The Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost. As Jesus continued to make his way to Jerusalem, the place where he was destined to perform his last and greatest act of love, he took every opportunity to do what he had always done over the last couple of years: proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God through word and deed. And this is precisely what he did when his entourage passed through the city of Jericho. Zacchaeus, a tax collector, must have longed to see Jesus and when he heard that he passing through his city, did all he could in order to lay his eyes on him. When Jesus saw Zacchaeus’ determination, he invited himself into Zacchaeus’ house much to the chagrin of the crowd who proceeded to accuse him of keeping the company of sinners. 
This was not the first time, nor was it going to be the last, when Jesus gets accused of keeping the company of people considered sinners (and as such unworthy of God). However, unlike the other instances, this particular one was unique because in it we find the crowd joining the religious leaders in voicing their opposition to what Jesus was doing. This is because Zacchaeus was no ordinary sinner. As a tax collector, he was a betrayer of his people, one who colluded with the foreign and oppressive Roman government to oppress his own people. His sin amounted to treason, and he was irredeemable in the eyes of his people. He had accepted to work for a people who were oppressing his community, and by doing so, he had in a way renounced his citizenship and found himself outside the community’s salvation ‘zone.’ Moreover, as he later confessed, he used to tax more than was mandated by the law and used the ‘surplus’ to enrich himself. In one word, he was corrupt.
The crowd’s disapproval of Jesus’ move was twofold: not only did he keep the company of Zacchaeus, a known sinner and betrayer of his people, but he also ‘joined hands’ with him at dinner. Meal times were sacred moments and only those who were at peace with one another could eat from the same table. By dining at the house of Zacchaeus, Jesus demonstrated that he had no beef with him and his lifestyle. As a matter of fact, his eating with him was a tacit approval of Zacchaeus’ ‘sinful’ lifestyle. But the crowd disagreed and they made this very clear to Jesus. Zacchaeus had committed an act of treason against his own people and anyone who thought otherwise was a liar and did not have the community’s interest at heart. In his response to the crowd’s criticism of his move, Jesus points out that he too acknowledges that Zacchaeus is a sinner. However, unlike them, he believes that all is not lost for Zacchaeus. He is still redeemable. ‘ Salvation has today come to this house,’ Jesus says. 
Jesus stood his ground. He did not see any reason to issue an apology for inviting himself into the house of Zacchaeus. He couldn’t come to understand the crowd’s questioning and subsequent disapproval of his actions. Was he not simply fleshing out the very qualities of God that their Scriptures celebrated? Were those who were questioning his actions not the very people who day and night raised their voices as they sang the praises of a merciful, kind, and compassionate God? Jesus did not see any cause for alarm because in his understanding, he was not doing anything new. He was simply doing what the Lord God has always done. As a Creator and Father, the Lord God shows mercy to all, loves everything that he has created, and preserves and spares all things because they belong to him (First Reading). This quality of the Lord God is what sets him apart since it enables him to abide in a personal relationship with what he has created. 
Jesus was not offering Zacchaeus a free pass. He was not asking the crowd to simply forget the ills that Zacchaeus had perpetrated. What Jesus was doing was offering Zacchaeus a chance to right the wrongs he had done. At least he deserved that much, for he too was a descendant of Abraham whose God  reminds offenders of their sins in order that they may abandon their wickedness and live (First Reading). Zacchaeus accepted the offer of Jesus. He acknowledged his sinfulness and agreed to begin his repentance by giving back what he had wrongfully acquired. And as Jesus does in other occasions, he joyfully welcomed Zacchaeus’ act of contrition for he (Jesus) knew that he had accomplished his mission. 
Jesus’ mission is that of bringing about reconciliation, that is, making into one that which had disintegrated. Through his sinful actions, Zacchaeus had drifted off and had broken away from the community. By sinning, he had broken the bonds that existed between him and God, and between him and his fellow brothers and sisters. By sinning, he had cut ties with his people and put himself ‘outside’ salvation. His salvation (as well as his destiny) was tied to that of his community. This was why it was important for Jesus that this man too was offered the opportunity to repent and come back to the community. ‘ The Son of Man came to seek and to bring back into the fold those who have lost their ways.’