Monday, September 19, 2016

9/21/2016 – Matthew the Apostle - Wednesday – Matthew 9:9-13

       Matthew was a Jew who worked for the occupying Roman government in Jerusalem, collecting taxes from his fellow Jews.  The Romans were most concerned about getting their taxes collected, very commonly turning a blind eye to any additional bribes or fees that the taxes collectors forced the people to pay, money that the tax collectors kept for themselves.  The tax collectors were viewed as traitors by their countrymen, so you can imagine how shocking it would have been for the people to see Jesus call Matthew, a tax collector, to be one of his beloved disciples in his inner circle. 
       God calls us to be his disciple in the reality of our lives, in the midst of our personalities, in the midst of our human strengths & weaknesses.  God's grace can work wonders in our lives as we repent and turn away from those things that keep us from God.  Jesus tells us that he specifically came to call sinners to repentance and to have them come to him.  Matthew answers Jesus' call without hesitation.  The Gospel tells us that Matthew got up from his custom post and followed him immediately.  What is Jesus calling us to leave behind in our own lives?  What do we need to do in order to answer the call of repentance and conversion?  
      We know that Matthew and the other apostles made many sacrifices to pass down the faith us.  Tradition has it that Matthew was martyred while on a missionary trip to Ethiopia.  As we celebrate the faith of the apostles today, may we turn away from the sins & the obstacles in our own lives that are keeping us from a deeper relationship with the Lord.

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