Finding Matthew

Scripture – Matthew 9:9-13:⁹As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. ¹⁰While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. ¹¹When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” ¹²On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. ¹³But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Observation – (Write down what you see in the scripture.) I’m not sure which is more striking – that Jesus called Matthew or that Matthew got up and followed Jesus. I mean, he was at work, sitting at his desk. And he just got up and left to follow this man called Jesus. Matthew was one of the outcasts in his society. I wonder what it meant to him to be recognized as a person and invited to join a new movement. Jesus ended up at Matthew’s house for dinner, with, I presume, many of Matthew’s friends – also outcasts. What an interesting gathering that must have been.

Application – (Write how you will be different today because of what you have just read.) I would love to have dinner at Matthew’s house with his friends. I would welcome the opportunity to talk about spiritual things with non-church people. How can I make that happen? What “Matthews” do I overlook each day? I’ll keep an eye out today. I’ll look for opportunities to move out of the church setting and meet people where they live.

Prayer – (Write out a brief prayer.) Lord, first of all, is this what you want me to do? I’ve had a sense of this call for a long time, now. I’ve managed to keep myself busy with other things so I’ve never really explored it. Please show me your open door today. How might I serve you as witness today?