Matthew 9:9-13
The King calls sinners, eats with sinners, and reveals that mercy stands at the heart of His mission.
9 As Jesus passed by from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax collection office. He said to him, “Follow me.” He got up and followed him.
10 As he sat in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Jesus and his disciples.
11 When the Pharisees saw it, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
12 When Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do.
13 But you go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
The King calls sinners, eats with sinners, and reveals that mercy stands at the heart of his mission.
Matthew records Jesus calling Matthew the tax collector and defending table fellowship with tax collectors and sinners by revealing his mission as mercy for the spiritually sick.
Jesus passes on from the scene of the paralytic’s healing and encounters Matthew seated at a tax collector’s booth.
Authority to Forgive, Mercy for Sinners, and Compassion for the Harvest
Jesus, the merciful Son of Man and Son of David, has authority to forgive sins, call sinners, restore the broken, and send workers into the harvest of shepherdless people.