care who suffered from his misdeeds. No wonder the crowd expressed shock and dismay when Jesus said, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today." Unthinkable! Outrageous! Jesus had really gone too far.

Or had he? Jesus always welcomed sinners who were somehow humbled and broken when confronted by his love. Jesus must've seen something the rest of us miss-the misery and despair of a life out of control, the potential for good, the desperate desire to change. Zacchaeus' change was both immediate and profound. He gave half his wealth to the poor and repaid his victims four times the amount he'd stolen from them.

There's an important lesson here for all Christians: God extends his grace and forgiveness to every man, woman, and child on this earth who approaches in humble repentance. Football has ineligible receivers. God doesn't.

In this passage, Jesus makes it clear that for Christians, a willingness to forgive is a requirement, not an option. And that's a tough assignment. If we set high standards of behavior for ourselves, it seems natural to have the same expectations of others. If s important to remember that our self-righteousness is "as filthy rags." God has forgiven our imperfections and we, in turn, must forgive others'.

Most kids-even many Christian kids-think it's OK to nurse a grudge. It seems to kids that friends and enemies just happen. If Katrina was rude to me today, I'll just be rude to her the rest of the week or the rest of the school year or the rest of my life. That's just the way things work out, right? Not!

Children often fail to realize that there's another side to every story. Maybe Katrina is feeling a lot of pressure from her parents to get good grades. Maybe her older sister bit her head off just before they left for school. Maybe Katrina's world is a dark, awful place right now, and the child in your class just happened to be the next person she bumped into.

Kids need to see that sometimes their perceptions about people can be off the mark. To the people of Jericho, Zacchaeus was a dastardly villain. To Jesus he was a miserable creature, desperately in need of compassion and forgiveness. This lesson will help your students respond with compassion to those who need their forgiveness and love.

The Lesson

ATTENTION GRABBER

Spread a clean plastic tablecloth on the floor and set five clean containers of progressively larger sizes on it. Set the smallest container in the front and the largest in the back. For example, the smallest container might be a rinsed tin can, and the largest might be a clean bucket. Mark a starting line with masking tape about two feet from the first container. Leave several inches between containers so that the last container is about four feet behind the first.

As kids arrive, give them each a bag containing 15 jelly beans. Choose a confident child to be the "tax collector." Take the tax collector aside, give him or her a large bag of jelly beans, and explain that he or she is to move the starting line back about a foot after the first round, then about a yard after the second round. Explain that during the discussion time at the end of the game, you'll prompt him or her to take everyone's red jelly beans.

Say: You'll take turns standing behind the starting line and tossing your jelly beans into the containers. The goal is to drop your first jelly bean into the first container, the second jelly bean into the second container, and so on. We'll play three rounds. You can collect all the jelly beans that go into the right containers. But the tax collector gets to keep all the jelly beans that miss. Ready? Let's play!

Have kids take turns tossing five beans. Let each player collect the beans that land in the containers. Have the tax collector snatch away the beans that miss. After everyone's had a turn, prompt the tax collector to say, "This game is too easy! I'm gonna fix it," and move the starting line back a foot. After the second round, have the tax collector move the starting line back a yard. If the kids complain, simply play along and say: I guess we'd better do what the tax collector says-he's (she's) in charge!

After the third round, call everyone together and have kids show how many jelly beans they've collected. Have the tax collector show how many he or she has collected. Then ask:

Say: First, lets set the stage for our story. At the far end of the room we need to make a tree by having two students stand on either side of a chair. Have two volunteers stand on either side of a chair, holding their arms out like branches. Coach them to help "Zacchaeus" (za-KEE-us) climb safely on the chair and back down again during the story Now we need someone to play Jesus and stand at the opposite end of the room from the tree. Next we need a person to play Zacchaeus and stand between the tree and Jesus. Zacchaeus was a little guy, so you'll need to get down on your knees. Position the actors playing Jesus and Zacchaeus. The rest of you will be the crowd. Stand here near the middle of the road in front of Zacchaeus. Good! You folks in the crowd don't like Zack, so every time I mention his name, you can boo. But you love Jesus, so every time I mention his name, you can clap and cheer. I'll be the narrator. Here we go!

Tax-to-the-Max Zack
(based on Luke 19: 1 -10)

Long ago, in Jesus' time, there lived a man we'll call Tax-to-the-Max Zack. Zack worked for the hated Roman government-that made him a traitor. He was their chief tax collector-that made him really unpopular. And he was as crooked as a cow's hind leg. He always added a little to everyone's tax bill and kept the extra for himself-that made him a cheat. Why, Zack would even cheat a blind widow. This guy was the lowest of the low.

One day the people of Jericho (that's where Zack lived) heard that Jesus was coming to town. The town fairly burst with excitement. Everyone jabbered about Jesus. I wonder if he'll do a miracle," said some. I hope he heals my grandmother, " said another. "She's been sick for such a long time."

Long before Jesus appeared, a big crowd started to form along the road. Zack was there too, but he got pushed clear to the back. No one was about to make room for Tax-to-the-Max. No sirree. Jesus wouldn't want to get near him any way or so everyone thought.

Finally the people could see Jesus walking down the road toward Jericho. Everyone strained to get a look. But Zack was stuck in the back and, being a little guy, couldn't see a thing. Then he noticed a tree just a little way up the road. I could climb that tree," Zack thought. "Then I could see Jesus too."

So Zack climbed the tree. "Oh, good!" he thought. "Now I can see Jesus. And he's coming right this way!"

Zack's heart started beating ker-thump, ker-thump, ker-thump! Jesus headed straight for the sycamore tree where Zack was perched. Jesus looked up and said, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today."

Everyone in the crowd gasped. Even Zack could hardly believe his ears. Jesus wanted to visit him? The crowd began to mumble and complain. "Doesn't Jesus know this man is a sinner? Why would the Lord want to visit Tax-to-the-Max?"

But that's just what Jesus did. And you'd never believe what happened to Zack. He changed-just like that! Jesus' love crept into that mean, nasty heart of his. Jesus must've seen something in Zack that no one else could see. Jesus saw that Zack was sorry for all the wrong things he'd done and all the people he'd hurt. Jesus saw that Zack wanted to be forgiven so he could have a clean heart and new life. Why, Zack stood right up and said to Jesus, I will give half of my possessions to the poor. And if I have cheated anyone, I will pay back four times more."

A big smile crossed Jesus' face, and he said, "Salvation has come to this house today, because this man also belongs to the family of Abraham. The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them."

Well, if Jesus could save Zack, he could save anyone.

After the story, have kids give themselves a big round of applause. Then gather everyone and ask:

Have the child who played Zacchaeus stand in the middle of the class. Have the rest of the kids make a circle around Zacchaeus and begin wrapping him or her with bathroom tissue or adding machine tape.

Say: We want to wrap Zacchaeus from head to toe to show that Zacchaeus was all wrapped up in sin. Ask:

As pairs work on melting their ice cubes, read the following passages from an easy-to-understand version of the Bible: Matthew 6:13-15; Luke 6:37; and Colossians 3:13.

Say: Let's make something to remind us that forgiveness is a gift from God, a gift that God wants us to pass on to others.

Distribute photocopies of the "Heart of Forgiveness" handout, scissors, and red and white construction paper. Demonstrate how to use the pattern to cut the red and white paper and how to weave the basket.

As students work, discuss the topic of forgiveness. Ask questions such as "When is it really hard to forgive someone?" and "How do you feel after you've asked God for forgiveness?"

Have kids sit in a circle with their completed heart baskets in hand. Bring the remaining jelly beans and join kids in the circle. Say: "God is always ready to forgive us, and God expects us to pass his forgiveness along to others.

Turn to the student on your right, pour a few jelly beans in his or her heart basket, then say: (Name), God is always ready to forgive you. Pass the bag of jelly beans to that student and have him or her repeat the process with the next student. Continue until each person has been affirmed.

Say: Forgiving people who have hurt us is one of the hardest things God asks us to do. I'd like you to close your eyes and take a few quiet moments to think about someone you've had difficulty forgiving. You may want to ask God to help you see that person through Jesus' eyes. Pause for a few moments. Keeping your eyes closed, eat one of the jelly beans from your basket Let that jelly bean represent how God has forgiven you. Now eat another jelly bean to represent the forgiveness that you can pass on to others.

Say: Now you may open your eyes. You'll notice that we started this activity by filling each other's baskets. That's important because God doesn't expect us to forgive from an empty heart. First God fills our hearts with his love and forgiveness, then he asks us to pass that love and forgiveness on to others.

Have kids stand for prayer. Close with a prayer similar to this one: Lord, thank you that you're always ready to forgive us. Help us learn to see people through your eyes and to pass your love and forgiveness on to others. In Jesus' name, amen.

Heart of Forgiveness

3 Weave the inside red strip through the inside white strip, around the center white strip, and through the outside white strip. Push the red strip up

4 Weave the center red strip around the inside white strip, through the center white strip, and around the outside white strip.

5 Weave the outside red strip through the inside white strip, around the center white strip, and through the outside white strip. When the basket is finished, it will resemble a woven, heart-shaped pocket.