Title: The Choice of Jesus
Brothers and sisters, why did Jesus reject the scribe and choose Matthew? Think about it. Our answer to this question will reveal our thoughts on the ministry of the church.
First, look at verse 13 in today's text. “Go ye and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew held a great feast for Jesus (Luke 5:29). Matthew invited many of his friends, tax collectors and sinners. It was when Jesus sat down with them and ate good food. Then came the friends who broke the fun atmosphere. Who are you? These are the Pharisees. Matthew probably didn't invite him. After all, uninvited people came and argued with the disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus said to them, "Go and learn what this means, I want mercy, and not sacrifice." It's about learning what Jesus is doing and wants. But the Pharisees did not understand the heart of Jesus. Today's protagonist, Matthew, must have understood these words. But like the Pharisees, the scribe would not have understood.
In Matthew 12:7, Jesus said again, “If you had known what he meant, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the innocent as sin”. He said, “If you had known,” he felt sorry for their ignorance. I think it is very important that Jesus wants to know the Pharisees. If he wanted them to know, then of course the Lord wants us to know too. We need to know the meaning of Jesus' words. do you know I hope you know clearly.
Brothers and sisters, let's go back to the first question. Why did the Lord reject the scribe and choose the tax collector Matthew? We do not see a clear reason why the Lord did not choose a scribe. But we only know that the eyes of the Lord search the heart. Jesus reveals one thing about this scribe when he said that there was no place to be called a home or a place of worldly comfort. It shows that the scribe's heart to follow the Lord was probably in his possessions and powers rather than trusting and obeying the Lord completely.
Although the scribe had a lot of knowledge of the Bible, although he received a lot of training from the Bible, it seems that he thought that he was not able to learn the mercy Jesus wanted. Like many experiences in life, God's work can only be realized when experienced. The word of the Bible is not an object of intellectual analysis, but the word of God to be obeyed among us. At that time, the word will appear as a word of power to change our lives.
Then why did Jesus call the tax collector Matthew? Matthew the tax collector was a person who could learn the mercy Jesus wanted. He was someone who knew and understood Jesus. I understood the message of Jesus. The tax collector Matthew experienced and understood the mercy of Jesus. I hope you will learn clearly what kind of mercy Jesus wants through Matthew the tax collector. I think that knowing this and obeying is the distinction between believers and unbelievers. Understanding and practicing this can be the touchstone that can determine whether you can be called and used by the Lord or not. So knowing this is very important to us. It is also very important to our church.
Who was Matthew before he met Jesus? He was a tax collector. Matthew was a publican in Galilee under Herod. Today, tax officials are popular, but you were like a pro-Japanese group during the Japanese colonial period. He collected a lot of taxes, gave some, and the rest was his own system. It was a job that made more money the more I walked. He was the object of hatred and condemnation. Who would do this for what? They were sinners who sold their people, friends, and souls for money. So they lived together. They could not attend the synagogue because they were rejected by society, and they did not care about spiritual matters and lived only for money.
This tax collector Matthew met Jesus. I have been called by the Lord. In Luke 5:28, the tax collector Matthew “leaved everything” and followed Jesus. And it is the fact that we are hosting a joyful feast by inviting the Lord. It is a fact that the tax collector Matthew experienced a change.
Matthew records sins as debts in the Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6. Although it is translated as sin in the Bible in our language, it is originally, “Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive those who owe us.” Previously, Matthew, as a publican, would never have forgiven his debtors. I couldn't have forgiven him. You would have been thoroughly taken into account for the money you would receive. They would have collected taxes without any acknowledgment. But he learned that he owed a huge debt to God. I found out that he had a debt of love and obedience that he could not repay, no matter what. How can you pay off such a debt? Matthew knew that he was forgiven simply because of God's mercy.
Jesus called the tax collector Matthew. He made him one of the 12 disciples. How would the other disciples react? Matthew is from Capernaum. Peter, Andrew, John, and James are from the same hometown. Matthew was their publican. Between them there must have been issues of confessing sins and giving and receiving forgiveness. Especially between Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot, there must have been issues that needed to be repented of. Matthew was forgiven of his debts to them. Because the disciples had mercy forgiven their debt to God, they also forgave Matthew the tax collector with mercy.
Jesus wanted the Pharisees to learn this mercy. The disciples learned this and put it into practice. “Those who are healthy have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.” Jesus made the point. “I am a doctor. Where will you find a doctor, but among the sick?” Jesus never turned away from people with a broken heart. Neither would we.
Because Jesus always had compassion for people, He ate with sinners. Jesus quoted Hosea 6:6 from verse 13. “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” Compassion means to have pity. It means unchanging love that is sincere and constant. It has the meaning of a relationship of love between people belonging to the same place. This is one of the attributes of God. This leads to spiritual fellowship, salvation, enlightenment, guidance, forgiveness, hope, praise and protection. God sits on the throne of mercy. Compassion is one of the prerequisites for those who want to save sinful humans. Even Jesus had compassion. Being compassionate was the nature of Jesus. We should do the same. Jesus did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, so he ate with sinners.
Dear saints, the Lord wants us to learn this kind of mercy from the Lord. Saints, will you stand on the side of the Pharisees? Would you stand with disciples like Matthew? If God has forgiven all our sins, can we refuse to forgive others? It is impossible to receive God's mercy and not show mercy.
Therefore, the Lord wants us to learn this kind of compassion. He wants you to not only know with your head, but to practice like the Lord and like the disciples. It is a fact that God's unconditional love, acceptance, and forgiveness are the primary teachings of our church. Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose again to become our eternal living hope. This is the gospel. If we do not preach this “gospel, woe to me” (1 Corinthians 9:16). The result of true spiritual revival is repentance and reconciliation. We will know that someone has restored a right relationship with God through a reconciled relationship with the brethren.
We cannot ourselves be bad news as we witness the good news. We must love one another, accept one another, and forgive one another just as God has loved, accepted, and forgave us. We are living the life of witnesses of the risen Christ. Our ministry is to “reconcile” one another (2 Corinthians 5:18).
Dear saints, God can completely sanctify His children. It is not our power to make our own decisions. God is the only one who can rebuke our sins. He alone can deliver us from our sins and set us free. Our talents or learning cannot make His work possible. What God wants of us is a broken spirit. He begins to work only through our weaknesses. “It is not by force, not by power, says the Lord of hosts, but by my spirit” (Zechariah 4:6). I hope you will have pity on them and pray for them.