The Collect of the Day
We thank you, heavenly Father, for the witness of your apostle and evangelist Matthew to the Gospel of your Son our Savior; and we pray that, after his example, we may with ready wills and hearts obey the calling of our Lord to follow him; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.The Psalm
119:33-40
The Readings
Proverbs 3:1-6 + II Timothy 3:14-17 + Matthew 9:9-13
Go and learn what this means, "I desire mercy, not sacrifice." For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.
~Matt. 9:13
Jesus' response here to the Pharisees who question the disciples about their teacher's willingness to eat "with tax collectors and sinners" may seem straightforward--but, as usual, some reflection reveals layers. One way to read his response is with an ironic twist--that Jesus is not in fact affirming a divide of "the righteous" and "the sinners," but is undermining that kind of binary thinking. Of course, we can't read the tone of Jesus' voice here, but it's difficult not to hear some irony when he tells his critics that they, by implication, being already well "have no need of a physician"--in other words, they don't need him. Taken literally, that would make Jesus superfluous to all those who are "already righteous" in God's sight. It would make Jesus not a universal Savior, but an option for all the screw-ups who can't make it on their own steam. (In other words, you know, everyone.)
But before the irony becomes too think, I want to pull up and remind myself that, while no one is perfectly righteous, still we're not all on a level playing field, or at the same place on our journeys. There are gradations of righteousness and sinfulness, of spiritual health and spiritual sickness, across our varied lives. We all need help, but some need more help than others; some need it more clearly or more urgently than others. Maybe these are the ones Jesus calls because these are the ones who are not too proud to hear him. These are the ones who don't harbor illusions about having it all figured out, with well-planned lives proceeding right on course. They can't hide their soul's need behind an outward façade of put-togetherness; they know they need a physician, and so with ready heart and will they answer when Jesus calls them to follow. In truth, the pictures the Gospels paint of those who gather around Jesus show a pretty shabby bunch. But these are the ones who listen to him; these are the ones who flock to him. And for his disciples, to be with Jesus is to be also with these "tax collectors and sinners." We may sometimes think we would prefer more polite company, but if we're eating with Jesus, these are the ones with whom he is pleased to break bread.
Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you for calling us to be your disciples. Thank you for welcoming us in love and fellowship. Help us to follow wherever you go, and to embrace all whom you embrace. Help us to live like you, and make our lives a sacrifice of mercy to God, whose mercies never cease. Amen.
