Jesus called ordinary men who were imperfect with different backgrounds to become world leaders and world changers. They became the foundation of the Christian church and have marked history accordingly. This should encourage each one of us that, when called by God, we can do and be more than we ever hoped or imagined in our lives.
One of these ordinary men was Matthew. He was not someone you may expect to be chosen by Jesus. In fact, he would have possibly been near the bottom of the list, certainly if popularity was one of the criteria. Matthew is also known by his Jewish name, Levi, in both the gospels of Mark and Luke, and was one of the most notorious of the 12 as he was a tax collector or ‘publican’ as they were known.
Not only was Matthew from Galilee - a poor a rural community not known for its education or sophistication - but he was also a tax collector! Tax collectors were regarded as the lowest of the low during the days of the Roman occupation. They were hated and vilified by Jewish society and were often more disliked than the Roman occupiers.
Publicans were men who had bought tax franchises from the Roman Emperor, then extorted money from the people of Israel. They often used force by hiring thugs to physically take money and were considered vile and unprincipled. This was the kind of man Matthew would have been.
Despite all this, Jesus saw how He could use such a man to serve God and His Kingdom and become one of the great leaders who would go on to teach the world of God’s love. Matthew is the author of the Gospel which bears his name, and we might expect therefore to have a lot of detail about him. In fact there is very little written about him. He appears to have become a humble man because he only mentions himself twice in his own writings. He doesn’t self-promote but rather appears in the background despite being one of Jesus’s chosen 12 disciples.
1. He was a man of the world
2. He brought Jesus into his world (Matthew 9:9-10)
3. He changed the world (Matthew 9:11-13; Matthew 6:33)
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1. He was a man of the world. It is evident that Matthew was a man of the world. He was prepared to do whatever it took - including being despised by his own people, even his own family - to get what he wanted. He was probably very wealthy, living a comfortable life with many possessions. His focus was on himself and certainly not God. Selfish, ambitious and proud are all traits you would associate with a person like Matthew. But God is interested in everyone. Everyone is important to God and the gospel is relevant for all, whether we are in business, at home or school, God sees our potential and wants to use us. He wants to use people of influence, but he wants us to have the right focus. Christianity is a lifestyle and covers every area of our lives, not just something to do on a Sunday. God sees the potential for business leaders and wants to take that passion, ambition and the gifts and talents they use for business success, and use it for His business and the Kingdom of God. We are “to be in the world but not of the world”.
2. He brought Jesus into his world. If you have been following this series, you will note a common theme: how the disciples reacted/responded to the call from Jesus. Matthew was sitting at work, Jesus saw him and said, “follow me” (Matthew 9:9). Why would Matthew leave his job, his wealth, his position to obey and step out into the unknown? Although a man of the world, Matthew was also a Jew and would have been raised and educated knowing something of the Messiah and the promise of His coming to save Israel. Mathew was familiar with the Old Testament as he quotes it many times throughout his Gospel, much more that the other 3 gospels combined. He would have been intrigued. Perhaps he had a deep longing for a better life and believed that maybe this man Jesus was the promised Messiah. Perhaps you relate to this spiritual hunger for a more fulfilled life, to know the promised One for yourself. If you do, you can know Him today just as Matthew did by following Jesus immediately. Matthew had encountered Jesus, the Messiah, and was so impacted by this that he then went and told all his friends (Matthew 9:10). Matthew brought everyone he knew to eat with Jesus at his house. He knew the state of his own life and that Jesus could bring the same turnaround to the lives of all his friends who were probably in the same situation. The Bible says “many” tax collectors and sinners came. Do we want to tell all our friends the good news of Jesus and invite them to come and meet with Him? Matthew’s encounter with Jesus changed everything. His character, his old nature, his ways of thinking were gone. Now he wanted to tell everyone. His new world was all about Jesus and he wanted everyone in his old world to know about it, so he invited Jesus into his world. Do we sometimes struggle with this? We can think we “aren’t allowed to talk about God at work” or “don’t want to impose our views on people”. This is a lie from the enemy to cause fear and uncertainty in you. People talk about whatever they like at work including political ideologies and religious views, and we too can and should share our faith and offer to pray for people when they are need. People are trying to push God out of our society, and we need to be like Matthew and bring Jesus into our world.
3. He changed the world. Matthew was one of the great leaders and world changes of his time, and still is today. The Bible is still the best-selling book in the world and his testimony is read and shared over and over. Mathew started with his circle of influence, and it is where we should all start too. Matthew would probably have remained an anonymous person all his life but when he encountered Jesus it changed everything. His life, his personality, outlook and future were completely changed (Matthew 9:11-13). Matthew was listening to Jesus speaking to the religious elite whilst at his house and took it to heart because he knew that he had been one of ‘the sick’ Jesus came to heal. He had a new level of compassion for the people around him and realised there was a great need amongst his people. Matthew went from being self-reliant to becoming completely submitted to Jesus and reliant upon the Holy Spirit once Jesus ascended to heaven. He would have lived by faith rather than fear and ministered to the Jewish people for many years before eventually being martyred for his faith. He was prepared to give up a life of wealth and a lucrative career without hesitation to follow Jesus. So, how can we change the world? Look at all the people we know in every area our lives. What is our circle of influence? You may be the only Gospel, the only good news, these individuals in your circle ever hear. Do not underestimate how important your roll is as a friend, family member, colleague, neighbour or business leader. Matthew is a great example to us in so many ways. If you are in business and your focus is on your work and career, all this is good, but life is more than this. Jesus said ‘come follow me’ and gave Matthew the opportunity for something far bigger than money, possessions or even making friends. Jesus wanted to show him something greater and more significant than he had known or could possibly imagine. He wanted to show him real wealth, real value, real priorities in life. You need to evaluate what are you focusing on, where your time is spent and what is your priority (Matthew 6:33). Bring Jesus into your world at every opportunity. Be the salt and light in your circle of influence and share the good news of what Jesus has done for you and how He can and wants to help everyone. If God can use Matthew, he can use you!
