Zacchaeus climbs a tree

Teacher background

The story of Zacchaeus is in Luke 19:1–10. Jesus is passing through Jericho on his way to Jerusalem. Zacchaeus is a chief tax collector, and he is rich. Tax collectors worked under contracts with the Roman rulers and received no salary, so people believed they took extra money for themselves, and most people despised them. Zacchaeus is too short to see over the crowd, so he runs ahead and climbs a sycamore tree. Jesus stops, calls him by name, and says, “Today I must stay at your house” (Luke 19:5). The crowd grumbles. Zacchaeus welcomes Jesus with joy, gives half of his goods to the poor, and promises to repay anyone he has cheated four times over. Jesus says, “Today, salvation has come to this house” (Luke 19:9).

The main idea for children is that Jesus saw Zacchaeus, knew his name, and loved him when others shut him out, and that love changed Zacchaeus’s heart. Jesus knows and loves each child, and we can welcome others as Jesus did. This lesson opens the Kindness and welcome series.

Children come in every size, so keep the focus on the crowd in the way, and avoid jokes about being short. Some scholars read Zacchaeus’s words as a description of what he already did; this lesson tells the story in the traditional way, as a change of heart.

For more background, read Zacchaeus.

Welcome activity

Who knows my name? (5 minutes). Stand in a circle with a soft ball or beanbag. The first child says, “My name is ___,” and gently tosses the ball to someone else, who does the same. On the second round, say the name of the person you toss the ball to: “Here you go, Maya!” Keep going until everyone has caught the ball and heard their name.

Then sit down together and ask:

• How does it feel when someone remembers your name?
• How does it feel when you are left out?
• Have you ever been in a crowd and could not see?

Say: “Today we will meet a man that nobody wanted to be friends with. He wanted to see Jesus, and a crowd was in his way. Let’s find out what Jesus did.”

Telling the story

10 minutes. Open your Bible to Luke 19 and show the children where the story is. Then read this version aloud, or tell it in your own words. Pause where the notes in italics suggest.

Long ago, in a town called Jericho, there lived a man named Zacchaeus. (Say his name together: Zak-KEY-us.)

Zacchaeus had a job collecting tax money. Tax money is money people pay to the rulers of the land. Zacchaeus was the boss of the tax collectors, and he was very rich. (Pretend to count money.)

The people in Jericho did not like Zacchaeus. Sometimes he made people pay more than they should. Then he kept the extra money for himself. “That’s not fair!” the people said. Nobody wanted to be his friend. Zacchaeus had lots of money. He did not have many friends.

One day, news ran through the town. “Jesus is coming! Jesus is coming to Jericho!” (Whisper the news to the person next to you.)

Zacchaeus had heard about Jesus. People said Jesus made sick people well. People said Jesus was kind to everyone, even people nobody else liked. Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus. He wanted to see him very much.

A big crowd filled the road. People stood shoulder to shoulder. (Stand close together.) Zacchaeus tried to see over them. He stood on his tiptoes. (Stand on tiptoes.) He jumped up and down. (Jump.) Zacchaeus was short, and nobody moved over to let him through. He could not see a thing!

Then Zacchaeus had an idea. He ran ahead of the crowd, down the road. (Run in place.) There was a big sycamore tree. Zacchaeus grabbed a branch and climbed up, up, up. (Pretend to climb.) He sat on a branch among the leaves. Now he could see the whole road!

Here came the crowd. And here came Jesus! (Shade your eyes and look down the road.)

Jesus walked down the road. When he came to the tree, he stopped. He looked up. (Look up.) He looked right at Zacchaeus. Everyone stopped to listen.

Then Jesus said, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! Today I must stay at your house.”

Jesus knew his name! Zacchaeus could hardly believe it. He hurried down the tree as fast as he could. (Pretend to climb down fast.) He was so happy! “Come to my house, Jesus! You are welcome!”

The people in the crowd grumbled. (Fold your arms and grumble.) “Why is Jesus going to his house? Doesn’t Jesus know what Zacchaeus has done?”

Jesus went to Zacchaeus’s house anyway. Maybe they ate a meal together. Zacchaeus felt Jesus’s love. And something changed inside his heart. (Put your hand on your heart.)

Zacchaeus stood up. He said, “Jesus, I will give half of everything I have to the poor. And if I took too much money from anyone, I will pay them back four times as much!” (Hold up four fingers.)

That was a lot of money! Zacchaeus was making things right.

Jesus said, “Today God’s saving love has come to this house. I came to look for people who are lost and bring them home.”

The people thought nobody could love Zacchaeus. But Jesus did! Jesus saw him. Jesus knew his name. Jesus loved him first, and that love changed Zacchaeus’s heart.

Jesus sees you too. Jesus knows your name. Jesus loves you, every one of you. And we can welcome others, just like Jesus welcomed Zacchaeus.

Wondering questions

5 minutes. Wondering questions have no wrong answers. Ask one at a time, wait in silence, and welcome every answer without correcting it. Repeat back what a child says so they know you heard them.

• I wonder which part of this story you like best.
• I wonder why Zacchaeus wanted so much to see Jesus.
• I wonder how Zacchaeus felt when Jesus called his name.
• I wonder what Jesus and Zacchaeus talked about at his house.
• I wonder how the people felt when Zacchaeus paid them back.
• I wonder who feels left out today, and how we could welcome them.

After the wondering questions, play the quiz on the slides, or ask the questions aloud and let the children call out the answers.

Craft: Zacchaeus in a tree

10 minutes. Each child makes a tree with a Zacchaeus who climbs up through the leaves and hurries down when Jesus calls.

You will need brown and green construction paper, a sheet of white or blue paper and a craft stick for each child, pencils, crayons or markers, safety scissors, glue sticks, and tape.

1. Help each child trace a hand and forearm on brown paper, with the fingers spread. The arm is the trunk and the fingers are the branches. Cut it out.
2. Trace both hands two or three times on green paper for leaves, and cut them out.
3. Glue the trunk onto the white or blue paper, and glue the green hands over the branches for leaves.
4. A grown-up cuts a slit about 2 inches long through the leaves and the paper behind them.
5. Each child draws a small Zacchaeus, about 2 inches tall, colors him, cuts him out, and tapes him to the top of a craft stick.
6. Push the stick up from behind so Zacchaeus peeks out through the slit. Write at the bottom, “Jesus knows my name!”

When everyone is done, say together, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down!” and pull each Zacchaeus down out of the tree.

Game: hurry and come down!

7 minutes. Sit in a circle on chairs or on the floor. The circle is the big tree. The teacher takes the first turn as the caller.

1. The caller walks slowly around the outside of the circle.
2. The caller gently taps one child on the shoulder and says, “(Name), hurry and come down! Today I want to come to your house!”
3. The child stands up and says, “Welcome!” The two give each other a high five.
4. They walk around the circle together, arm in arm or side by side, and the caller takes the empty place.
5. The child who was called becomes the next caller.

Keep playing until every child has been called by name. Ask the children to choose someone who has not had a turn yet. Everyone walks, and there are no winners and no losers.

Memory verse

3 minutes. Teach the memory verse with motions.

Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.

Luke 19:5

• “Zacchaeus”: shade your eyes and look up.
• “hurry and come down”: climb down hand over hand.
• “for today I must stay”: stamp your feet.
• “at your house”: make a roof with your hands over your head.

Say the verse together softly, then loudly, then in a whisper. For fun, say it once more with each child’s name in place of Zacchaeus: Jesus knows their names too. The memory verse coloring page lets children color the words in bubble letters.

Snack idea

Optional. The sycamore tree Zacchaeus climbed was a kind of fig tree, so serve fig bars or dried figs, with apple slices. Zacchaeus shared with others, so let the children pass the plate and serve each other before they eat. Check for food allergies before class (fig bars contain wheat), and serve water or juice.

Closing prayer

Ask the children to fold their hands or open them on their laps. Read each line and let them repeat it after you.

Dear Jesus,
thank you for seeing Zacchaeus
and calling him by name.
Thank you for knowing my name too.
Help me share with people in need.
Help me welcome people
who feel left out.
Thank you for loving us all.
Amen.

Take-home note for families

Send this note home with the activity sheets and the tree craft. It also prints by itself on the printables page.

Today in Sunday school

Today your child heard the story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1–10). Zacchaeus was a rich tax collector whom nobody liked. He was too short to see Jesus over the crowd, so he climbed a tree. Jesus stopped, called him by name, and went to his house, even though the crowd grumbled. Jesus’s love changed Zacchaeus’s heart, and he gave to the poor and paid back the people he had cheated. The children talked about how Jesus knows and loves each of us, and how we can welcome people who feel left out.

Talk about it

• What was your favorite part of the story?
• How do you think Zacchaeus felt when Jesus called his name?
• Who might feel left out at school or in our neighborhood? How could we welcome them?

Try this at home

Read the story together in Luke 19:1–10 or in a children’s Bible. This week, do one welcoming thing as a family: invite someone new to play or to share a meal, or learn the name of a neighbor you have not met.

Pray together

Dear Jesus, thank you for knowing each of our names and loving us. Help our family share what we have and welcome everyone. Amen.

Adapting for younger or older children

Younger children (ages 4 to 6). Tell the story with a small toy figure and a houseplant or a paper tree, and keep it short. Skip the crossword and the word search, and use the maze, the coloring pages, and the tree craft with the trunks and leaves already cut out. Teach only the memory verse motions, and let the children call each other down from the tree in the game.

Older children (ages 10 to 12). Read Luke 19:1–10 together from a Bible, taking turns. Compare Zacchaeus with the rich ruler just before him in Luke 18:18–27, who went away sad. Talk about what it means to make things right after we hurt someone, and look up the law about paying back four times in Exodus 22:1. Use the crossword without the word bank, and plan one way the class can welcome visitors or new children at church.