Following Jesus: What a Difference a Meal Makes

This morning as I read the familiar passage from Matthew 9:9-13, I was struck by the meal. I once heard that in a certain part of Africa, the husband to be is not allowed to eat at the same table as the father-in-law, so that he could reserve the right to protect his daughter. Eating a meal at the same table with someone in that culture was synonymous with a peace accord. While that may not be entirely true (I cannot find resources to back up this claim), and while our own experiences may be somewhat different, there is something special about sharing a meal with someone.

And that is what struck me today... not the fact that Jesus was with tax collectors, but the fact that He was eating a meal with them. And I believe that is what struck the Pharisees as well. Notice this first section:

⁹ As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him. ~Matthew 9:9

Here Jesus is calling the tax collectors. While this must have been surprising, there is no reaction listed here. Perhaps Jesus was calling them to repent. That would've been fine. That would've been acceptable. Calling them to change... that would've been necessary. So, all seems ok up to this point. Yes, what those tax collectors need is some good correction and discipline. Tell them where they're going wrong, Jesus.

The Meal

¹⁰ While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. ¹¹ When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

Then, when Jesus is seen having dinner with many tax collectors, everything changes. Wait, this is not what's supposed to happen! Jesus is supposed to discipline and correct those tax collectors. He's not supposed to be friends with them! He's not supposed to be living in community with them, sharing a meal! Sharing a meal now and in those times was something you did with friends, not enemies, those of your social class, those who would uphold your reputation. (Remember the pleasure Hamon had when he was invited to dine with Esther and the king.) It's much the same today. Imagine being invited to have dinner at the White House... or conversely having dinner with your underhanded boss. Yes, who we eat with says a lot about who we are.

When I was in the DR helping Jerry with various workcamp groups and the Vacation Bible Study weeks that we were hosting for kids there, I remember some very special meals. These meals were not huge. At the San Jose church, it consisted of a few fried plantains and some coconut water. When we went with several pastors coordinating the event went to visit Pastor Samson and his family, his wife gladly brought out the treats. It was such a beautiful meal, because it was given with so much love. And even though we knew that they had little in their own home where the rooms stood empty of furniture except for one tiny wooden chair, we showed our appreciation, our community and love by partaking and appreciating the food offered to us.

In Brazil, similarly, there were many who were confused and surprised at why I would volunteer to go and live in Campo Limpo Paulista without hardly any pay, without my family, living on very little. To them, the greatest testimony was that I was really there... living with them. "What would motivate someone to do that?" they asked, and what I told them was "the love of Jesus." The test of time brought several seeking the love of Jesus in their own lives. But what moved them was that I lived there, in that community, in a home like their own, on an income like theirs. Much of my most powerful preaching was not with words, but with my living in the community and loving in the community. I believe that Jesus here was doing much of the same.

Jesus teaches us that when we seek the lost, the lonely, the hurting, we are not to keep ourselves safely away from them except on Sundays when we teach them a thing or two. No, we should live with them, eat with them, laugh with them, cry with them, love them... invite them into our family as brothers and sisters. After all, that is what God does... as we learned yesterday... he calls us his children and calls us all to Him, to experience His eternal no-matter-what love, not a once-a-week love.

The Message Behind the Meal

¹² On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.¹³ But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

While the meal sent a powerful message to the tax collectors at the table of the love that God has for them and the community that He desires with them, it also sent a powerful message to the Pharisees who thought they should be the only ones at the table. "That Rabbi doesn't know what he's doing. He's hanging out with the wrong crowd." Those of you who are parents have probably had some worries about your kids hanging out with the wrong crowd, and we all try to hang out with the 'right' crowd to some extent.

But again, like we saw yesterday, Jesus challenged and broke all boundaries of race, religion, culture, class, gender. He consistently hung out with the 'wrong' crowd, part of why He was so disliked by the Pharisees.

Jesus' words in v.13 remind the well-read Pharisees of what was spoken in the prophet Hosea... "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice." Mercy... compassion, forgiveness toward an enemy. The Pharisees knew little about practicing compassion. It wasn't a law with measurable outcomes or regulations. It didn't fit into their rulebook about what to do if Person X commits Sin Y. They knew sacrifice. They did X, Y, and Z daily in order to be considered of their rank and stature, to be considered the type of upright and holy folk that deserved to have dinner with other rabbi. But, Jesus here reminds them that God desires compassion. Even those who wrong you, deserve our love and forgiveness.

In the present context of Tucson, we may find it difficult to forgive the boy who killed so many, who caused such violence. But, I am reminded of the girl in Florida who forgave the murderer of her father. Forgiveness in that magnitude is powerful, and that powerful love inspired by the love of God is what makes a difference in this world.

Jesus reminds me in this passage that love for His children reaches beyond sending a check to an organization once a year; it reaches beyond welcoming people to church once in a while; and it extends beyond preaching in church on Sundays. Reaching out to God's children is loving them with a compassion that connects us as family, no matter what, and living with those individuals that we hope to reach... inviting them into our homes and our hearts to share a meal... because what a difference a meal makes.