Zacchaeus the Tax Collector Preschool Lesson
Preschool lesson (ages 3–6, 20 minutes)
1. Welcome (3 min)
Sit in a circle, greet every child by name and show one thing from the story to touch.
2. The little story (5 min)
Teach the refrain first: “Jesus looked up and saw him.”
Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. He was walking through the town of Jericho. Jericho was a city with many palm trees. A man named Zacchaeus lived there.
Zacchaeus was a tax collector. He was even the boss of the tax collectors. A tax collector took money from the people for the rulers. Many tax collectors took too much. So people did not like them.
Zacchaeus was rich. He had lots and lots of money. And he was short, shorter than most people.
One day a big crowd came down the road. Jesus was coming! Everyone wanted to see Jesus. Zacchaeus wanted to see who Jesus was. But the crowd was in the way. He was too short! He could not see over all the people. Can you stand on your tiptoes? Higher, higher!
So Zacchaeus ran on ahead. Run, run, run! He climbed up into a sycamore tree. A sycamore is a big fig tree with low, wide branches. Climb, climb, climb! Now he could see. Jesus was going to pass that way.
Here came the crowd. Here came Jesus! Closer and closer. Zacchaeus was up in the tree, high above the crowd. Then Jesus came to the place. Jesus looked up and saw him.
He said, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! For today I must stay at your house.” Jesus knew his name! And Jesus wanted to come to his house, today! Can you call his name like Jesus? Zac-chae-us!
Zacchaeus hurried down. Down, down, down! He was full of joy! He welcomed Jesus into his house. Jesus was coming to his house!
But the people did not like it. They grumbled. To grumble means to complain in a low, cross voice. Grumble, grumble! “Jesus is going to stay with a sinner!” they said. They said Zacchaeus was a bad man.
A sinner is someone who does wrong things. But Jesus did not stay away from Zacchaeus. Jesus looked up and saw him.
Then Zacchaeus stood up. He wanted to make things right. He said, “Lord, half of my goods I give to the poor.” Half means one of two parts. If you have two cookies, half is one cookie!
“If I took too much from anyone, I give back four times as much.” Let’s count to four: one, two, three, four! He would give back four coins for every one coin he took too much. That was a lot to give back!
Jesus said, “Today, salvation has come to this house. He also is a son of Abraham.” Salvation means God’s rescue. Abraham was God’s friend, long ago. Zacchaeus belonged to God’s family too. Jesus looked up and saw him.
Then Jesus said more. “The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.” The Son of Man is Jesus. To seek means to look for. Lost means far away from God.
Zacchaeus was lost. But Jesus came to look for him, and he found him, up in a tree! Jesus looked up and saw him.
3. Talk together (3 min)
- Why do you think Zacchaeus climbed up the tree?
- How do you think Zacchaeus felt when Jesus said his name?
4. Move (3 min)
Refrain Freeze: move around the room; when you say the refrain, everyone freezes and says it together.
5. Make (4 min)
Zacchaeus gave back four times as much. Color the 4 coins and the 1 tree.
6. Verse and prayer (2 min)
“Zacchaeus, hurry and come down” — Luke 19:5 (Zacchaeus → look up high; hurry → quick feet in place; and come down → climb down with your hands)
Dear Jesus, thank you that you saw Zacchaeus up in the tree. Thank you that you see me too. Amen.
Lesson for older kids (ages 6–10)
Big idea: Jesus sees you and loves you
Memory verse: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.” — Luke 19:10 · WEB
The Bible story
A tiny tax collector nobody liked climbs a tall tree just to see Jesus — and gets the biggest, most surprising invitation of his whole life!
Talk about it
- What was the name of the little man in this story? — Zacchaeus
- What was Zacchaeus's job? — A chief tax collector
- Why did the people of the town not like Zacchaeus? — He often took extra money
- Who was coming to pass through Jericho that day? — Jesus
- Why couldn't Zacchaeus see Jesus in the crowd? — He was too short
- What did Zacchaeus do so he could see Jesus? — Climbed a tree
Where is Jesus in this story?
Zacchaeus felt lost and unloved, but Jesus came looking for him, called him by name, and made him part of God's family. That is exactly what Jesus does for all of us. He came to find every lost person and bring them home to God's love. No matter how many mistakes we have made, Jesus still runs to us, welcomes us, and gives us a brand-new start.
What God wants to tell us
Everyone in town had given up on Zacchaeus, but Jesus had not. Jesus looked past what other people thought and saw a lonely heart that needed love. And when love came knocking, Zacchaeus opened the door and everything changed. God shows us here that nobody is too small, too lost, or too far away for His love. Just like Jesus called Zacchaeus by name, God knows your name too, and He is always glad to be near you.
Prayer
Father God, thank You that You see me and know my name. Thank You that Jesus loves everyone, even the people others forget. Help me to open my heart to You and to be kind and fair to others. I am so glad You never give up on me. Amen.
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