Follow Me
9 As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.”
10 And he rose and followed him.
❖ Matthew, the called
In this verse we see something striking – Jesus was calling a man, Matthew. In the gospels of Luke and Mark, his name is Levi, the tax collector. Levi was probably his other name. First of all, we have to see the significance of this man. Matthew, as a tax-collector, worked either directly for the Roman government and collected tax from the Jews, or exacted Jewish taxes plus an additional fee as an independent contractor. You see, the Romans imposed a different sort of tax on the Jews, to the extent that they could never become a prosperous nation.
Jewish tax-collectors had a bad reputation. They were viewed as thieves and traitors. Matthew could probably speak more than one language. What taxes were imposed by the Romans? According to tradition there were many different taxes to be collected: property tax, custom tax, import and export tax, tax on toll bridges, crop tax, and taxes to finance war. Matthew was a sinner garbed in the public duty of exacting tax from the poor and part of the oppressive Roman government. He was hated by the Jews, and probably a thief. The gospels don’t mention him at all except for his calling by Jesus and later when Jesus appointed His apostles. Nevertheless, Jesus called this man, and said to him, “follow Me”.
What did it mean for Matthew to follow Christ?
❖ Follow Christ
For Matthew it meant leaving his job as a tax-collector and losing a means of income. It meant leaving the sphere of Roman rule, the source of his security, and putting himself under the authority of Christ. For Matthew it meant a new life, a life that would lead him, according to Christian tradition, to his martyrdom in Ethiopia.
In the calling of Matthew, we see a pattern.
Jesus calls sinners to follow Him
Jesus calls people that are despised in society to follow Him Jesus calls people that are hated by the masses to follow him Jesus calls unlikely people to follow him
These are significant words in the gospel: Follow Me
It would be good for us to ponder these words.
What does it mean for us to follow Christ today?
First of all, although we can be passionate about theology and especially Reformed Theology, Jesus is not primarily calling us to follow theological propositions. He is not calling you to follow John Owen or John Piper or John Calvin or Marin Luther or RC Sproul or C.S Lewis or any other well-known theologian or Christian. He is not calling you to adhere to a theological system to be saved. He is not calling you to follow the Baptist Church, or the Presbyterian Church or even a Reformed Baptist Church. He is calling you to follow Him!
Salvation is in Christ. Redemption is in Christ. Righteousness is in Christ. Wisdom is in Christ. Justification is in Christ. Forgiveness is in Christ. Sanctification is in Christ.
We are called to follow Christ, no-one else. Not your mother or father. Christ alone.
So, what does it mean for you to follow Christ? Think about that. Day by day, hour by hour. What is God calling you to do? To be? If you are not saved, Christ is calling you to the cross of Calvary He is calling you to repent of your sins and idols
He is calling you to the cross where Jesus died, so your burdens can fall away! Have you followed Jesus to Calvary? Do you know the song?
Calvary. Burdens are lifted at Calvary, Calvary, Calvary! Burdens are lifted at Calvary; Jesus is very near.
If you are saved, Jesus is still calling you to Calvary.
We never graduate from Calvary, it’s our only hope. It’s the only place where our sins are forgiven. But Jesus is also calling you to imitate Him in serving others, worshipping God, laying down your life for your brothers and sisters. Jesus is calling you to be a fisher of men. He has some work for you to do! You have a task to fulfil in his kingdom, a glorious task!
Follow Me
Lose your life.
Follow Me, Jesus is still saying to us, today!
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