Jesus called ordinary people, who were doing ordinary jobs. In Matthew’s case, because he was a tax collector, he was not allowed into the temple to worship God. His job automatically excluded him from being part of the worshipping community. Yet Jesus comes straight to him, to invite him to follow. Obviously, the categories of who was in and who was out of God’s kingdom did not bother Jesus.
We don’t have to be worthy. We don’t have to have our lives all organized, successful, and sin-free in order to be Christian. Jesus sees something in each one of us that we can’t yet see, and he says, ‘Follow me. Let me work with you to bring out who you truly are.’ We are allowed to say ‘No.’ In fact our lives are often this back-and-forth dance (or tug of war). Two steps forward, three steps back is quite normal, and means God’s deeper plans for us are still working out, even when it doesn’t feel that way.
Paradoxically, straight after Jesus calls Matthew to follow him, it is Jesus who follows Matthew to a big celebratory meal, where Matthew has invited all his friends and acquaintances, who are also cut off from entering God’s presence in formal worship. I love it that Jesus was not put off by this, and happily accepted this hospitality.
When the godly people are shocked at this and complain to Jesus, he told them, ‘If you are a doctor, you work with people who are ill.’ Then he came straight back at them, challenging them, quoting from an Old Testament prophet, ‘Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’.’
There is the crunch. We learn to acknowledge our own issues, and that we are forgiven. We learn to deal with others the same way God has dealt with us. It’s a lifelong calling. Let Jesus see into you with compassion and deep love, and then call out of you responses that fit with that.
