WITNESS
9-21-13
HONEY---THE TAX MAN IS HERE
( or the story of Saint Matthew )
“Honey---
The tax man is here”
How many of us
Like to hear those words
Or how many of us
Like getting a letter
From the IRS in the mail
Or going downtown for an audit
This is the story of Saint
Matthew
Originally called Levi
A tax collector of the Jewish people
Who worked for the Roman government
One day
Jesus met Matthew
At his tax collector’s booth
And said, “follow me”
One night---while having dinner at Matthew’s house
And many of his tax collector
friends
Some of the teachers of Jewish law
Were asking his disciples,
“Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners”
Jesus heard about the conversation, and said,
“It is not the healthy who need
a Doctor
But the sick
I have not come to call the righteous---but sinners” Mark
2:16&17
Good for the Apostles
And very good for us
It is believed
That after the Resurrection
That Matthew went on
To preach the Word of God
Either in Ethiopia
or Persia
And it is believed
That Matthew wrote his Gospel
From Antioch
Primarily to the Jews
But also to Gentiles and Christians
As an original Apostle
He gave us an eyewitness account
Jesus speaks more
In Matthew’s Gospel
Than in any of the other Gospels
And Matthew quotes
From many of the Old Testament books
To prove that Jesus certainly is
The “Fulfillment”---The Anointed One
Matthew traces the genealogy of
Jesus
Describes Jesus’ temptation in
the desert
And concludes his Gospel
With the calling of the GREAT COMMISSION
To all believers
Matthew teaches us
That the standards of God are
high
And that the example that he---God---gave us
Is perfect---Jesus Christ
And Matthew teaches us
That Christ is sufficient
For whatever need we might have
And that the ways of God
Are infinitely higher
Than the ways of this world
Saint Matthew
Died a martyr’s death
September 21st is his
feast day
“HONEY---THE TAX MAN IS HERE”
Robert P. Wallman
9-11-11
Ps WITNESS 9-21-13
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