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Question 4

The chapter’s discussion of Matthew’s call highlights the scandal of Jesus choosing a tax collector as an apostle; if tax collectors were widely viewed as brutal “robbers under the cloak of law,” what does God’s choice of Matthew reveal about the kind of people God recruits, and what kinds of “unrecruitable” people do we quietly rule out today?

Another way to ask: If tax collectors were seen as cruel thieves with legal power, what does Jesus choosing Matthew say about the kind of people God calls? Who are the “unacceptable” people we assume God won’t use today?

Direct Answer The transcript suggests Jesus deliberately calls people with deeply scandalous pasts—even from hated, abusive professions—and makes them close disciples, not just distant converts. That challenges us to admit we often “rule out” people whose reputations feel too dirty or whose work has harmed others.

Support from Transcript:

Matthew is called while “there in his tax booth,” and when Jesus says “Follow me,” he “immediately dropped everything.”
Jesus selects him to be “one of the 12 apostles,” despite tax collectors being grouped with “prostitutes” in public contempt.
Bercot cites Chrysostom calling tax collecting “robbery under the cloak of law,” showing the moral ugliness associated with the job.
He stresses tax collectors were hated by “Gentiles and Jews alike,” even by Romans (Celsus: “wickedness of tax collectors”).
The scandal is heightened: “one of his intimate associates…was a former tax collector.”

Discussion Follow-ups Who are the modern equivalents of people we assume cannot be genuine disciples (because of their industry, reputation, or past)? What would it cost a church to welcome them without excusing the harm they did?

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