I am reminded of the incident concerning Zacchaeus, a man from Jericho who came to know the Lord.  You may remember that he was a rather short man and had to climb a sycamore tree in order to see the Lord as He passed through the city.  As the Lord passed by the tree that Zacchaeus was in, He paused and instructed him to come down so that He might spend time with him in his house.  We read in Luke 19:8-10, “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 any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” 

There are two things going on in this portion.  First, Zacchaeus’ repentance was on display.  He pronounced to the Lord that he would give half his possessions to the poor.  Zacchaeus was a tax collector (verse 2), and they were known for being dishonest.  It was probably through his work as a tax collector (publican) that Zacchaeus had gained his riches.  In the Lord’s presence Zacchaeus illustrated his repentance by declaring that he would give half his riches back to the poor and if he lied about some in order to get more money from them, he was going to restore it to them four times over.  This was the proper thing to do according to the Law as we read in Numbers 5:6-7, “Speak unto the children of Israel, When a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit, to do a trespass against the LORD, and that person be guilty; Then they shall confess their sin which they have done: and he shall recompense his trespass with the principal thereof, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it unto him against whom he hath trespassed.”

However, when the Lord stated that “This day is salvation come to this house” He was not referring to Zacchaeus’ good works.  Rather, He was referring to Himself.  Salvation is embodied in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ.  When Mary took the baby Jesus into the temple to offer a sacrifice, they met a man named Simeon.  This man had been promised by the Lord that he would not die until he had seen the Christ.  It was in the temple on the day that he saw the Lord Jesus.  We read in Luke 2:29-30, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation.”  We get the same truth in this portion…Christ is salvation.  Salvation had come to Zacchaeus’ house because the Lord Jesus was there. 

In your situation, it is good if you can restore things that you stole before you were saved.  It was Zacchaeus’ repentant heart that led him to do so.  However, salvation comes through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ…nothing more, nothing less.  Your salvation does not depend upon your works, no matter how good and noble they may be.  Zacchaeus was not saved by his works; he was saved because he met the Lord Jesus…who is salvation personified.

Read some of the verses in the Bible that refer to being saved (Matthew 11:28, John 3:16, Acts 16:31, Romans 10:9, Ephesians 2:8-9, etc.).  Notice that NONE of these verses mention restoring things to others that we may have taken.  Salvation depends solely on putting our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as our savior. 

Have you accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior?  If so, according to the Word of God, you are saved.  Salvation does not come with conditions.  It does not come from our works.  It comes by faith in the Christ.  You may be led to restore those things you can, but that is because you are saved, not in order to be saved.  (402.2)