Matthew the Tax Collector

"He said to him, 'Follow me.' And he arose and followed him" (Matthew 9:9).

"We notice that Matthew did not indicate in his Gospel that he sacrificed anything to follow Christ, because he viewed what he lost as worthless waste" (Phil. 3:7).

The goal and focus of his life changed, and he was connected to the Lord in a new way: this is being born again. We do not deny that Matthew lost some temporal things as a result of accepting Christ's call, but he gained immeasurably greater things; by following Christ he left a job that brought him an income that allowed him to live in comfort. It seems that Matthew lived in luxury, as he owned a large house, in which he could invite a large crowd (Luke 5:29).

Of course, by following Christ, he lost all of this, because he followed the one who had just said about himself: “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head” (Matthew 8:20). He lost physical comfort and temporary enjoyment.

The call of Christ is usually accompanied by material loss, not gain, by physical toil, not comfort, by people’s alienation and persecution, not their praise and honor. But despite all that, he responded to Christ's call without hesitation, and became one of the twelve apostles of Christ, so he initially enjoyed peace of conscience and peace of heart (Matthew 11:28, 29), and enjoyed the authority to perform miracles as a messenger of the king (Matthew 10:5-8), and enjoyed the wonderful days of the Son of Man (Matthew 9:15, Matthew 19:28).

Then the Holy Spirit used him to write the first book of the New Testament; the first gospel, entitled by his name. And soon, when Christ reigns, he and the rest of the twelve apostles will sit with him, on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel (Revelation 21:14). This is in the earthly circle, but in the heavenly circle his name will shine - among the twelve apostles of the Lamb - on one of the foundations of the holy city, the heavenly Jerusalem (Revelation 21:14).

By/ Youssef Riad