Imagine you’re sitting in your favorite Starbucks enjoying your morning café macchiato with friends when you notice a man sitting across from you. He’s alone. As people walk by, they sneer at him. Clearly, this man is disliked by all who know him.

His name is Matthew.

Matthew has plenty of money and power. But the money and power came at a high cost. Because of his job, his family disowned him, and he was kicked out of his church.

But it wasn’t always that way.

Matthew’s parents were upstanding well-respected members of the community. They took good care of him growing up. They provided the best private education. He grew up attending church every week.

Things changed as Matthew grew older. He drifted away from his church upbringing and his parents. He wanted money and power. He got the money and power but gave up his relationship with his family and church community that loved him.

Now, his only friends are people in the same line of work.

He feels trapped. He would like to have his relationship with his family and community restored, but he doesn’t know where to begin.

Matthew needs someone to reach out and share God’s love. He needs to know that he has value in God’s eyes. He needs to know God sees him as His precious son.

This imaginary Matthew is not unlike the Matthew of the Bible.

Dejected and Rejected Matthew

The Matthew we know from the Bible was the son of a Levite. Levites were set apart by God to be priests and to handle the holy things in the temple. Talk about a calling!

Levites were not given tribal lands like all the other tribes of Israel. They survived on the tithes and offerings of the other tribes.

Young Matthew grew up in the synagogue. He enjoyed the best education available having been schooled in the scriptures and rabbinical traditions.

But apparently living off the offerings of others was not enough for young Matthew. Instead, he became a tax collector for the Roman government. He was considered a traitor by his fellow Jews because he was working for the Romans who were occupying their land.

Worse, he made his living by extorting more money in taxes than he was required to turn over to the Romans. So, in addition to being viewed as a traitor, he made himself rich by extorting from his neighbors.

Since Matthew lived in Capernaum by the sea of Galilee, he probably collected taxes from Zebedee and his sons James and John. He probably also collected taxes from Andrew and Peter.

It’s hard to imagine anyone being more despised in that culture than Matthew, the tax collector. His family had disowned him. He was kicked out of the synagogue. His only friends were other tax collectors and sinners.

Yet, Jesus befriended Matthew.

Jesus Called Matthew

Matthew had probably heard about Jesus since Jesus traveled through Capernaum preaching. Perhaps Matthew had even heard Jesus preach.

So, imagine Matthew’s surprise when one day, Jesus stopped by his tax collection office and simply said, “follow me” (Matthew 9:1).

What did Matthew do? Why he turned over the office keys to the assistant tax collector and walked out the door following Jesus. Jesus and Matthew went to Matthew’s house that night and had a big dinner party where the guests included other tax collectors, sinners, and Jesus’ other disciples.

Matthew never looked back. He just needed Jesus in his life.

Matthews and Marthas Among Us

Leaders, dejected and rejected Matthews and Marthas are all around us. They may be across the table with you at lunch. They may be in the next cubicle. They are people who have chased the world’s dream and discovered too late the dream was hollow. They all need someone to share God’s love and the message of the Good News with them. They just need Jesus.

If not you, who? If not now, when?

Join the Conversation

As always, questions and comments are welcome. Do you identify with the story of modern-day Matthew? Are there dejected and rejected people you know who have chased the world’s dream who just needs to be told about Jesus?

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Category: Relationships | Healthy Alliances