Deep Disciplesip: Being Led

Intro: We are beginning a new series today—digging into Matthew,

We will have a few selected passages this month, then starting in Oct dig into the Sermon on the Mount.

The theme is deep discipleship The idea of deep discipleship is drawn from Parable of the Sower

—Jesus warns agains a shallow discipleship (Mt 13:5-6)

—But he commends depth (Mt 13:23)

Things that are deep have a stability and maturity; even a fruitfulness and flourishing

Apply: That will be the question we need to ask ourselves through the course of this. Are we deep disciples? Are we maturing, are we fruitful.

Though he doesn’t use the same analogy, Paul had the same heart as he planted churches

Colossians 1:28–29 ESV

Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

This seems like a fitting text to begin our look at Deep Discipleship

THE CALL (V9)

This story takes place somewhere in Capernaum

Matthew likley worked what would be the equivalent of a toll both. Any goods coming into Capernaum would be charged a toll or custom tariff—a tax collector Customs agents, or TSA with the authority to search your possessions.

-Often tax collectors would collect even more than needed to line their pockets.

-Even if Matthew didn’t do that, he is still lumped into that group

-Not only that, with regular contact with the Gentile Romans, they were considered habitually defiled—in the category of lepers

Tradition holds that Matthew is the author of the gospel; He is listed as one of the Apostles (10:3)—he goes by the name Levi in other Gospels

Don’t you find it interesting that Jesus calls a guy who would have stigma to him?

Striking that Jesus calls a guy so despised?

Apply: But what matters most is not what you’ve done—but how you respond to the call of the Lord Jesus: Follow Me.

What matter most is the call & response: Follow Me

What matters most is not what stigma we may have

What matters most is that we resolve one thing: Being Led by Jesus

But discipleship is about followership.

Being Led

A strong picture of what that looks like is found in Matthew:

Tax collecting was a prosperous job.

Matthew is leaving the booth—letting go of what is prosperous—indicates a change of life/lifestyle.....

And a statement that money was not the most important thing in his life--

God’s calling is supreme!

Matthew’s calling is a picture of what leaving everything to follow Jesus looks like

It may be that Matthew would have trouble finding any job moving forward—the lucrative tax post would soon be filled;

With the stigma of a tax collector, other job openings would be hard to come by

We need to see how much of a Sacrifice these early followers of Jesus made

Matthew joyfully leaves all that’s secure behind to follow Jesus—and does it with joy ( a feast follows)

Following Jesus is leaving some sort of former life behind

Apply : A few things about the call:

The call is immediate. It’s a jump in it now call

The call is effective

If the call is of God, then it’s irresistible

Calling is effectual

**If it’s a work of God the Spirit, then there will never be a “no thank you” respond

Sum: Just like Matthew, the call of Jesus on our life means decisive action follows

THE CHARACTERS (10-13)

The scene moves from the tax booth to the table

Teaching someone is one one level of relationship—sharing a meal puts the relationship on a whole other level....a much closer association and acceptance

There are 2 sets of characters for our focus:

Sinners & Scornful

The sinners:

These are the social outcasts of the day

They did not follow the law as scrupously as the scribes and Pharisees

Jesus intentionally dines with social outcasts

(Just like he went out of the way to talk to Samaritan woman)

**Scandalous and surprising

The word behold is a word in the text that reminds us that God is doing something surprising, and amazing. Something happens that goes against normal expectations

In Jesus’s day, there were two categories of sinners according to religious leaders

The common person of the land who was not attached to a stricter sect like the Pharisees

Very grievous sinners—like tax collectors and prostitutes

Matthew 21:32 ESV

For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him.

Note also, that there are “many” (v10) of these characters.

Matthew 20:28 ESV

even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

**Yet this was the Mission of Jesus—to gather the many.....

Many sinners who draw near to him in faith, repentance

Jesus cameo to repair the lives of people who are broken by their sin

(v12)--

That’s the illustration he gives us: a person with a healthy arm is not going to a doc—but a person with a broken arm and running a fever—they need help.

Apply: In other words, Jesus did not come to congragualte righteous people—but to save sinners

I wonder what the conversation in the house with the sinners sounded like?

However it went, people were attracted to Jesus—his truth, love, grace, kindness, his peace, mercy, humility

His courage, single-mindedness, clarity, authority

Matthew 12:20 ESV

a bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory;

…but not all are excited:

2) The scornful (Pharisees)

Avoiding the Pharisee Trap

**Sincere Christians want to avoid being like Pharisees—it’s like a curse word

One NT scholar gives a helpful perspective

“It’s simply not fair....to tar all Pharisees with the same brush. In many ways Jesus was closer to the Pharisees than any other Jewish sectarians....Pharisees were the upstanding “conservative evangelical pastors” of their day, strongly convinced of the inerrancy of scripture and its sufficiency for guidance in every area of life” (Craig L. Blomberg Jesus and the Gospels p. 51)

In one sense, the Pharisees were guys that on the outside seemed decent

—They highly valued the Word of God

—Very concerned about moral decay in society

—They believed that God’s people needed have unconditional loyalty to Him

—In other words, they took the faith seriously

So where was the disconnect?

We see two things

1. Not teachable.

2. No delight in mercy

Not teachable (v11)

The Pharisees come at the disciples with a question

But there is something vital in v11 to catch. See how the Pharisees refer to Jesus (your teacher)

That’s actually one of the main ways Jesus is referred to in the Gospel— “The Teacher”

**But Pharisees did not want him as their teacher. They preferred to be in the teaching seat

Matthew 23:8 ESV

But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.

Matthew 23:10 ESV

Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ.

Apply: The first indication of being a Pharisee is not longer being teachable. Not hungering to lean of Christ and his way, his Word.

2. No delight in mercy

Jesus says: Go and learn (i.e study some more until you get it)—there is a rebuke in the statement

Mercy—the word int the Bible is pretty straightforward. It’s to be moved with pity and sorrow over someone.

From God it’s “giving undeserved kindness and forgiveness to those who do not deserve it” (Mounce)

It’s considered by Jesus one of the weightier matters of the law (Mt 23:23)

So Jesus challenges the Pharisees to go and learn the value of mercy (v13, cf Hos 6:6)

Hosea: Is about a God of mercy who calls sinners back to himself—it;s about a God delights in healing and restoring peoples lives

But they need to repent—see their desperate need

Hosea 6:1 ESV

“Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.

Jesus stresses the priority of mercy:

Matthew 18:33 ESV

And should not you have had mercy on your fellow servant, as I had mercy on you?’

The Pharisees misunderstood Jesus; they expected a Messiah who would crush sinners—not associate with them—and certainly not show mercy

But Matthew’s gospel stressed this point: Jesus’s mission is not to crush sinners in judgment, but to save

Matthew 1:21 ESV

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

The mission of Jesus was not to save his people from sinners....but to save from their sins

**This is why we worship, believe, follow, and learn

Sum: Avoiding Pharisee Trap

We remain teachable before Christ. Practically that means we want to be fed the scripture; we repent; we continue to ask the Spirit to transform us

We delight in mercy. Every person led by Jesus will know mercy.

Those led by Jesus also have a soft spot for sinners who are in need of mercy. They cast off judgment and celebrate the amazing, marvelous grace of Christ Jesus

Do you delight in mercy?

That’s how you know Jesus has drawn you…and you can go deep in discipleship

Conclusion:/Communion

We would all agree that Paul the Apostle was a Deep Disciple.

He lived a life led by JC

He got off the path of being a Pharisee, and on the path of discipleship---

His testimony (1 Tim 1:16)— boils down to just to four very, very powerful words:

But I recieved mercy

Those words mean’t a lot to Paul, do they meal a lot to us?

As we go the communion table, we go with those 4 words of our testimony:

But I received mercy