One fine morning, Jesus was preaching in the synagogue.
“Let me tell you a story. One day, two men came to this temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee believed he was a good man for he obeyed all the rules and kept all the laws. He felt he was definitely better than the tax collector who stood a little away, steeped in prayer. To flaunt his goodness, the Pharisee began to pray loud enough for the tax collector to hear, ‘Good Lord, thank you for making me ‘Me’. I bless you for not making me like that tax collector who sins and then dares to stand before you. Thank you, Lord!’ The Pharisee smirked, meaningfully glanced at the tax collector, and went on his way. The tax collector was hurt, but he didn’t argue. After the Pharisee left, he prayed in his heart, ‘Lord, I know I do a job that displeases many. Nobody likes tax collectors, but that is my job and I have to do it. In the task I do, I try to be faithful to my employers-the Romans. That makes me lose the favor of my own people, the Jews. Lord, I hope you see my plight and help me to do what is right in your eyes. Forgive me, Lord, if I offend you. Tell me what I should do. Have mercy on me.’ After saying this, the tax collector went away. Which of these two would have pleased the Lord?” Jesus asked.
Nobody answered, though they all knew it had to be the tax collector. Jesus smiled. “Your hearts know who it could have been. Of course, it was the tax collector! It is not the beauty of your words or deeds, but the purity of your heart, the humility and simplicity of your nature that attracts God.
So that is what you should be striving for,” Jesus advised.
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As the sermon ended and the people started leaving, a young man approached Jesus with a bright smile. “That was a nice story. It made sense to me,” he commented.
The young man extended his hand and greeted Jesus. “My name is Matthew. I’m a tax collector myself,” he spoke.
Jesus smiled, shook hands with Matthew, and gazing into his eyes, asked, “Are you happy, Matthew?”
Matthew smiled, “With your sermon? Of course, it was great! It definitely must have pricked the conscience of many who look down upon us tax collectors. It’s true that the Jewish law states that collecting taxes is wrong, but now we are under the Roman rule, and for them it is right, so what do we do? They rule us. We have no choice but to obey. We are obliged to pay tax to the Romans and we tax collectors are just doing our job!”
Jesus smiled and said, “Matthew, I didn’t ask if you are happy with my sermon. I asked if you are happy with your life.”
Matthew's expression shifted. "Well..." he glanced at Jesus, who patiently awaited his response. Matthew shrugged and said, "I don't know."
Jesus said, “You know. It’s just that you don’t want to speak of it.”
Jesus turned and started walking away. Matthew hurriedly caught up from behind, saying, "Wait, Jesus. Alright, I'll be honest with you. Being a tax collector was something I enjoyed at first because I got to make a lot of money. I could always demand more than what people needed to pay, assuming they would never know I’m charging extra money.
But with time….it doesn’t mean much anymore. I haven’t experienced fulfillment in this life immersed in riches, as I 38
thought I would. Could you help me find a deeper meaning and purpose in my existence?”
“What do you want me to do?” Jesus asked him.
“I don’t know. Just tell me something that will make me feel better. Or tell me what to do to make my life better,”
Matthew replied.
“I can tell you, but will you accept?” Jesus challenged.
“I’ll try,” Matthew said, a bit reserved.
“ ‘Yes’ or ‘No’, that’s all I want to know,” Jesus asserted.
“Well…” Matthew pondered.
“Pray over it today. Tomorrow I shall come to your tax office. I will tell you in two words what you can do to change your life radically…and I want a response in ‘Yes’ or ‘No’,”
Jesus spoke.
“Done!” Matthew assured, amused at the challenge Jesus presented.
Jesus winked at him, turned, and walked away.
“Jesus!” Matthew called again, “I’d like you to meet some of my friends. If I invite you and your disciples for dinner tomorrow at my home, will you come?”
“Most gladly," Jesus replied, giving a friendly nod, and continued on his way. Matthew watched until Jesus and his companions disappeared around the bend of the road.
Matthew sighed. There was something about Jesus that had captivated him.
“What’s it about him that disturbs me?” Matthew spoke to himself as he pranced up and down his room that night.
“And what are those two words he is going to say…which could radically transform my life?”
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The JC Team
The door of his room creaked open and Matthew’s mother stepped in. “Aren’t you coming for dinner, son?” she inquired.
Matthew stopped marching, turned to his mother, and shook his head. “No, I’m not hungry.”
“But why?” she prodded.
“I don't know," he replied, and sat at his table scattered with coins he had been counting but got sidetracked halfway through. His mother approached him and tenderly ran her fingers through her son's hair. "Something is troubling you?"
she asked with concern.
“No, mother, I’m not worried. I’m just confused about a person I met today. Things he said and did have set me thinking.”
“Who is he? What did he do?” she queried anxiously.
Matthew replied, “I have invited him for dinner tomorrow. I’ll be calling some of my friends too. I want you all to meet him.”
The following day, Matthew waited eagerly for Jesus at his tax office. Every time someone entered or walked by, 40
Matthew would glance up with anticipation, hoping to catch a glimpse of Jesus' friendly, smiling face.
It was nearly noon when Jesus finally arrived, alone.
Matthew stood up respectfully as Jesus entered his office.
Jesus approached Matthew and placed his hand on Matthew's shoulder. Locking eyes with him, Jesus spoke those two life-changing words, "Follow me!" Matthew was taken aback! He hadn't expected such an invitation and was at a loss for words.
Jesus reassured him, saying, "Take your time to consider it.
Tonight, when I join you for dinner at your home, I would like to hear your decision." With a friendly tap on Matthew's shoulder, Jesus departed.
Matthew contemplated deeply throughout the day, with the words "Follow me!" echoing repeatedly in his mind. He sat down and tried to weigh the pros and cons.
‘Yes’- would mean he would have to step out from the security and luxury of his home to the insecurity and poverty of the streets. He would have to compromise on comforts, food, clothing, and standard of living. And what about respect? People who respect him now might not treat him the same way when he loses the title ‘tax collector'. As for the ones who never really liked him, it would be the best opportunity to tease and ridicule him.
On the other hand, ‘Yes’ would mean a new way of life-meeting new people and going to new places. Doing something for God! Hanging around with Jesus would make life exciting. The way he preaches and the miracles he does are amazing! A new respect could be earned that way, by being Jesus’ disciple. Someday, maybe Matthew would learn to do miracles too! There was a thrill to this life that was attracting him to it.
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Matthew earnestly pondered over it as a tug-of-war pursued in the battlefield of his mind between ‘Yes’ and ‘No’.
That evening, Jesus informed the others, “Tonight we are going for a special dinner.”
Philip raised a brow, “Where?”
“Matthew has invited us to his home,” Jesus replied.
Simon was stunned. “Matthew? You mean that tax collector?”
Jesus nodded.
Nathanael spoke, “I’m not very fond of tax collectors.”
John added, “Neither am I. They are mean and rude and cruel and conniving and…”
Jesus cut in, “They have a heart. It may be cold and hard as ice, but it’s there. It’s up to us to melt it in the warmth of our friendship.” Gazing around at his disciples, Jesus pursued, “Believers have the obligation to bring non-believers to the faith. Not sideline or condemn them as ‘bad and damned’ people.”
“They won’t listen to us. They will make fun of us,”
Simon argued.
“I’m not saying that I want you to go preach to all of them right away,” Jesus advised. “I’m saying that first I want you to love them and pray for them earnestly.”
Jesus continued, “Remember the parable of the sower I said the other day? One morning the sower went out to sow seeds. The ones that fell on the path, among the rocks, and near the weeds did not survive, but the ones that rested on fertile land gave much yield. Note that all the seeds were of the same quality, but the land they fell upon determined if they would sprout and yield. The seed is the Word of God. It has immense power. But if you try sowing it in a heart that 42
doesn’t care much about God, is hard as a rock, or has other priorities, your attempts will be futile.”
John asked, “Then what do we do?”
“Till the soil before you sow,” Jesus replied.
James and John looked at each other, confused.
“Huh? I don’t get it,” Andrew admitted.
Jesus explained, “When you pray with love for people, you are tilling their hearts with the plow, which is the Holy Spirit.
You are shooing away the birds, breaking the rocks, and uprooting the weeds. Prepare their hearts by praying for them. Then sow the seed, sit back, and watch them grow.”
The disciples looked at each other and smiled.
“So you want us to till Matthew’s heart?” joked John.
“His friends will join us for dinner too,” Jesus smiled.
Simon smiled. “There is going to be a whole bunch of tax collectors?”
“That means we have more work,” Andrew added.
“If we work on it together, we can do it,” Jesus held out his hands. The disciples sat in a circle, holding hands, and prayed with all their hearts for Matthew and his friends- that their hearts be receptive to the message of God and their lives be changed by God’s love and power.
***
Matthew and his friends warmly welcomed Jesus and his disciples into their midst. While food was being served, Matthew was all praises for Jesus, explaining to his parents and friends how Jesus had given a new perspective to the people through his sermons-and especially the one about the Pharisee and the tax collector.43
One of the tax collectors smiled. “That was a nice change.
Usually, we are portrayed as the ‘bad guys’ by prophets and storytellers.”
“People hate tax collectors just because we take tax from them. It’s the law. We are doing what the law says, and they are obliged to obey!” stated another, quite agitated.
Matthew intervened, “The Jewish law is against taking taxes. That is why our people hate us. They claim we are going against what God is saying. But the fact is that we are now under Roman rule and their religion has no law forbidding tax collecting. We have to obey when the Romans demand us to pay tax.”
Jesus spoke, “So far what you have said is right, Matthew.
Being under Roman rule, you are forced to do it, even though your religion or conscience doesn’t want to do it. But where tax collectors break the rule is when out of greed, they demand more tax than what is needed to be paid, and the extra money goes into their own treasury. That is cheating the poor and strangling the helpless for your own selfish gains.
Neither the people nor God will forgive you for that!” he affirmed.
The tax collectors remained silent for a while, for they all knew what Jesus said was true, and that was something they all were doing…charging more than what was due.
One of them, who seemed the eldest of them, spoke up,
“Ok so we are bad people. We have been bad all our lives. Is there any hope for us if we change, anyway? God won’t take us in now, will He?”
Jesus smiled and replied, “I’ll tell you a story, and that will help you understand better.”
Everyone likes stories and so all of them attentively listened to the story Jesus began. “This is what the Kingdom 44
of Heaven is like, that is to say how God the Father works.
Once there was a rich landowner who went out early one morning to hire workers for his vineyard. He met a few men and offered them one denarius as the day’s wage, to which they all agreed. He then sent them to his vineyard. Later that day, at about nine in the morning, he went out again and saw a few other men standing in the marketplace, doing nothing.
He said to them, ‘If you’d like to, you may go work in my vineyard and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went.
Again, about noon, he went out, and then again at about three in the afternoon too, he went for a walk and did the same thing. More and more workers were coming into the vineyard. Finally, at five in the afternoon when he went and found men standing around, he inquired ‘Why have you been standing here all day doing nothing?’
The men replied, ‘No one has hired us.’
He said to them, ‘Fine, I’ll take you in. You may go work in my vineyard.’
When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call all the workers and pay them their wages.’
The manager asked, ‘Should I call the first ones first?’
The owner replied, ‘No. Call the last ones first.’
And so, the workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. When those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each of them also received a denarius. They grumbled against the landowner. ‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they complained. ‘And you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and heat of the whole day!’
But the landowner replied, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? Take your 45
pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ ”
Jesus gazed into the eyes of his captivated audience and firmly stated, “So the last will be first and the first will be last.
That is to say, all will be equal. No matter when you are called to work in the vineyard of God, to serve the Kingdom of Heaven, if you willingly and dedicatedly offer your service to Him, you will be equally rewarded with the gift of ‘eternal life.’ If you hear God call you today - listen, come and serve.
It doesn’t matter what you did yesterday. What matters is what you are going to do from this moment on- today, now.
This is God’s call to you through me...Come to His vineyard.”
Jesus glanced around at the men and especially at Matthew, whose heart stirred as he experienced the divine cal of God the Father deep within him.
“The moment you decide to turn from evil ways and follow the Lord to work in His vineyard, you are counted among the ones saved and given the same reward of eternal life. So what if that may happen when you are 20 years old or 60 years of age?” Jesus said.
One man laughed, “Then I shall live a naughty life first and then turn into a new leaf years later, as I ripen in age.”
“God sees the heart!” Jesus asserted. “He knows the intentions of the heart. I am not talking of a delay in following God because you shrewdly want to enjoy the pleasures of life first. That is a ‘sin’ that deserves punishment.
I’m speaking of a delay in following God because you were ignorant of Him before. But the moment God reveals Himself to you and calls you to His vineyard through divine 46
stirrings within you, life’s circumstances, through prophets and people around you, you are obliged to make a decision. If you believe and follow, you are saved! If you ignore and continue in sinful ways, you are making your own life miserable because no one can attain an inner sense of fulfillment in life without God. ”
A deep silence ensued as all of them pondered over the wise words of Jesus.
The elderly tax collector was impressed. “You are truly a man of God. Your words have power and it pierces the heart with the fire of truth.”
Matthew’s parents also were pleased with Jesus’ company.
As they were dining together, Matthew’s father spoke, “When my son said he was bringing a prophet to the tax collector’s party, I thought it absurd. But now I understand why Matthew did that, and it was the right thing to do. You have enriched us so much.”
Jesus smiled and said, "Prophets can befriend tax collectors, just as tax collectors can join the company of prophets too." He glanced meaningfully at Matthew's father, who sensed there was an implied message in Jesus' words.
However, he chose to ignore it and simply enjoy the party.
After dinner, Jesus and his disciples bid farewell to the tax collectors and made to leave. Matthew followed them to the door.
Jesus glanced at him and whispered, “You’ve made your decision?”
Matthew smiled. “Yes, I’ve made my decision. I’m coming with you, Jesus. It’s a ‘Yes’ from me.”
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The JC Team
Jesus nodded. “You know where to find us.” He then left with his disciples.
As they were walking down the path, John spoke, “Jesus, that was an interesting story, but there is something in it that confuses me.”
Jesus looked at him and smiled, “Ask.”
John spoke intelligently, “I agree that the owner of the vineyard was a very generous man, but he lacked prudence.
He should have first paid the ones who came first and gone in that order. Then the men would have left with their wages, thinking that the later ones would get paid less. That way, the unpleasant situation could have been avoided and all would have been happy. But here, as they had to stay on and be the last ones to get paid, naturally, they came to know how much the others earned.”
Simon intervened, “But I think the owner did that on purpose. There was a reason why he directed the manager to call the last ones first.”
Philip asked, “What could the reason be?”
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Simon shrugged and looked at Jesus.
Jesus smiled, “Simon is right. The owner did that on purpose and there was a reason he did it that way. He wanted the first workers to know how much he was paying the ones who came last.” Jesus gave a few moments of silence for his disciples to speculate and then continued, “You, my brothers, are among the first of my disciples- the first ones God has called to work in His vineyard. Over the days and over the years, new ones will be added to the team -from different places, different walks of life, and at different times, for the vineyard is vast and there is a lot of work to be done. It is important that as you work together and get to know each other, you nurture a relationship of brotherhood and not competition. Had the workers nurtured that bond with their co-workers, they would have been happy to see their brothers being treated generously by the vineyard owner. It was their selfish hearts that made them complain when all were paid the same wages, even though initially they had agreed to work for one denarius which was a fair wage for the day’s work.”
John was moved. “Lord, I understand. I admit I’m more like those selfish workers who would complain, but I will do my best to change.”
Andrew added, “And we will be open to the new members that you’ll add to the team. To be honest, it does take time to understand and be accommodative to a new person who comes into the team, but we need them, for like you said, ‘the vineyard is vast’. We need all the help we can get. We’ll work as a team…as brothers.”
Simon glanced at Jesus and winked, “And I have a feeling that very soon we will have a new entry.”
“Really? Who?” John eagerly asked.
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But before Jesus could reply, a group of Pharisees who observed they were coming from the tax collectors’ gathering remarked, “How scandalous! A man claiming to be a prophet of God is drinking and dining with wicked men! Why does your teacher do such things?” they asked the disciples.
Jesus heard them. He replied to the Pharisees, “The one who is sick and admits he needs help is the one who can be helped. The one who is sick, but denies he is sick and acts like all is well cannot be helped even if others want to help. The tax collectors may be ‘outcasts’ for you, but it is they who have looked into their hearts, realized they are sick, and humbled themselves before God for his healing touch.
However, the so-called ‘respectable’ ones are those who have looked into their hearts, seen their stains, but deny their imperfections and justify all their acts, putting on an impressive show. How can God heal those who don’t let Him? Who don’t want Him? You Pharisees think your only job is to offer animal sacrifices to satisfy God and gain the respect of people as mediators between God and them. When will you ever realize that killing an animal cannot please God?
It’s the beat of your heart he wants, not the blood of an innocent lamb.”
“How dare you condemn the sacred rituals of the Jews!
The killing of animals for atonement of man’s sins was a practice that God Himself directed Moses to do.”
Jesus clarified, “Was it God who directed Cain and Abel to offer the fruits of the soil and kill lambs for Him? Of course not! It was a practice man himself made up in his distorted thinking that by offering the fruit of his labor, he could appease God and move Him to forgive his sins, sins that made him lose the fortunes of Eden and destined him to labor and toil for survival. Through Moses, God the Father 50
did direct the existing practice to continue, but that was to remind man of the consequences of his sin. The slaying of the animal is symbolic of the death humanity brings upon himself when he breaks his relationship with God through sin. It’s to remind man of his fate if he strays away from the path of goodness, and move him to repentance and dependence on God. It is a practice that is meant to be fulfilled in the Messiah, and it will be. But over time, you have misinterpreted it. It’s not the slaying of the animal and shedding of its blood that pleases God, it’s the disposition of the heart of the repentant sinner that wins God’s approval.
But you don’t give that prominence, instead, you want people to give offerings and pay off their way to Heaven. The day will come when no more animals will have to be sacrificed anymore for the atonement of sins, because the Messiah will shed his blood that has the power to sanctify and heal all humanity through all ages.” Saying this, Jesus walked away, followed by his disciples, leaving the bunch of agitated Pharisees rubbing their chins, feeling defeated and threatened by the power and truth in Jesus’ words.
There were many men and women who were drawn to Jesus’ message and desired to join his team. Though he took in many of them, he specially chose 12 of them to be his
‘apostles’. They included Simon (whom Jesus renamed ‘Peter’
which means ‘Rock’), Andrew, James, John, Philip, Nathanael (also called Bartholomew), Matthew, Thomas, Jude Thaddeus, James (The Younger), Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot.
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