The Hospital for Sinners

Text: Matthew 9:9-13

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

          “As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and He said to him, ‘Follow me.’” It’s that simple. Jesus walks by the tax booth and calls out to Matthew to follow Him. Although the circumstances might seem that simple, there’s far more underlying Jesus’ invitation for Matthew to follow Him. Jesus is putting together a team of disciples to assist in the work that He’s been sent to do, both while He ministers during His life and after He’s gone. Our natural inclination when we’re choosing members for our team is to find people who are like us. People who we know we’re going to get along with. People we know are going to agree with us. Life is just easier that way. But that kind of team doesn’t always make for the best productivity.

In business you’re taught to surround yourself with people whose skills will complement your own, not those who are good at exactly the same things you are. In sports, a team full of quarterbacks isn’t going to get very far. It’s the premise that Paul reminds us of in 1 Corinthians 12 when he talks about spiritual gifts and the church. We’re not all hands. We’re not all eyes. If we all had the same gifts the church would be a pretty dull and unproductive place. Instead, Paul says, “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.”

Jesus demonstrates this principle as He calls His disciples. Fishermen, a zealot, some bold, some timid. And even a tax collector. And that’s the one that raises the hairs on the necks of the Pharisees. The one that gets the attention of everyone around Him. Not a tax collector. These men were originally known as publicans. They were local men employed by Roman tax contractors to collect taxes. Because they worked for Rome and often demanded unreasonable payments, the tax collectors had a terrible reputation and were generally hated as they were considered traitors to their own people. In Scripture the name tax collectors and the word sinners are often synonymous and are frequently lumped together. Even in today’s text.

But Jesus calls everyone. Tax collectors, sinners, prostitutes, liars, thieves, you, me. He calls us all to be His own. Because He wants each of us, regardless of our past or present, to know that we are welcome in His kingdom. And we certainly know that the church is not simply a place for those who are already forgiven and constantly remain that way.

THE CHURCH IS THE HOSPITAL FOR SINNERS.

Matthew has probably heard about Jesus, but He certainly doesn’t know Him well. And yet, there’s something about Jesus’ calling that makes Matthew stand up and take notice. In fact, the text tells us that, “He rose and followed Him.” Just left the tax booth and walked away. Not unlike the fishermen who “left their nets and followed Him.” There’s something so compelling about this call from Jesus that men are willing to leave their livelihoods, walking away from the things of this world, to obey their Master.

For Matthew, this call would have meant everything to him. It was the dramatic change of that he needed and it turned everything around for him for the rest of his life. And yet, he simply records the facts. No hesitation. No questioning. Luke actually records more detail about Matthew’s call by saying that “He left everything.” The old life is gone. The new life is now his.

Even so, Matthew doesn’t forsake every relationship he had in his former life. The text continues by saying, “And as Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and His disciples.” The assumption here is that Jesus and the disciples are at the home of Matthew and that these are Matthew’s friends from his previous life who are around the table with them. This seems to go against the common wisdom that the friends we keep are going to have a significant influence on us. I once heard that “Bad friends are like shadows – they’re always around, but they don’t bring any light into your life.” There’s definitely some wisdom in that thinking, but if Jesus thought that way, He never would have found Matthew.

That’s certainly the way the Pharisees think. Listen to what they say. “And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to the disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” There’s that coupling again. “tax collectors and sinners.” You can almost hear your mom saying, “Don’t get caught up with that crowd. They’re nothing but trouble.” And generally, that’s not bad advice. But for Jesus, who came to save the lost, who came to overcome sin and death, this is exactly where he needs to be. And Matthew, I imagine, is so excited about his new life in Christ that he wants to share this with everyone around him. And this is who he knows.

This applies to your life too. When we know Jesus, we want to make Him known. But all too often we want to make Him known in the places and to the people where we’re comfortable. There’s certainly something to be said for leaving the old life behind and not being influenced by a crowd that might drag us down, but Jesus also makes it abundantly clear who His target audience is. “But when He heard it, He said, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.’” Jesus came to save the lost. He came to heal the sick. And the only way to do that is to seek them out and minister to them.

Jesus is the Great Physician. And to a physician it makes no sense to only associate with people who are well. To provide healing, the doctor needs to be up close and personal, diagnosing and treating the patient. Jesus isn’t going to do that from a distance. He’s going to do it by sitting at that table with the tax collectors and sinners. He’s going to do it by getting right in there and touching the eyes of the blind man. By going right up to the leppers and making them clean.

And lest we think that we’re not part of this, Jesus approaches us in the same way. It’s not like Matthew is now healed and never again in need of what the Physician. It’s not as if He’s now just the guide to bring others to the Healer. That’s an important part of what a disciple does, but he still needs the healing Jesus provides. Every single day. And so do we. Which is why we’re here in the hospital for sinners. Receiving the treatment that the Great Physician has prescribed. The forgiveness of sins. The Word of God. And the medicine of immortality.

Sometimes when we come through the doors of this hospital we’re probably feeling like we’re just looking for a wellness check. We’re looking for the doctor to tell us that everything’s ok and we can just simply go on with our lives. But there are no wellness checks with no diagnosis here. Everyone who walks through the door is in need of treatment. Sometimes it might just be a minor adjustment, but other times we’re in need of major surgery. Whatever the diagnosis, the treatment is here. It’s in the forgiveness of sins. It’s in the Word of God. And it’s in the body and blood, given and shed for you.

And once we’ve received our own treatment, the call of every disciple is to go out and refer everyone else to their doctor. Isn’t that what we do? When we have a treatment that’s worked for us, we share it with everyone else. We do it with our physical health. Let’s do it with our spiritual health as well.

Matthew leapt up from that tax booth and followed the calling of Jesus. It changed his life and the lives of those he led Jesus to. You have that very same calling. May your response be the same as Matthew’s. Because this is how we resolve to follow Christ in everything that we do as His bride, the church. Someone very wise once said, “In the future, the most important test of the Christian church may not lie in the wisdom of our planning or the skill of our preaching but in the plain, stubborn, devoted commitment of people like ourselves, who are not wise enough or good enough to deserve the name of Christians but who resolve to follow Christ in everything that we do.” Follow Christ in everything that you do. Receive His healing in your own lives and lead others to the healing that He offers to everyone. Amen.

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.