Matthew 9:9-13…“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.” vs. 9
There is a painting in the Contarelli Chapel in Rome by the Italian master, Caravaggio, called “The Calling of St Matthew.” It shows Jesus, having entered a room, standing and pointing with an outstretched arm at one of five shadowy figures sitting at a table counting money. The man, startled, his face lit by a shaft of light, is staring back at Jesus with his finger pointed at himself, as if to ask the question, “Me?”
It’s a powerful portrayal of that moment when Jesus broke every standard of Jewish pietistic behavior by choosing one labelled as unclean to be one of his closest disciples. And the outrage didn’t end there. The immediate consequence of the call occurred when a whole crowd of tax- collectors and sinners then joined Jesus for dinner, presumably at Matthew’s house. All of the religious people in town were outraged.
That kind of hypocrisy continues to haunt those who walk in the way of Jesus. Religious people are watching our associations carefully, and if we hang out with those labelled as being unclean we could be called out as being a “friend of sinners.” Of course those who are serious about their call to be a disciple will consider such charges as being a badge of honor. That’s exactly what was said about Jesus and is a reminder that he loved those whom his culture despised.
Thought for the Day: Who are the “unclean” of our day?
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