A few years ago a fellow took me on a tour of his sock manufacturing plant. He showed me the loading dock where raw materials were unloaded, the washing machines, fluffers, twisters, looms, finishers, and packagers. In all, I found out there were over 150 different steps taken to manufacture one pair of socks! Well, that set me to thinking about the church and the making of disciples. How many steps are there from conversion to discipleship? Let's look and see.
The text reports an incident near the beginning of Christ's ministry. It happened at Matthew's place of business. Jesus called him to follow. The text says that Matthew got up and followed him and that Jesus then had dinner at Matthew's house. The Pharisees chastised Jesus because he was eating "with tax collectors and sinners." Cl…