A Traitor Turns to Christ (Matthew)

I remember reading a notice in a local newspaper announcing the opening of a new evangelical church in our community. It gave the date and time of the first services, then added, "our special guest star will be . . ." and named a popular Christian celebrity. In its attempt to appeal to unbelievers or simply draw a large crowd, the church today commonly uses that kind of approach.

Jesus, however, used a different approach. None of His disciples were famous at all. In fact, rather than drawing a favorable crowd, some of them might have repelled or even incited anger and hatred among His Jewish audience. Matthew was such a man because he was a despised tax-gatherer—one of many Jewish men employed by Rome to collect taxes from his own people. As such he was regarded as a traitor by his own countrymen.

The Roman tax system allowed tax collectors to keep anything they collected in excess of what was owed to Rome. That encouraged bribes, extortion, and other abuses.

To compound the issue, Matthew was among those who had the prerogative of taxing almost anything they wanted to tax—roads, bridges, harbors, axles, donkeys, packages, letters, imports, exports, merchandise, and so on. Such men could accumulate enormous wealth for themselves. You might remember another tax-gatherer named Zaccheus, who is described in Luke 19:2 as a wealthy man. His salvation was evidenced by his offer to repay fourfold to those he had defrauded (v. 8).

Some people think God can't use them because they're not famous or because of their past sins. But God has used Matthew, Zaccheus, and millions of others like them. Concentrate on your present purity and let God bless your ministry as He sees fit.

Thank God that he has made you a new person in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). Minister in light of that reality!

Where was Zaccheus when Jesus first spoke to him? What was the reaction of the crowd when Jesus went to Zaccheus's house? What prompted Jesus to say that salvation had come to Zaccheus?

A church was in need of a pastor for some time but was having trouble getting one; but not because pastors weren't applying, but because the congregation always seemed to find fault with the pastors. Most pastors were rejected when the people just read the résumé. Some didn't have enough experience, some too much, some not enough education, some too much and so on.

One day a board member, who was getting very tired of this, decided to do something. So the next Sunday, he got up in the pulpit and announced that he had another résumé to share with the congregation. Most of them sat back, folded their arms and began to listen; ready to see what faults they could find on the new applicant. The board member began to read and the résumé went like this...

"Dear church members; I am writing to apply for position as your pastor. My experience is more along the lines of evangelist but I believe I could fill your position adequately. I've never attended any bible school per say but I have a lot of field experience. I don't have a degree on my wall, or a wall for that matter; I've traveled around most of my life, renting and doing odd jobs to support myself and preaching wherever I was invited; churches, streets, even jails. As a matter of fact, I've been thrown in jail several times and been involved in a few public squabbles. I've been accused of being anti-semantic, anti-authority and causing disturbances almost everywhere I go. But I did have a few conversions to Christianity during my ministry as well as a few healings. Thank you for considering my application."

Most of the people looked up at the deacon with smirks of condemnation while others chuckled out loud. One man stood up and still laughing asked the deacon,
"Does this guy actually expect us to seriously consider him for our pastor? Just what's this fellow's name any way?"

Paul; of Tarsus

EXACTLY.

I have a friend who has quite the past, drug use, drug dealing, extortion, promiscuous, violent.

Got saved in his twenties and gloriously converted.

Now, some 40 years later, he’s involved in a very fruitful jail ministry and can relate to these people wand where they are coming from and they KNOW that he’s been where they are. It gives him great credibility with them.

Yep - and some of the most effective carriers of The Word started out as atheists and came to believe through trying to disprove the existence of God. The experiences of being seriously flawed and then saved has a lot of useful merits that those who have "been holy all their lives" can offer.

He surely does work in "mysterious" ways.

People outside the Christian experience think that those inside don’t understand.

And in a lot of cases, they are correct.

Except that not everyone who is a Christian was raised in a church environment. The holier than thou attitude displayed by some church people is a real turn off.

I guess not much has changed in 2,000 years, has it?

I guess not much has changed in 2,000 years, has it?

No - but on the "bright" side, He told us we will become a veritable cesspool and good will be called evil, and evil called good and a whole lot more before He comes back to set things right.

We are in His good hands despite the evil running rampant.

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