In Matthew 9:9 we read “And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.” Boy oh boy was the Lord in trouble now with the Pharisees—His invitation caused quite a stir. In verse 10 Matthew now requests that Jesus come to his home for dinner, thereby indicating he took his new life’s work very seriously as well as demonstrating he was a very hospitable man: “And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.” It was suspect enough that Jesus selected a despised tax collector as a disciple but now He is going to accept a dinner invitation. And if all that was not bad enough, the guest list was comprised of “many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.”
Matthew 9:9-13 Meaning
But what was Jesus’ response to their outrage? In so many words, He explained that His mission was not to the righteous and the strong but to the sinners and the weak. See Matthew 9:12-13: “But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Continuing down a few verses we gain not only further clarification of Jesus’ remarks but also a potent perception of our Savior’s heart from Matthew 9:36: “But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.”
All are welcome in God’s kingdom world. All are loved equally—the despised, the poor, the so-called dregs of society, the marginalized. The elevated educationally, positionally, and financially are given no priority. Dear friend praise God with me. Not only is the invitation all-inclusive but so is the acceptance.
Matthew was called to be not just a follower but to be numbered among Jesus’ inside group. In Matthew 10:2-3 he lists himself among the 12 apostles and, in addition, categorizes himself as “Matthew the publican” See Matthew 10:2-3: “Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;”
Interestingly enough Matthew is the only biographer of the four Gospels who references himself in this way when a list of the 12 apostles is given. So far as I can determine we have no factual proof as to why this might be. But I am thinking perhaps two reasons could be possible: Matthew was extremely grateful to have been selected for such a high position as one in Jesus’ intimate group given his past employment; he wanted to emphasize that rank and position had no influence over Christ when designating those for His inner circle.
Matthew came from what was considered a lowly position. He was not one of the prominent apostles but look at what he did. He composed one of the books in the Bible! Just think about this. And get excited about what unimagined things we are enabled to accomplish when we heed Christ’s call to follow Him.
The initial summons is introduced when we become Christians and pledge our devotion to the Lord. But then as we beseech Him for guidance and leading throughout our life’s walk; as we perceive Him bidding us and acquiesce; as we encounter His divine contact and respond; as we detect Him addressing us by name and acknowledge—never underestimate the miraculous results. Just remember, the despised tax collector became the receptacle for a Holy Spirit-inspired manuscript.
Until we sit down together for our next visit, continue living before God’s face.
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