Two men who wanted to see the Lord Jesus

Turn with me please to the gospel by Luke. I've been encouraged to share in the gospel tonight, and I didn't intend to, but then Brother Scott gave a good opening for what I had in my mind. We're gonna look at a man named Herod today.

We're gonna look actually at two men that wanted to see the Lord Jesus. And that's the connection. Both of these men wanted to see the Lord Jesus.

We're gonna read in Luke chapter 9 to start. We're gonna look at this man Herod first of all. Luke chapter 9, verse number 7. Now Herod the Tetrarch heard of all that was done by him, that is by Jesus, and he was perplexed because that it was said of some that John was risen from the dead, and of some that Elias had appeared, and of others that one of the old prophets was risen again.

And Herod said, John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I have heard such things? And he desired to see him. Chapter 23. Please.

Luke 23, verse number 6. When Pilate heard of Galilee, he asked whether the man were a Galilean, and as soon as he knew that he belonged into Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who himself also was at Jerusalem at that time. Verse 8. And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad, for he was desirous to see him of a long season, because he had heard many things of him, and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him. Then he questioned him with many words, but he answered him nothing.

That is, the Lord Jesus answered him nothing. And the chief priests and his scribes stood and vehemently accused him. And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate.

And we're going to read of our second man in Luke chapter 19. Luke chapter 19, verse 1. And Jesus entered and passed through Jericho, and behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus, which was the chief among the publicans, and he was rich. And he sought to see Jesus, who he was, and could not for the press, because he was little of stature.

And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must abide at thy house. And he made haste, and came down, and received him joyfully.

And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying he was gone, to be guessed with a man that is a sinner. And Zacchaeus stood and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I have taken anything from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation.

Come to this house, for as much as he also is a son of Abraham, for the Son of Man has come to seek. And to save that which was lost. And the Lord will bless to us the reading of his word.

Two men, and they wanted to see Jesus. What a noble desire. You know, there really could be not a greater desire for any of us, whether we're saved in this gathering tonight, or whether we're not, that we would see Jesus again.

Those of us that are saved would see him for another time. And for those of you who are not saved, maybe for the first time in your life, you would see the Lord Jesus Christ. I'd like to look at these men, and I've got three questions.

I'd like to examine each of them with. If it was a lawyer, maybe I would take that approach. I'd ask them, Why do you want to see him? Why was it that, what was the reasoning behind Herod? Why did he want to see him? Why did Zacchaeus want to see him? And then I'd say, What did he say to you? What did he say? And thirdly, I'd like to look at what these men did with the Lord Jesus.

Complete opposites, but they had the same question. They had the same desire. They both wanted to see the Lord Jesus.

We come to Herod, and we've been reminded he was a wicked, wicked man. Nasty man. Terrible man.

Very sinful man. And here he is in chapter 9, and the Lord Jesus is being introduced, and there's miracles being done, and some had said it was John the Baptist. And the little word there, it says that Herod was perplexed.

He was perplexed. What was it that perplexed him? Was it maybe that John has come back? I don't know. But maybe just for a little moment, there was a little conviction of sin in the old man's heart.

Something was bothering him. Something that was moving in his soul, and he was perplexed about this man and the things that he had heard. Maybe that's come, maybe that's been your experience.

Maybe there's something just recently that has caused you to be perplexed about your sin. Something that has just spoken to your soul. A little something, a little gnawing away in your soul about something you have done.

And the consequences of sin, and where you'll be for eternity. This man, Herod, it says just for a moment, he was perplexed. Perplexed.

I remember before I was saved, I was perplexed about my sin. And I wanted to see Jesus. But this man's perplexity, it didn't seem to last very long.

Didn't seem to bother him very long. Kind of come upon him, and then it was just a few, a short while later that he actually got to see the Lord Jesus. And he wasn't perplexed anymore.

So this man, Herod, he wanted to see Jesus for what he had done. He says that. He wanted to see him for what he had done.

He wanted to see some miracle done by him. He wanted to see some great thing done. Some new thing.

He wanted to see something done. We come to Zacchaeus. He wanted to see him for a whole different reason.

But Herod was curious. He was curious who he was. He was curious what he could do.

He was just interested in this man, not for his soul salvation, but just for what he had done. People in the world today, they think the Lord Jesus was a good man. And they like to read his stories about all the miracles that he had done, and all the things that he had accomplished while he was on earth.

But when it comes down to the salvation of their soul, that's a whole different story. They're relying on something else to get him into God's heaven. Something else for the forgiveness of sins.

Herod was never saved. Herod was never forgiven. He had a desire to see Christ, but he was just curious.

He was just curious. So that was the reason why. And when he got the opportunity, he was glad.

That baffles me. Here's a man, and time had gone by since he had beheaded John. He wanted to see Jesus, and there he's glad to see him.

But what did the Lord Jesus do for him? Did he show him any miracle? He showed him no miracle. What did the Lord Jesus say to him? Do you know what he said to him? Absolutely nothing. Absolutely nothing.

And friend, tonight, if you're wanting to see the Lord Jesus, if you're wanting to know him as your own personal Savior, and you've got thoughts about salvation, cherish those thoughts. Because what if God would say nothing to you? You know, God is not obligated, because you've grown in a Christian home, to save you. God is even obligated to speak to any of us.

And if we got what we deserved, Herod got what he deserved. Herod's in hell tonight. And if you and I got what we deserved, we'd be right beside him.

God is under no obligation to speak to sinners. He's under no obligation to strive with sinners. He's under no obligation to cause men and women to flee from the wrath to come.

But it's his grace. And here is Herod, and the Lord Jesus is in front of him. I don't know what he asked him.

I know it was a lot. I would have had a lot of questions, too. But can you imagine the man's disappointment in the Son of God when he was answered nothing? I don't know what will happen in your life.

But I know of people who have wanted to see Jesus, and they wanted to be saved. And when God answered them nothing, they couldn't figure out why. Herod couldn't figure out why.

Herod didn't have a clue. The Lord Jesus knew everything about him. The Lord Jesus knew what he did to John.

The Lord Jesus knew his sin. The Lord Jesus knew his motives. And the man had no real desire to be saved.

No desire, no conviction of sin to be saved. And the Lord answered him, nothing. Not one thing.

I'll tell you, before I was saved, I thought that I had missed my opportunity, and I was just going to have to go to hell. I couldn't hear a word from the Lord if I tried. Read my Bible, read tracts, try to get a promise from God, and there was nothing.

The reason there was nothing is because I wasn't ready yet. Neither was Herod. Herod never got ready.

What did the Lord say? He said nothing. What did the man do with the Lord Jesus? It's what many will do tonight. He rejected the man.

Just to put it very easy on Herod. They mocked him. They scoffed him.

They put a robe on him. They had their games. They had their fun with him.

And they sent him back to Pilate. The one he wanted to see was right in front of him. And he didn't get a thing.

He didn't get a thing. I don't know what you think about that, but that's exceedingly scary to me. Very scary.

The very thing that he asked for, he got. The very thing that he was wanting to have, he got. He got to see him.

But he didn't get a blessing. In front of the gospels preached, and I know we haven't been here for eight weeks, but back home in Ontario, the Lord Jesus Christ has been lifted up every night as a savior of sinners. And people have wanted to find a way of salvation.

People have wanted forgiveness of sins. And the Savior's been preached, and He's been lifted up as the lovely man of sorrows. The one who was wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities.

The chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and He's right in front of them, and they can't see it. Is it real, brethren? It's real. The darkness.

Christ is right in front of you, dear friend. The way of salvation. The Savior of sinners.

But you can't see Him. And you get no blessing. You get no blessing.

This man was driven only by curiosity. Curiosity. And there are people tonight, and they're just driven by curiosity.

Our man Zacchaeus, when we're going to get to him, we're going to look at him a little different. He was concerned. He was concerned.

It's one thing to be curious about this salvation. Well, if it's really real, I really should have it. Really, if this is real stuff, yeah, this would be a good thing.

Oh, but when a person's under the conviction of sin and they're concerned, it's the only way. It's the only way of salvation. It's the only remedy for sin.

But this man, he got nothing. Nothing from his encounter of the Lord Jesus except one thing. With privilege comes responsibility.

Take that home with you, young people. With privilege comes responsibility. Herod was a privileged man.

He stood face to face with Christ. And you know what that man's running through? It's running through his mind every day since he's been in hell. The person of Christ.

He saw him face to face. If he'd have taken him seriously, if he'd have taken him for who he was, he could have been saved. He should have been saved.

And every day he sees Christ. Can you imagine that? Every, I shouldn't even say day because there's not days in hell. There's not days in hell.

Continually the way of salvation is made fresh to his mind. The lovely man of Calvary, the one that was before him, is tormenting him. With privilege comes responsibility.

He was a responsible man. Very responsible. Why did he want to see Jesus? He was curious.

He's curious. What did he get from the Savior? Absolutely nothing. What's the third question? What did he do with him? He rejected him.

Sent him away. Mocked him. Made light of him.

The very one that could have saved him. And he sent him away. We come to Zacchaeus.

He's a different sort of a man. He's a man with backbone. He's a man with desire.

And he wants to see Jesus. But he's altogether different. Here's this man and he wants to see Jesus not for what he has done.

That's not the phrase that's used. The reason Zacchaeus wanted to see the Lord was for who he was. There's a difference.

Herod just wanted to see him for what he could do. But Zacchaeus now, he said he sought to see Jesus for who he was. For who he was.

I wonder if he ever sought out the Lord Jesus for who he was. I'll tell you, this man, he had some insight, didn't he? He had heard about things. He had heard what was done.

And he wasn't interested in seeing a miracle. He was interested in a relationship with him. He wanted to know for who he was.

And so here's this man. And he's just... It's the only thing on his mind. I need to see him.

I need to see him for who he is. And he's not just curious. That stage is long gone.

This man is convicted. This man is concerned. And he knows that he needs to see Jesus.

Why? Because Jesus is passing this way. Jesus was going through where he was. The Lord's presence has permeated this building and this conference.

You could feel it in the ministry. You could feel it in the worship. I wonder, friend, will you see him in the Gospel? He's passing this way.

I desire to see him for who he really is. Who is he tonight? Is he just some man that can do miracles? Oh, he can do a miracle. That's right.

Salvation of the soul is a miracle. But who he is, he's the Son of God. The Son of God.

He's God manifest in the flesh. He's the Son of Man. He's the Savior of sinners.

That's who he is. The Savior of sinners. And so this little man, his desire, his purpose for seeing Jesus was for relationship.

For who he was. He wanted to see him for who he was. What did we learn about this man? He couldn't.

You know, Herod, in chapter 9, he wanted to see Jesus. And really, if you boil down, he wouldn't. He could have went and seen him.

The Lord Jesus was out in public. The Lord Jesus was moving throughout. And if Herod really wanted to see him in chapter 9, he could have went and found him.

He could have looked him up. He could have left his high throne or whatever it was that he sat or whatever he did in the evenings. He could have found the Lord Jesus if he really wanted him.

But here's a man who wants him and he can't because there's obstacles in the way. He sought to see Jesus who he was but he couldn't because of the press, because of the mob of people. A mob of people.

There's always something in the way, isn't there? When a person wants to see the Lord Jesus, when a person's really interested in salvation, there's always something in the way. It never fails. I think of dear Melissa last week.

She wanted to be saved. The kids were sleeping. Everything was quiet.

And then she started getting close. You know what happened? The house turned into a mess. Kids screaming.

Kids crying. Things happening. There was something coming in the way.

The dear woman wanted to see Jesus. She found him. Mary found her.

However you want to look at it. She was saved in all the ruckus of the commotion of the house. And this man here, there's a great commotion.

The devil will put a commotion in your life every single time. You want to be busy? You want to be bombarded with things? Start thinking about your soul. You know what you'll find? There's a whole crowd just waiting to be your friend.

Just waiting to take your attention off the things of God. To distract you. But this man had one thing in mind.

He was going to see Jesus. The crowd was in the way. And you know what the best thing to do when there's a crowd in the way? Get off by yourself.

That's what this man did. The crowd was in the way. He couldn't get there.

And he went off by himself. He was still wanting to see Jesus. So he went up by himself.

And he's up in a tree. He just wants a little glimpse of Him. Maybe he'll get close enough that he'll stand out in front of the mob.

And he just wants a little glimpse of Him. But I notice this. He went someplace by himself.

If you want to be saved, friend, get alone with God. Go to your bedroom. Go to your closet.

Go to the bathroom if that's what it takes. Get down on your knees before God. Get alone with God.

This man, he wanted to see Jesus. Nothing was going to stand in his way. The commotion can just have the commotion.

Let him go. You know what's most touching about this? The Lord Jesus knew that he wanted to see Him. The Lord Jesus knew Herod wanted to see Him too.

This man Zacchaeus, the Lord knew that he was looking for Him. And the Lord went right to where he was. The very spot where the man was alone.

The Savior met him. Do you want to see Jesus tonight? Has there ever been a moment in your life's experience when you've come to know Him as your Savior? Has there ever been a moment in your experience when like this man Zacchaeus, you realize that you were lost? Sometimes I ask that question out of order. We should ask, have you ever found out you're lost? Before we ever ask if you found out you were saved.

This man knew he was lost. He knew his condition. And he wanted to see Jesus for who he was.

What did the Lord tell him? Well, he got a specific word from the Lord. Tremendous. He says, Zacchaeus, come down.

Make haste and come down. For today I must abide at thy house. You know, I would dare say Zacchaeus is getting more than he expected.

He wanted to see Jesus. But Jesus has come to abide with him. And that's what happens when we're saved.

We just want him as a Savior. We just want him to be our Savior. He's far more than that when we trust him.

Far more than just a Savior. And he says to Zacchaeus, make haste and come down. For today, for today I must abide at thy house.

And Zacchaeus came down. What did he do with him? He received him joyfully. Received him.

Received him for who he was. The Son of God. Remember Herod? He rejected him.

Here's Zacchaeus, and he received him. Received him. He got a very personal word from the Lord Jesus Christ.

And speaking to the Christians, you remember the word you got. Something from God to your soul. A promise of God, as we reminded earlier in the ministry.

A promise of rest for your soul. You remember it well. If you're not saved, that's what you're looking for.

A word from God to you. Zacchaeus got it. He received him.

He wanted him because he was convicted and he was concerned. He got a specific word from the Lord Jesus to himself. And he received him joyfully.

We read down a little further. The Lord says this. This day is salvation.

Come to this house. That's important. There's a reason that's there.

The Lord was telling him he was saved. Not anybody else. This day is salvation.

Come to this house. Maybe Zacchaeus was wondering really what took place. The Lord says, this day you were saved.

This day salvation was come to this house. And then he says, because the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. I know a man sitting in the front row that was saved in that verse.

The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. I can tell you the story of a dear lady in Glen Ewing. Her name is Adele.

And she painted this text for me. And it's in our house. It's in a frame.

The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. Adele thought she was saved. Went to Adele's house for supper.

And she was happy. She was smiling. But there was something going on in Adele's soul that she didn't want to let on.

The next night she'd come to a meeting. And she left and we shook hands. And my preaching partner said, he said, who is that woman? Adele had been there coming to a meeting every night for three weeks with her family.

I said, that's Adele. She's a very pretty, smiley girl, young woman, married with I think five kids now. But her smile, my preaching partner says, she's got a horse face.

Her face was like long. He didn't even recognize her. What's going on? She said, can you come over? I've got to talk to you.

And she said, you know what I found out? I found out I'm not saved. I'm not saved. So we showed her some Scriptures.

We wrote them down and we prayed and we left. Got a call in the morning. You know what it was on the other end of the line? I was lost but He found me.

I was lost but He found me. Just like Zacchaeus, he was lost. But the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which is lost.

When did He find you? 2 a.m. in the morning. That woman would not go to bed until she had found the Savior. Until she had seen Jesus and she had given up.

She had given up. She couldn't do it. She couldn't see it.

And then she realized this. God showed her this. The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.

And she's an artist of sorts. She put that text on a beautiful thing with a lily. It's beautiful.

And if my house doesn't burn down, I'm going to hang on to that for the rest of my life. The Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. She wanted to see Jesus.

And He found her. Friend, do you want to see Him tonight? Be honest with yourself. How deep is the conviction of sin tonight? How strong is the desire to see the Savior for who He is? Or is it just for what He can do for me? There's a difference.

Have you thought about being saved? Seriously now. When was the last time you really were concerned about your soul? Maybe this meeting started and you hadn't had a thought. My dear friend, you need to see Jesus.

You need to see Jesus. Remember what John the Baptist said? He said, Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. What's He doing? He's pointing the people away to the Lamb of God.

The one that was going to be the sacrifice for sin. We think of the Lord Jesus Christ lifted up on the cross of Calvary. We see Him there, the man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

And yet people are hiding their faces from Him. They esteem Him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted. But listen to the verse.

But in reality He was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon Him and with His stripes we are healed.

We're talking about the Savior of sinners tonight. The one who the wrath of God was poured out upon His spotless soul. The one who was apart from sin.

The one who could not sin. The one who shed His blood so that you and I could be forgiven. God's way of salvation.

God's Lamb. The lovely man of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who is He? He's the Son of God.

Who is He? He's the Savior of sinners. Trust you'll see Him tonight and be saved for time and for eternity. Shall we pray?