Day 6 (2/23)
Day 6
Scripture Reading: Matthew 9:9-13
Written by Adam Grocholski
9 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.
10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Imagine you’re at work, or school, or just going about your daily affairs. You’re focused on whatever task may be at hand, not really paying attention to anything or anyone. Your mind registers a voice, but you’re engrossed in whatever it is you’re doing, so you don’t pay it any heed. You hear the voice again, now it’s directly in front of you and the voice is directed at you. You look up, and the man to whom the voice belongs, a stranger to you, looks into your eyes and says, “Follow me.” How do you respond? Do you simply ignore the man? Why? Do you ask the man to leave you alone? Why? Do you ask the man why you should follow him? Why? Or, do you do what Matthew did – drop whatever it is you’re doing, get up, and follow? Why?
Let’s say you decide to follow the man. The man leads you to a restaurant for lunch. At this restaurant, everybody seems to know who this man is, and they’re proud of it. They don’t even acknowledge you. As you’re sitting at your table, you start to hear the whispers. “Who is that person?” “How did they get in here?” “Why would he eat with them?” “Why isn’t he eating with us instead, isn’t that’s how it’s supposed to be?” How do these whispers make you feel?
The man clears his throat and addresses the restaurant’s patrons, “While I know and love each and every one of you, my purpose is not to coddle you, my purpose is to invite others into our midst that they may know me as well.” How do these words make you feel?
Prayer: Lord, give me the strength and conviction that Matthew had to follow you each and every day in all that I do. Lord, continue to remind me that you are not just the God of Christians but that you are the God of all humanity. Let me invite all to you – that they may know your forgiveness, peace, and love. Amen.