Listening for Jesus

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”

On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice’. For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:9-12

Jesus came to the known corrupt, cheater, tax collector Matthew. Jesus came to the religiously immaculate-on-the- outside, self-righteous Pharisees. Jesus comes to us. We are all Matthew and we are all the pharisees. Every family has its own sins that make us feel like God would not want to have anything to do with us. But Jesus comes to us today, through his words and by his Spirit to heal us of our eternally fatal disease: our own sin. He paid the price of hell we deserve and gives us life forever with him.

His mercy changes us like it changed Matthew. Matthew was so thankful that God would want him to follow him that he immediately left his easy money way of life. We are free, right now in Jesus. No matter what our circumstances, we are receivers of the undeserved forgiving love of God himself!

A Daily Prayer:
O Jesus, Give us thankful, humble hearts in front of you. We pray that your mercy for us overflows in our words and actions toward those in our life. Help us trust that you forgive every one of our sins. You make every day an event in our life. Amen.