As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax-collection station, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him.
So…some Context — Tax collection in their society was basically carried out like low level extortion. Tax collectors were Jewish people who worked for the Roman authorities to collect the taxes from the rest of their Jewish neighbors….money that would pay for the soldiers and leaders that terrorized them, money that would fund the empire’s occupation of their nation. So tax collectors were considered sell outs…traitors. They were tasked with making sure everyone paid up …and were rumored to usually take extra to pad their own pockets. So when passing by their booths, most people would have looked the other way, probably would have sworn under their breath, or even spit in disgust. Tax collectors were hated.
But Jesus passes by the booth and sees a person inside. A person with a name. A person who matters. A good person.
He doesn’t see his label or his job…he sees Matthew.
And when Jesus invites Matthew to come with him…Matthew does. He follows Jesus, and ends up sharing a meal together with him and a bunch of his friends…a whole slew of people who were used to being hated.
You know, I wonder how long Matthew had been sitting there in that booth…how many years he had been the object of everyone’s anger and resentment. How many years he had been invisible to the “good people” around him. It must have been a shock to have Jesus stop to talk to him.
But Jesus doesn’t just see a tax collector. Jesus sees Matthew…and he wants to spend time with him. He realized that Matthew needed to be seen. Needed to be accepted. Matthew needed grace.
And Jesus says…I’m here for you. And there’s grace for you…if you want it…..if you need it.
But, here’s the thing about grace — it really only matters to you if you need it.
Being seen only really matters when you’re feeling invisible.
Being rescued only really matters when you’re drowning.
Being found only really matters when you’re lost.
Being healed really only matters when you’re sick.
Being resurrected really only matters when you’re dead.
Grace really only matters when you need it.
It only matters when you’re desperate. When you’re flailing, and don’t know how to catch your breath. When you’re frightened, ashamed, exhausted…when you don’t know how to face tomorrow. That’s when grace matters. That’s when we need grace. That’s when I need grace.
Because the truth is — When we think we’re doing just fine on our own, grace really doesn’t mean that much. When I don’t think I need help…When I’ve got things pretty much under control, I’m not interested in grace. In fact, sometimes when someone “helps” at those times…I just resent it. And I don’t think I’m the only one who feels like this. I like to feel competent and strong and independent. I don’t want to be needy. I don’t want to feel pathetic. You know, we talk about grace a lot…and it sounds nice, but the truth is, for much of the time, we forget how important it is…until….until we need it. Until eventually, I get caught up short. That moment when life catches up with me and I get news I can’t wrap my head around…or I hit bottom and I don’t know what to do next. And suddenly I cannot pretend everything is okay anymore. I simply can’t make it okay on my own. And I’m drowning. And that’s when all of this grace stuff makes sense again. That’s when Jesus makes sense.
And I remember — Oh yeah…There’s grace for this. This rock bottom. This horrible thing. Jesus is here for this. For them. For me. For all of us.
Jesus, who heals the sick and forgives those who are shattered by guilt and shame. Jesus who loves us completely and resurrects us when we are dying.
Jesus who was there for Matthew — hated, invisible, labeled. Jesus who was there for the synagogue leader…helpless and desperate when his young daughter is dying. Jesus who was there for the woman who has been bleeding for years…years of pain and grief and loneliness.
There is grace for us…when we need it. When we’re feeling ignored or misjudged, when our kids’ lives are falling apart…when we are exhausted from years of struggle and pain.
When life has knocked the wind out of us…Jesus has grace for us. For you. That’s really what Jesus came for after all. And that is what this church thing is supposed to be all about…since we’re the “body of Christ”. At its heart, the church is meant to be a hospital for the sick and broken, a rescue station for the shipwrecked. It was never meant to be a country club for the well off and comfortable. It’s a place for the needy and the desperate. It’s a place for beggars. Those were actually Martin Luther’s dying words….We are beggars…all of us. All of us simply need grace. All of us need Jesus. That’s why we’re here.
Of course that doesn’t mean that on any given Sunday…there might not be other reasons that bring you here. Sometimes you might come to church because you want to be a good person…and that’s nice. It’s not a bad thing. The world needs good people. Or you might come because you just want to learn more about Jesus…that’s cool…Jesus is really pretty amazing. These stories are awesome and can teach us a lot. Or sometimes, you might be here because you want to spend time with friends…that’s lovely. It really is. We need to know we are not alone…we need each other. There’s nothing wrong with coming to church for those reasons. But honestly… we can find all those things in a lot of other places as well. We can join the Rotary or the Masons…we could be part of a good book club or the scouts or the senior center….if we all we want is to be good people or learn things or have friends.
No…we’re here because at some point we all realized how desperate we were for grace. Like Matthew. Like the synagogue leader. Like the suffering woman. We’re here because at some point we have realized we can’t make it on our own and we need Jesus. So here is the good news — if you are drowning this morning, if you are struggling to catch your breath…if things are not making sense, if you are doing something you hate, if you are ashamed or afraid or exhausted or lonely or at the end of your rope…there is grace for you. Jesus sees you. Knows you. Loves you. Sits with you. Invites you to be with him. To share a meal with him. And you can Bring your friends. Because Jesus raises the dead. That’s the good news.
If you need grace. It is here for you. Jesus is here for you. Amen
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