At least that's what we think. We don't know a ton about him but we know two things. He was a tax collector. His job was to get taxes for the Roman government from his fellow Jews. We also know that Jesus chose him to be a disciple, so it's likely he wasn't a corrupt tax collector. It's likely he was a really good guy, but still doing a job no one really wanted him to do.
But here's where I got stuck. Matthew is a tax collector. His job is to get money from his friends for a government they all hate. And there's no wiggle room. If his neighbor owes money Matthew has to get it. How do you think he felt having to do that to his friends?
Then Jesus walks up. Leave it all and be My disciple. Help Me free people from the bondage of sin and be forgiven.
Here's what hit me: How do you think Matthew felt going from the person who was forced to collect debts to being able to forgive them? How much did it weigh on Matthew to have to get money from people even when they couldn't afford it, hurting them in the process? Then how did it feel to completely reverse direction, to now talk about spiritual debts but instead of forcing people to pay, instead telling them how Jesus can forgive them?
Imagine the weight that was lifted. How awesome that must have been.
And we can still do that for people today...
T
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