There are a few days of the year that I look forward to: my birthday on September 10, the first day of January, a new beginning, and my tax refund in April. Of these days, I look forward to my tax refund in April the most. It feels like a special bonus. Tax refunds are a system in which faithful taxpayers receive a third of the money they donated to churches and other public organizations back in cash. It's a national system that encourages a culture of giving.

In this column, I want to talk about a famous person who is often associated with taxes. He was a short man, and he was the highest tax collector in the region of Jericho. It's conceivable that some of the world's wealthiest Jews today could have been influenced by this man. His wealth seems to cover any handicap he may have had, as he was called a sellout by his fellow Jews.

He's Zacchaeus, the tax collector from Luke 19 in the Bible. Zacchaeus was a man who was not recognized by the Jews. He knew that because of his wealth and power, there were Jews who were bowing down in front of him, but behind his back, they were pointing fingers and saying all sorts of things. However, as a middleman between the Roman government and Jewish society, he must have lived a very painful, lonely, and lonely life.

He must have heard rumors that many people were following a man named Jesus from place to place, gathering in some places, teaching in others, and healing all kinds of sick people. According to the Bible, Zacchaeus wanted to see Jesus like that. To be more specific, he wanted to meet Jesus and have his problems solved, and he wanted to start a new life, especially since he had been accused of being a tax collector and of illegally taking property.

He finds a way to see Jesus beyond people's prejudices and his own limitations. The best he has is the courage to climb a mulberry tree called the fig tree. Zacchaeus, a seemingly wealthy man, is spotted and approached by Jesus with divine power, and a life-changing encounter takes place. Jesus doesn't ask, he tells. He calls Zacchaeus by name without asking how he knows him, says, “I must be a guest  in  your house,” and embraces the sinner.

The Bible doesn't tell the whole story. After welcoming Jesus into his home, Zacchaeus is pricked in his conscience by the sins of his past life, and through repentance, he cleanses himself of them. He is later baptized by Peter and plays an important role in the early church, according to legend. What he did was to climb the mulberry tree, his limit, in order to have the courage to meet Jesus. What is my mulberry tree today?