Matthew 4 – 18 One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew—throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. 19 Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” (Not a cheesy play on words… but a 1st century idiom… follow me and you will become like me! You will become a wise and influential person… An invitation of a lifetime for these “uneducated fishermen – an invitation to walk in and sit in the Dust of the Rabbi!) 20 And they left their nets at once and followed him.
** Not like some of you might follow the Giants… Jesus isn’t inviting us to be his fans… he’s inviting us to put on a uniform and play the game! “Follow”… 79x’s!
4:21 A little farther up the shore he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, repairing their nets. And he called them to come, too. 22 They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind.
John 1 – 43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” (and he and Nathanael began to follow Jesus) NIV
Matthew 9 – 9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.
Not only is following Jesus an invitation to be with Jesus… but it’s an invitation to be with others!
Matthew 9:10 Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. 11 But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum? ” 12 When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” 13 Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: (Hosea 6:6) ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” NLT
Welcome to church! A place for scum… for sinners… for the sick… the broken…
** Denver church – “Scum of the earth”. 2nd favorite: “This ain’t your grandma’s church”
Now… think about this with me… good, simple, law-abiding fishermen… a man of impeccable integrity (Nathanael) a Tax collector… literally on the payroll of Rome… traitors to their country… on the level of prostitutes according the cultural ladder. Usually wealthy and educated, they would buy a post and collect taxes for the Roman government, allowed to collect extra for themselves with the enforcement of the Roman soldiers… Hated by Jews! And add to that, Judas Iscariot… and Simon the Zealot. Zealots were “God and Country” (country being more important than God – MIGA hats…) who were known to carry a dagger and when given the chance would attach and kill a Roman Soldier.
Imagine the conversations in that group…? What did Matthew do when Jesus said render unto to Caesar what is Caesar’s? Did he wink over at Simon…? You couldn’t get two more extreme people on the same squad! Its like Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump working together!
** Now Imagine… a white supremacist skinhead with a swastika tat…. a bi-sexual transgender… A black, Antifa radical… a couple of blue-caller construction workers with MAGA hats…. And throw in a few Google engineers… and an Apple tech guy just to round it off!
That’s what following Jesus looks like! It’s people who have Christ in common… and maybe nothing else!
And let’s not miss the significance of this scene… tax collectors… fishermen… women… both reputable and former prostitutes… dagger carrying zealots… together! Eating meals together!!
Food meant so much more than nourishment! It meant welcome… it meant friendship… it meant community
NT scholar Scott Bartchy says: “It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of table fellowship for the cultures of the Mediterranean basin in the first century of our era. Mealtimes were far more than occasions for individuals to consume nourishment. Being welcomed at a table for the purpose of eating food with another person had become a ceremony richly symbolic of friendship, intimacy and unity. Thus betrayal or unfaithfulness toward anyone with whom one had shared the table was viewed as particularly reprehensible. On the other hand, when persons were estranged, a meal invitation opened the way to reconciliation.”
Luke – 50 references to Jesus and food… Matthew – 94!
NT Scholar Robert Karris – “Jesus is either going to a meal… at a meal… or leaving a meal! He was ate meals so often, he was accused of being a glutton and a drunkard! Another scholar says, “Jesus was crucified because of whom he ate with”.
Your homework class… Eat together!
