Hi Kids!
Today, we’re exploring the story of Zacchaeus, a rich tax collector, from the book of Luke. Back in Jesus’ time, Rome ruled all and the Roman government had an unjust system of collecting taxes from the people. Tax collectors like Zacchaeus were highly disliked in their communities because many of them cheated or taxed the people unfairly to make themselves rich. One day, Jesus came to the town of Jericho where Zacchaeus lived. Watch the story below to learn what happened during Jesus’ visit.
One of the most important elements of this story is that Jesus did not pick a model citizen in the community to stay with during his visit. He picked someone who was disliked. Clearly, Zacchaeus wanted to make amends to his community. This change in him earned him a blessing from Jesus, who was there to seek and save those who were lost, like Zacchaeus. This shows that Jesus values all people, even those who are imperfect, and that all people can receive salvation. Seeing Jesus accept and forgive Zacchaeus allowed the community to do so as well.
Today’s activity includes a crossword puzzle from the story of Zacchaeus meeting Jesus. Use the video and the description above the video to help you find the answers to the puzzle. Download/print the pdf below to get started.