all idea of merit, and look for salvation as the free gift of God in Christ Jesus.]
2. Unsolicited —
[We read not of any application that Zaccheus made to Jesus : on the contrary, Jesus prevented him with the blessings of his goodness. It is thus with all of us in the first commu- nication of grace to the soul: as the prophet says, " I am sought of them that asked not for me ; I am found of them that sought me not." I do not say, that, when grace is im- parted to the soul, we shall not pray : for we certainly shall wait upon God in fervent supplication ; and on this is sus- pended all our hope of divine blessings : " we must ask, and seek, and knock, if we would have the door of mercy opened to us." But this, I say, that, in the first instance, previously to the communication of divine grace to the soul, we do not pray for it : but God imparts it of his own mind and will. We are like Lazarus in the grave, till God speaks the word, and says, Come forth : nor do we ever begin to pray, till God of his own grace and mercy has given us " a spirit of grace and of supplication."]
3. Unth ought of —
[Zaccheus' mind was as much as ever set upon his wealth ; and his only view in wishing to see Jesus, was to gratify his curiosity. Nothing was further from his thoughts than the idea of becoming a stated follower of Christ, and an heir of his salvation. Thus does God still " bring the blind by a way that they know not, and lead them in paths that they have not known." By his Providence he leads persons into such situa- tions and circumstances as shall be favourable for the commu- nication of his grace. Little did Zaccheus imagine what would be the result of his climbing up into the tree, or what God intended, when he inclined his mind to adopt such a measure for the gratifying of his curiosity : and little do many think, when God leads them to this or that place, or visits them with this or that affliction, what the issue of it will be : but God, who sees the end from the beginning, so orders all events, that the purposes of his grace towards his chosen people may be accomplished.
That this is a just view of the subject we cannot doubt, when we are told, that " God is the Author and Giver of every good and perfect gift ;" and " that he gives us both to will and to do of his good pleasure." If holy desires and purposes origi- nated first with ourselves, we should have whereof to glory : but since the first desire after salvation is no less the gift of God than salvation itself, the whole praise of it, from first to last, must be given to God alone.