The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1917-05-25
ZAccHAEUS

"Zacchaeus, make haste and come
down, for today | must abide at tiny
! house Luke xix, 5.
There are two classes OF sinners
especially prominent in the world to-
n y-those who are too high up ana
those who are too low down, but OF
the two the former is in by far the
most perilous position
That mans case is never hopeless
who has sunk so low in his shame
and humiliation that he feels himself
to be unworthy of the favor and mer-
CIV OF Cod but when a man rises SO
high in his pride and self-righteous-
snes as to look down on God, then, IN
deed, his position is most perilous.
Zacchaeus was little in body and
in soul that day as the Master found
him hut when those divine eyes bor-
! ed through all the brag and buster
of the little man up the sycamore tree
his soul got larger than his stunted
dragging the man upward with it.
It's all right for us to climb into
the heights to get q better view OF
Christ afar off, but when he comes
we must come down in order that we
NAV receive him. Christ will never
do ANYTHING for a man, nor even talk
with him as long as he places him.
self above him. If we would ever re-
ceiye Christ we must come down from
our pride and our self-righteous posi-
ton in order that he may talk with
US and work with us. Zacchaeus
found that however high he had set
himself he was still a sinner and
needed to "come down." so down ne
came at the Masters command and
received him jOyfully.
Now, you men who have set your
selves so far above God, don't think
for a moment that because OF your
elevation you can hide the fact from
God or yourselves that you are sim
ners. No matter how the world may
pat YOU on the back and say, You're
all right" you know in your heart or
| hearts that you are all wrong. Exam
inc yourself, apply the tests of Christ
| to your own life, as sometimes we
are compelled to do, in those mo-
ments of trial, sorrow or extremity,
and you'll realize, far more than the
world can ever know, your own sin
fulness and helplessness. Then If
you will only come down from your
high position of arrogance and self
righteousness to the common level
of sinful humanity Christ will raise
you with him to the highest heights
of blessedness and joy.
Any man that places himself above
his Lord and Master is in such per-
ilous position that he should lose no
time in exchanging it for place of
safety. There are some men so puff
ed up with their pride and arrogance
that, notwithstanding all that God
and man tell them of their perilous
position, they are ready to stop and
argue about it while death and de-
struction dig grave about their very
! feet. Such arrogance and self-confi-
dence applied to physical things
would lead a man to argue with a
German submarine commander after
he had been told to get off the boat.
! Zacchaeus might have argued with
the Master that day and said: mo,
Lord, | would rather not come down.
| don't like the crowd you are with :;
they are a very bad lot. Some of
they won't pay their debts and they
lie about their taxes when go around
! to collect them. l think I'll stay
right where am!"He didn't say that,
however He did just what the Lord
told him. He realized that he was
in dangerous position, so he made
haste and came down" right into the
midst of the crowd, black sheep and
white sheep. saints and sinners,
knowing that every man shall give
an account of himself unto God,
whether it be good or whether it
be evil without reference to the
other fellow.
The force of this command Of
Christ's is again intensified by the
use of that little word today" at
the beginning of the next clause.
For today | must abide at thy
housed" Today stands as the van
tage ground of all of life's POSSIBLE.
tiles and opportunities. 1t is the nat
ural strip beyond the yesterdays and
the tomorrows. Yesterday, with all
! of its possibilities, is past; tomorrow
will never come. 1t is always ''tomor-
row. with the weak, the hesitating