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Weak and Wounded, Sick and Sore: Why Jesus Says Sinners Are Sick, and What That Means for the Gospel and for Us
When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when He heard this, He said, “Those who are well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice. For I didn’t come to…
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Feeding the Hungry in Your Life: How to Become a Place of Encounter with Jesus
As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” So he got up and followed Him. While He was reclining at the table in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came as guests to eat with Jesus and His…
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What God Desires: Understanding the Heart of God in the Life of Jesus
But when He heard this, He said, “Those who are well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. Go and learn what this means: I desire mercy and not sacrifice. For I didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:12-13) It’s curious that when we speak of the “will of God,” we…
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“Go and Learn What This Means,” Part 2: Mercy, Devotion, and the Great Romance
While He was reclining at the table in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came as guests to eat with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when He heard this, He said, “Those who are well don’t need a…
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“Go and Learn What This Means,” Part 1: Roots, Pharisees, and Why the Old Testament Matters
While He was reclining at the table in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came as guests to eat with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when He heard this, He said, “Those who are well don’t need a…
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Jesus at the Table: Why Jesus Ate with Sinners and What It Means for Us
While He was reclining at the table in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came as guests to eat with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (Matthew 9:10-11) For the last several weeks we’ve looked at the…
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Ordinary Radicals: Following Jesus When the Call Is to Stay
As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” So he got up and followed Him. (Matthew 9:9) The last several weeks we’ve been addressing the call of Matthew and all it cost him, but any honest talk of calling…
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The Hardest Choice: The Freedom and Fear of Following Christ
As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” So he got up and followed Him. (Matthew 9:9) I overheard the conversation between two women. The tone was incensed, the content clearly juicy. One woman spoke of her nephew and…
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Responsible to God: Trading Masters with Matthew the Tax-Collector
As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” So he got up and followed Him. (Matthew 9:9) In Matthew 9:9, Matthew — the author of this book we’ve been studying — shares the story of his own call in…
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Trembling on Holy Ground: Jesus, Forgiveness, and the Fear of the Lord
But perceiving their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why are you thinking evil things in your hearts? For which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But so you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then He told the paralytic, “Get up,…