LEARNING DAILY

Matthew 9:9, As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and He said to him, "Follow Me." And he rose and followed Him.

Tax collectors were not thought highly of; they worked for the Roman government and took more than the Romans required in order to “line their own pockets”. Yes, that meant they were wealthier than most citizens of Israel. Let’s be honest – the Israelites hated the tax collectors. Matthew was looked upon as greedy, sinful, and to be a traitor. He was just the sort of person Jesus looked for to follow Him. “Jesus deliberately passed over the elite and influential and chose men mostly from the dregs of society” (John MacArthur).

Yes, “Jesus chose the notorious sinner Matthew” (MacArthur) to follow Him. His Jewish name was Levi. This is the disciple who is writing this gospel (Matthew); he does not mention himself until other disciples have been mentioned. He writes that Jesus came up to the booth where he was working, told him “Follow Me”, so he did. The question one probably asks when reading this account is what was it that caused him to just leave his tax booth and follow Jesus. MacArthur writes. “He was spiritually hungry, and he became a true seeker. He knew the Old Testament because he quoted it ninety-nine times, more times than Mark, Luke, and John combined.”

During the ministry of Jesus, Matthew kept himself almost entirely in the background. His writings are not written according to time; they are written by topic so it may have been he was called before some of the stories he has already written about. There are scholars who believed Matthew was present when Jesus taught the Sermon on the Mount and possibly wrote it word for word. Matthew wrote with a Jewish audience in mind.

There is no official record of how Matthew died. Tradition says he was burned at the stake.

The calling of Matthew to follow Jesus reminds readers that God’s grace is available to anyone, regardless of what they have done and regardless of their present situation. If that is true (and it is), it tells me to stop putting labels on others. When someone responds to the call of Jesus Christ, that person can be changed and used for the purpose(s) God has for him/her. Both Matthew and you are good examples of that! Think back to when Jesus called you. You had to step out of your comfort zone and perhaps had to take a risk(s) in following Him. Did your friends change? Did your ideas about doing your job change? What about ____?

Matthew’s life changed. As he followed Jesus and was around like-minded men (the disciples), he began to change. God’s grace got a hold of him and Matthew began to walk in the unconditional love of Jesus Christ. Have you allowed yourself to do that as you walk the narrow way with Jesus, growing with knowledge of Him, and being transformed by Him.

As you do, your personal testimony is seen by others – helping others find Jesus and being an encouragement to others. Matthew walked away from what had defined him, a tax collector. With Jesus, his life changed as he now had hope and a purpose. Let that be your story as well!