Lectionary readings for Proper 12
Year “C”
Hosea 1:2-10
Psalm 85
Colossians 2:6-19
Luke 11:1-13

TEXT: Matthew 9:9-13

Have you heard of “those people”? Our world is full of them. They’re the people who don’t “get it.” They aren’t like us. They don’t talk like us, act like us, believe like us, dress like us, or smell like us. They are the folks who do things that make us turn up our noses, look the other way, and pretend we didn’t just see what we saw. For some folks, “those people” are the poor. They’re the uneducated. They’re people who don’t speak English. They’re people with a different skin color.

They’re “those people.”

We have a tendency to avoid “those people.” When we see them coming toward us, we quickly turn and talk to someone else. Being face-to-face with them makes us uncomfortable. We cringe when they come to our place, and we surely don’t go out of our way to go to their place. We simply don’t hang out with “those people.”

It turns out that “those people” have pretty much always been around. The first century is no exception. Jesus’ world was full of “those people.” Probably the most rejected of “those people” in Jesus’ world were the tax collectors. (The more things change, the more they stay the same!) Tax collectors were usually Jewish folks who were working in collaboration with the Roman Empire. Of course, anyone who helped the Romans was instantly branded as a traitor of the people of Israel. In addition, tax collectors cheated their fellow countrymen at every opportunity. They would regularly inflate the taxes due, and pocket the extra money for themselves. Everyone knew they were cheats, but nothing could be done about it. The people could do nothing because the taxes were Roman, and the Romans would squash anyone who didn’t pay the taxes. The Romans were relatively harmless, as long as they received their taxes. As a result, everyone hated the tax man. The tax man was someone you wanted to meet in a dark alley, just to teach him a lesson or two. He was a cheat, a thief, a liar, and a traitor. He was one of “those people.”

Matthew was a tax collector . . .

. . . and Jesus ate at his house. Today’s passage tells us Jesus was walking along and saw Matthew, sitting at his booth, where he was in the process of cheating, lying, and stealing. Jesus does something He’s not supposed to do. He walks right up to Matthew, who is one of “those people,” and says two simple, life-changing words: “Follow me.” And to everyone’s surprise, Matthew the tax collector gets up, leaves his money, and follows Jesus.

Imagine standing in line to pay your taxes that day. I think people were asking, “what does Jesus think He’s doing? Doesn’t He understand that Matthew is one of ‘those people?’ Instead of hanging out with that no-good, cheating, lying, bum tax collector, why didn’t Jesus ask me to follow Him?”

Then the unthinkable happened. Not only did Jesus call this guy, but when Matthew followed Him, Jesus led the procession to Matthew’s house! One thing about first-century Judaism: one did not ever eat with one of “those people.” Usually “those people” were unclean sinners, and a good, righteous Jewish person did not enter the house of an unclean person. Further, it was a major faux-pas to eat with unclean people, and Jesus was now reclining with Matthew and his sinner friends, sharing a meal.

Some of the Pharisees asked the question that was on everyone’s mind. They cornered Jesus’ disciples and asked, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Essentially, they were asking, “What is Jesus doing hanging out with ‘those people?’ Doesn’t He understand He’s not supposed to go out among the common sinners like that?”

You see, the Jewish religious leaders had a nice little system in place. In order to participate in the worship of God, one had to get clean, change into the right clothes, and come to the Temple. True worship only happened at the holy place in Jerusalem. The only way for “those people” to get involved in their religion was to come to their building, play by their rules, and submit to their religious system of sacrifices and ritual purity.

We’re not like that, are we? We wouldn’t make the same mistake, would we? We don’t expect “those people” to clean up, come to our building, look and talk like us, and do things our way in order to come to faith, do we?

Jesus’ hears the Pharisees questioning the disciples, and answers: Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners (9:12-13, NRSV).

With His actions that day, Jesus turned the Pharisees’ system upside-down. Instead of expecting the sinners to come to Him, Jesus very intentionally went to them.

Jesus turns evangelism around. Instead of turning our noses up at “those people,” and then acting surprised and put-off when they don’t come to our church building to play by our rules, Jesus goes to them. He goes, finds some of “those people,” and hangs out with them. Instead of bringing them to the Kingdom, He takes the Kingdom to them. As followers of Jesus, we are called to do no less. To sit in our seats complaining about the lost-ness of sinners and “those people,” is pointless and not Christ-like. We must go where they are, because chances are, that’s where Jesus is. We are called to be the Church outside of these walls just as much as we are when we gather here. We must be the Church out there, with “those people.”

The messages for the Season following Pentecost (or Ordinary Time) are presented by Rev. Mark Hendrickson. Mark is the senior pastor of Warrensburg First Church of the Nazarene in Warrensburg, Missouri.