Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. (1 John 4:8)
Prop: Envelope…junk mail marked IMPORTANT
You know those envelopes you get in the mail sometimes marked IMPORTANT! Here is one of them. You scramble to open it, thinking it’s a check or some important document that you need . . . only to find that it’s an ad to buy life insurance or something you don’t need! Yikes! Fooled again.
Living in our culture is a lot like that. Signs are everywhere telling you that THIS message is IMPORTANT! And you need to pay attention. Everywhere, we are distracted by IMPORTANT messages. It’s so easy to get distracted from what is TRULY IMPORTANT. And what is that, you ask?
JESUS.
As followers of Jesus, we need to know that if something in life doesn’t point to Jesus, it’s NOT that important! We do the same thing in our churches sometimes. We have all kinds of things we think are SO important, don’t we?
We think the way we set up our sanctuary is important. We think quiet is important sometimes, don’t we? Sometimes, we think quiet is so important that we chase our children out because they aren’t quiet enough. And we wonder why they don’t come back!
You KNOW our meetings are important! We think our money is important! Yes indeed we do! And we LOVE our buildings, don’t we? They are SO important, we will do anything to preserve them. We also think the roles we play and the positions we hold are SO important sometimes that no one else in the whole church could do what we do. But… the real problem is when we think our EGOS and our OPINIONS are the MOST important of all and more important than anyone else’s!
But listen….our things, our habits, our opinions, our buildings…God doesn’t care about those things. God doesn’t care one fiddle about the pattern or the color or even the cleanliness of your rug. God cares about the substance and the clarity of your heart!
I know a pastor who purposely spilled coffee on a brand new rug, just so that that rug would not get “that important!” That’s a different kind of “christening”---a carpet christened with coffee. The rug is there to facilitate worship and relationships. The rug is not what’s important. What’s IMPORTANT in life is relationships, and relationships are messy and have spillages. The Baptists kid those who haven’t been immersed as their “unwashed brethren” and “sistren.” We have too many unwashed carpets, carpets that been led to believe that the whole ministry of the church exists to keep them unwashed and clean. No, carpets exists to be in ministry too . . and the ultimate ministry of the church is to bring people into a relationship with Christ, with each other, with themselves, and with creation.
When we start to major in minors, when we get caught up in routines and habits and “this the way we always do it,” then what happens is that the circle of those who “know how it’s done” gets smaller and smaller until “those who don’t” have no place at the table. And lo and behold, your church has become a religious “club” and not a kingdom community.
As we see in the scripture today, God’s kingdom is a banquet! Jesus portrays God’s gift to us as a huge wedding banquet spread with the best food and the most sumptuous wine, with abundance for all, and a place at the table for every single person no matter how much they don’t know about “how things are done just so.”
Every pastor can tell the story of a couple who wanted to get married in the church. When counseled, the question of whether they had been attending another church always comes up. One wonders why they want to get married in yours. And the response is always the same. They looked horrified. “No,” they say. “We tried a couple of times to go to a church or two. But every time we did, we felt out of place, like we didn’t know the ‘rules.’ And we were sure no one would welcome us when they found out we were living together before we got married. Everyone made it clear to us, in one way or another, ‘You don’t belong here.’”
Jesus tells us in the scripture today, in my paraphrase, “Perfect people don’t need to be healed. Those who have fallen apart are the ones who need someone to make them whole again.” Of course, the trick to Jesus’ statement is that, as Paul tells the church in Rome in his day, “we all sin and fall short of the glory of God!”
In the Jewish tradition, every synagogue used to have a “Porush.” A Porush was a lay person who separated himself from all worldly concerns to focus on holy studies. He would sleep on a pew in the synagogue, and live on bread and water. He would study all day, moving to the windows as the day grew darker so that he could study longer. When the synagogue got dark, he would sleep, then wake up at the crack of dawn to start studying all over again. On Sabbath, he would return home to his wife and family, but when Sabbath was over, he would return to the synagogue. You can read more about the “Porush” if you want. Herman Wouk dedicated an entire chapter (6) to “The Porush” in his novel “Inside, Outside” (1985).
Porush is a Hebrew word meaning dedicated, separated, but in the NT it transliterates as “Pharisee.” The Pharisees were those who majored in minors, specialized in rules and regulations and failed in relationships. Jesus may have started out as a “Porush,” but he saw the dangers and was harder on them than on anyone else, even prostitutes and thieves. The idea is not to make things important. But to make Jesus important. Because in our sin and in our shame and in our falling down and frail start-ups, still, God makes US important! God makes us ALL important, so important that God sent Jesus to US.
YOU are SO important to Jesus! So important that God came all the way down to you and to me so that God could show us the way to get home again. Jesus is the GPS for your life with God. Jesus came all the way from heaven to earth for you. That’s the impertinence of your importance.
We are all lost. Some of us just don’t know it yet. The ones who look the most sure of themselves are sometimes the ones who are the most lost. But Jesus came for lost people. That’s the impertinence of your importance.
Remember at school those who were always picked last for kickball? Every school had one of those poor kids, who just seemed to be bad at every sport. Kickball was the toughest. All the kids would line up and form sides. Then the captain of each team would choose from the lot until only one or two were left. And the teams were forced to take one of them. No one wanted to be that kid who was picked last.
Imagine the good news that “last kid” had when one day, he stood in that line and lo and behold, was picked first!
That’s what it’s like to be part of God’s kingdom. You who are down and out, you who don’t know how to manage life very well, you who have messed up, you who have done things you regret –your time has come. Jesus is looking at YOU. That’s the impertinence of your importance.
God chooses YOU. YOU are important to God. And all God wants is to be important …to you. Talk about impertinence.
Choose this day whom you will serve. Life is a matter of Choice and Consequences. God chooses you. Will you choose God? God has chosen you for such a time as this. Will you choose the time God has given you? Will you allow yourself and your impertinence to be IMPORTANT?
Walter Edward Fauntroy is the former pastor of the New Bethel Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., and a civil rights activist. He was a favorite son candidate for president in the 70s, and served as a delegate to Congress for the District of Columbia. When he was in congress, he gave a speech at Howard University that ended in these words:
The past is yours, learn from it. The present is yours, fulfill it. The future is yours, preserve it. Knowledge is yours, use it. Cancer is yours, cure it. Racism is yours, end it… Do not be blinded by prejudice, disheartened by the times, or discouraged by the system. . . Do not let anything paralyze your mind, tie your hands, or defeat your spirit. Take the world not to dominate it, but to deliver it; not to exploit it, but to enrich it. Take the dream and . . . inherit the earth.”
Embrace the impertinence of your importance. And dream a new dream for our neighborhood [name your zip code] and a new dream for your world.
*Photo of US Immigration office taken from “Thousand Island Life” an article by James Rappaport, posted May 13, 2009. http://www.thousandislandslife.com/BackIssues/Archive/tabid/393/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/229/Border-Crossings.aspx
Based on the Story Lectionary
Major Text
Matthew’s Story of His Calling by Jesus (9:9-13)
Mark’s Story of Matthew’s Calling by Jesus (2:13-17)
Luke’ Story of Matthew’s Calling by Jesus (5:27-32)
Minor Text
Exodus: The First Covenant Given to Moses (34)
Numbers: The Story of the Bronze Serpent (21)
Hosea: The Scripture Jesus references as a warning to the Pharisees and Scribes about the Priestly Function and Sacrificial Tradition in Jerusalem (6)
Isaiah 56: God’s grace is for all those who are faithful
Psalm 41: God’s grace toward those who sin
Psalm 103: The Lord’s compassion
Psalm 116: The Lord is gracious
Psalm 147: The Lord gathers the outcasts of Israel
The Letter to the Hebrews (most likely written by Paul): On the New Covenant (8)
The First Letter of John (most likely written by John the Apostle): On Knowing and Loving God and Others
Matthew’s Witness to his Calling by Jesus
As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. And as he [reclined] in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples.
When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
When he heard this, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.”
Mark’s Witness to Matthew’s (Levi’s) Calling by Jesus
Jesus went out again beside the sea; the whole crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. As he was walking along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him.
And as he sat at dinner in Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples –for there were many who followed him.
When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, they said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
When Jesus heard this, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.”
Luke’s Witness to Matthew’s (Levi’s) Calling by Jesus
After this [the healing of the paralytic in Jesus’ house], he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up, left everything, and followed him.
Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house; and there was a large crowd of tax collectors, and others sitting at the table with them.
The Pharisees and their scribes were complaining to his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
Jesus answered, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance.”
Note: The Pharisees and scribes then questioned Jesus there while he celebrated as the guest of honor with the tax collectors and others at the banquet, why he and his disciples didn’t fast as John’s disciples do. And Jesus answers as the “bridegroom.” When the bridegroom is present, you celebrate. You may choose to add this section to your scripture reading, as it is part of the larger story.
Image Exegesis: A Taxing Encounter
“I desire devotion and love, not sacrifice.” --Hosea 6
The call of Matthew appears in three of the four gospels in nearly identical fashion. Not every disciple has a “call story” in the scriptures. Only a few. And they are recorded for specific reasons. They contain “signs” and “messages” for us about who Jesus is, the nature of his mission, and to illustrate how his “way” differs from the norm of the day. This particular call story also contains a “warning” to those who would value “rules” over relationship and devotion to God (and Jesus), and a “joyful proclamation” to those who fall outside of the cultural norm but who love God and follow Jesus.
In this story, the “outsiders” who become “insiders” are tax collectors and other assorted “sinners” or those who don’t follow the regulations to the letter of the law that are prescribed by the Pharisees and Scribes –the respected authorities on such matters.
To glean the setting of the story, it’s helpful to read all three gospels. In Matthew (the story of his own calling and the only gospel to use the name Matthew specifically), we find Jesus walking along in Capernaum. He has just healed the paralytic at his home, and then leaves with his disciples to walk through town. Mark tells us specifically that he was walking along the sea near the harbor there. Mark tells us that a crowd of people was following him, as was the norm, and he paused to teach them there near the sea. Then he continued walking along the shore near the docks and came upon the toll booth. This toll booth would have been the customs tax booth, which collected the percentage of tax on all imports into Capernaum, and on all fish caught in the fishing industry. The percentage tax went to Rome.
The man sitting in the tax booth was Matthew, Levi, or Levi son of Alphaeus according to whichever scripture you read. The name Matthew (a Greek name) means “Gift of Yahweh.” Many people in those days went by several names. Often a Jewish man would have both a Hebrew and a Greek name. The lingua franca in Jesus’ time was Greek. But the Jews also knew Hebrew. Jesus additionally spoke Aramaic, the dialect in the area. We can also assume, he probably knew Latin (the language of the Romans), Syrophoenician, Persian, and probably several other languages at least to some extent. Living near the seaport would mean he lived in the center of trade, a multi-cultural hub. It is interesting that Jesus for example gave or used Simon Peter’s (Cephas) a Greek or Aramaic name, rather than his Hebrew name. He apparently used Matthew as preferable to Levi. Saul became Paul. The changes emphasize the men’s multi-cultural identity. Some sources believe that Levi is the brother of James son of Alphaeus. We can’t be sure. But both James and Levi are listed as sons of Alphaeus in the scriptures.
This is all interesting, but the true stunner of the scriptures is that Matthew (or Levi) is a tax collector –a customs official. Did he pay attention when Jesus was teaching by the shore? Did Jesus pick him out of a crowd watching him in Capernaum? Did he see him outside of the Synagogue? We don’t know. But we do know that Jesus walked up to the tax booth and called Matthew to follow him. And Matthew left his job, quit presumably, and became a disciple of Jesus.
Matthew, a Jewish man, would constitute as a “lost sheep of Israel” by means of his occupation. He was an outcast, known as a crook, and just plain distasteful in others’ eyes. Those Jewish men who nuzzled up to the Romans were never well-liked.
Interesting is that we learn in Mark that many tax collectors followed Jesus. Matthew is not the only follower or disciple from this group. He is the one used to tell the story! And he becomes one of the apostles that Jesus chooses to be in his inner circle of 12. But apparently, Jesus had many, many more followers. And quite a few were tax collectors.
It’s not that amazing then that Matthew throws a grand banquet for their master at his home. Jesus is the guest of honor. He is the toast of all of his tax collector followers….and other assorted “sinners” who were in attendance, most likely also many of them Jesus followers.
Jesus wasn’t consorting only with strangers. He was among those who were following him. But they weren’t the sort that the other Pharisees and Scribes thought to be respectable disciples of such a great rabbi. They were annoyed and confused. Why was Jesus doing this?
Jesus wasn’t attacked for calling one tax collector. But he had LOTS of them following him! He had a regular rag-tag band of outcasts that he was educating and consorting with. They may not have all been inner circle disciples, but they were following him, and he was teaching them.
And so this honorary banquet at which Jesus is the honored guest quickly becomes quite a taxing affair! The Pharisees and Scribes pull some of Jesus’ disciples aside and begin to question them as to why he is hanging with these guys.
And Jesus, overhearing, takes the opportunity for a teachable moment –to issue a warning, a proclamation, and to give a great metaphor! Jesus tells them, naming himself as a “physician” that he needs not call those who are well, but those who are sick. The word for well is “hygiain” --healthy or sound (meaning in sound relationship with God!) Those who are already whole and reconciled to God, each other, themselves, and creation (note Genesis 2). The word used for sick is “kakos” –loathsome, bad, evil, troublesome, worthless (innerly). Jesus is a “physician” of the soul. He makes whole and restores those who have fallen away.
But when they question Jesus, they aren’t just asking why he is hanging with these people. But why he is in fact eating and drinking with them all! Jesus is a regular rabble rouser! He’s celebrating, drinking, making merry, laughing, having a great time. It’s a feast! And he’s not observing any kind of fasting or respectable “Pharisee-like behavior.” And Jesus tells them, “when the bridegroom is at the wedding, you don’t fast!”
So the metaphor of “fasting” is set up against “feasting” here in this story just as the metaphors of kakos and hygiain. Those in good relationship with God eat at the Lord’s Table. It’s a time of feasting and celebration in the Day of the Lord. The Bridegroom (Jesus) has arrived! The time of famine and fasting is a consistent warning throughout the Hebrew scriptures. Disobedience results in famine, lack of rain, poor crops. Abundance comes from the Lord! Jesus explains that this abundance is not just a result of following lots of empty rules and coming from the right lineage. But the Hebrew lineage is full of those who have erred and those who are not from a pure bloodline. Those who bear the covenant of the Lord are those who are faithful and devoted to God in all things. “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings,” says the prophet Hosea (6:6).
Jesus often quotes from the prophets as well as the Torah when addressing the Pharisees and Scribes, as this is the language of debate among rabbis and the educated. The prophet Hosea is an interesting choice in this story, since he issues a strong warning, and yet promises restoration to those who come to the Lord. The name Hosea means salvation. Jesus is telling them that the time of salvation is here. In the story of the prophet Hosea, the prophet marries Gomer, a prostitute. Even though she sleeps with another man, he seeks her out and forgives and loves her and restores her. The prophecy is a metaphor for Israel’s disobedience (the bride) to the bridegroom and God’s unfailing love and grace in calling God’s people back to him. The lost sheep of Israel are all those who have fallen away. Now is the time that God will bring them all home. It’s a time of celebration and restoration. And Jesus –is the Bridegroom.
As always, Jesus mixes his present circumstances with scripture and metaphor in a way that reveals himself as the messiah, the Son of God, and with the authority to warn those who do not wish to be “invited to the wedding!” Jesus has come. It’s not a time for fasting. It’s a time for joy and praise! Salvation has come!
At the same time, the warning to the establishment is clear. God does not desire sacrifices of animals, but devotion of the heart! Those who eat with Jesus are sinners who violate Torah regulations! And yet, Jesus is calling them to himself, making Matthew a disciple, a true “gift” of Yahweh!
Interesting is that Jesus has set up home in the location of the former northern kingdom. It was these people from the kingdom of Israel that Hosea issued a warning and a promise to. Now Jesus is the promise come down, and his call is God’s call.
The metaphor of the banquet is also our promise. In the words of Isaiah, “No one living in Zion will say, ‘I am ill,’ and the sins of those who dwell there will be forgiven.” Both the healing of the paralytic and the following call of Matthew realize this prophecy. Ancient Jewish rabbis taught that “in the age to come all sacrifices will cease, except the ‘todah,’” the sacrifice of thanksgiving. Jesus calls only for the sacrifice of thanksgiving. His sacrifice will obliterate all others.
The metaphor of taxes is a wonderful one too. A tax is a portion of one’s goods given up to the authorities (the Romans in this case). In Jesus’ day, there was a tax on goods transported into the region of Herod Antipas. Rome had three taxes, a land tax, a head tax, and a 2-5% tax on all imports. Tax collectors were wealthy, often adding onto the required taxes. The customs officials would have their booth located near a port, where fishermen would import and export fish. Matthew (Levi) would have collected taxes on the other disciples’ fishing wages. They couldn’t have been thrilled with Jesus’ new choice of disciple for their inner circle. The addition of Matthew himself was a “teaching moment.”
But the taxes they collected for Rome wasn’t too much different a “trade” than the “Temple taxes” collected from all Jewish people required for admission to the Temple on high holy days in order to make a sin offering. To have your family’s sins relieved for the year, you would need to make sure to pay your temple tax. Or you would be shamed.
Jesus turns the secular “tax collectors” back to God. And issues a warning to the Pharisees regarding “sacrifices” –the words again of Hosea. Jesus, the physician has come, so that God can circumcise their hearts.
The metaphor of the tax booth is likewise a transition from “entrapment” and “bondage” --not only to Rome but a separation from God—to freedom in Jesus. The act of Matthew leaving his booth and following Jesus is a breaking free of tradition, his past, and his constraints that would label him an outsider, and a welcoming of him to God’s table.
The table is a master metaphor in this story. Around the table is where God has a place for all of God’s children.