The Tree … It’s Already There

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree…” (1 Peter 2:24, ESV)

Before I ever knew Jesus as my Savior, I knew a song about Zacchaeus and a sycamore tree. As a kid, my grandma occasionally took me to church. The children gathered in the damp church basement and I remember flannel graph stories on the felt board, cookies and punch, and songs with motions that we sang at the top of our lungs. One of those songs went like this:

Zacchaeus was a wee little man, a wee little man was he.
He climbed up in a sycamore tree for the Lord he wanted to see…

Back then, it was just a fun song—but now I see it meant so much more.

In Luke 19 we find that Zacchaeus wasn’t just a “wee little man.” He was a man who was lost. A tax collector who was hated and despised. He was a Jew in bed with Rome, and his sin wasn’t hidden—it was public, notorious, and shameful. Yet there he was, climbing up a tree, wanting to see Jesus. He was a man deeply in need of a grace that he didn’t even know existed.

The tree itself was ordinary—just a tree along the dusty road. But when Zacchaeus climbed it, something changed. That tree became a holy place—an unexpected avenue where Jesus would stop, look up, and call him by name.

According to theologians, that tree served as “prevenient grace” in Zacchaeus’s life. In simple terms, it means “going before.” It’s the kindness of God that reaches for us before we reach for Him. It’s God wooing us unto Himself. It’s that nudge—the tug in your heart to look to Jesus. It’s more faithful than a praying grandmother. More beautiful than a song you remember from childhood. It’s love—pure and persistent. It’s Jesus walking the road you didn’t know you’d be on, calling your name before you even thought to look up.

Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus. But the truth is, Jesus was already looking for him. That sycamore tree was the bridge that brought him face to face with the Savior. There is another tree that stands in the path of all of us—the tree upon which Christ was crucified. And just like the tree Zacchaeus climbed, the cross goes before us, serving as a bridge to new life. The cross of Christ is where our sins are forgiven. It is the means by which we are saved.

I am Zacchaeus—and so are you. Jesus is always going before us, wooing us unto Himself. He can take anything—an old church basement, a loving grandmother, even a silly song—and use it for good in our lives. He is already looking, already loving, and already preparing the way for you and for me.

And the tree?… It’s already there.