FOLLOW ME

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

As 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.

Matthew 9:9

Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to Him, and He began to teach them. As He walked along, He saw Levi, son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow Me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed Him.

Mark 2:13-14

After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow Me,” Jesus said to Him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed Him.

Luke 5:27-28

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The first disciples Jesus formally called were a group of fishermen, two sets of brothers: Simon Peter and Andrew, and James and John. They were a hard working group who trolled the Sea of Galilee to ply their trade and make a legitimate living.

It’s been five devotions now since that first time Jesus asked men to follow Him to become fishers of men (Matthew 4:19) but as we see today, Jesus is back at identifying the twelve faithful men who would be with Him wherever He went in His ministry. The only difference with this incident and the one prior is the nature of the person being summoned, a person who wasn’t exactly viewed in a positive way by the Jews. More to follow on that after we read today’s scriptures from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke again:

As 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.  Matthew 9:9

Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to Him, and He began to teach them. As He walked along, He saw Levi, son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow Me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed Him.  Mark 2:13-14

After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow Me,” Jesus said to Him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed Him.  Luke 5:27-28

After Jesus had taught a large crowd “beside the lake”, we read that He went for a walk and came upon a tax booth, manned by a collector who bore two names: Matthew and Levi. Mark’s account adds that this tax collector was the son of Alphaeus.

Before we get to what Jesus did, we have to take a moment to talk about the role of the tax collector in Jewish society. At the time of Jesus, the nation of Israel was under Roman rule and authority and the leader of the Romans at the time was Caesar. Caesar had imposed taxation on the Israelites and the Romans recruited Jewish agents to collect for them. Matthew/Levi was one such agent.

This part of the reason why these tax collectors were so loathed by the Jewish people, because they were seen as working against their fellow countrymen while aiding and abetting the oppressors of Israel. The other thing that got the Israelites riled up against the tax collectors is that they weren’t very regulated and so often the tax collectors would levy charges over what the Romans expected and then pocketed the difference. In essence, these unethical tax collectors displayed a willingness to steal from their very own to turn a profit for themselves.

Given all this, let’s now go back to Jesus encountering the tax collector named Matthew and Levi.

No one would have expected that Jesus would see anything of redeeming value in the tax collector community but as we have seen, Jesus was in the business of defying expectations. For we find Him confronting the tax collector with a simple two word command:

 “Follow Me.”

We don’t get a sense that Matthew/Levi took a lot of time deciding what to do. This is because God’s word tells us he “got up, left everything, and followed Him.”

That was it.

Jesus said, “Follow Me” and Matthew/Levi did just that.

There was no hesitation. No need for a display like when Jesus miraculously filled the nets of the fishermen at the Sea of Galilee.

Matthew/Levi partnered with Jesus because he wanted to.

Today, Jesus is still calling people to follow Him and He will not be satisfied until every person on earth sides with Him for the cause of spreading the good news of the Gospel and helping people find their way to salvation through Him.

Given that He is calling everybody, have you been delaying your decision to answer Jesus’ call?

If so, perhaps you will be inspired by the actions of Matthew/Levi as well as the four disciples he joined company with, actions that showed no delay is responding to what Jesus commanded.

The bottom line is that you, I, and every other person are being called to partner with the Savior of the world to further His kingdom here on earth. It’s an invitation and offer we should all graciously and gratefully accept.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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