DRAWING NEAR
MAY 22
A Traitor Turns to Christ
The twelve apostles included "Matthew the tax-gatherer" (Matt.
10:3).
I remember reading a notice in a local newspaper announcing the
opening of a new evangelical church in our community. It gave the
date and time of the first services, then added, "our special guest
star will be . . ." and named a popular Christian celebrity. In its
attempt to appeal to unbelievers or simply draw a large crowd, the
church today commonly uses that kind of approach.
Jesus, however, used a different approach. None of His disciples were
famous at all. In fact, rather than drawing a favorable crowd, some
of them might have repelled or even incited anger and hatred among
His Jewish audience. Matthew was such a man because he was a despised
tax-gatherer--one of many Jewish men employed by Rome to collect
taxes from his own people. As such he was regarded as a traitor by
his own countrymen.
The Roman tax system allowed tax collectors to keep anything they
collected in excess of what was owed to Rome. That encouraged bribes,
extortion, and other abuses.
To compound the issue, Matthew was among those who had the
prerogative of taxing almost anything they wanted to tax--roads,
bridges, harbors, axles, donkeys, packages, letters, imports,
exports, merchandise, and so on. Such men could accumulate enormous
wealth for themselves. You might remember another tax-gatherer named
Zaccheus, who is described in Luke 19:2 as a wealthy man. His
salvation was evidenced by his offer to repay fourfold to those he
had defrauded (v. 8).
Some people think God can't use them because they're not famous or
because of their past sins. But God has used Matthew, Zaccheus, and
millions of others like them. Concentrate on your present purity and
let God bless your ministry as He sees fit.
Suggestions for Prayer:
Thank God that he has made you a new person in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17).
Minister in light of that reality!
For Further Study:
Read Luke 19:1-10.
Where was Zaccheus when Jesus first spoke to him? What was the
reaction of the crowd when Jesus went to Zaccheus's house? What
prompted Jesus to say that salvation had come to Zaccheus?
Drawing Near, Copyright 1993 John F. MacArthur, Jr.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
http://www.gty.org
~~~
2 Corinthians 5:17
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old
things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Luke 19:1-10
19:1 Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho.
2 Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax
collector, and he was rich.
3 And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the
crowd, for he was of short stature.
4 So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him,
for He was going to pass that way.
5 And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and
said to him, "Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must
stay at your house."
6 So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully.
7 But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, "He has gone to
be a guest with a man who is a sinner."
8 Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I give
half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from
anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold."
9 And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house,
because he also is a son of Abraham;
10 "for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was
lost."
~~~
These devotions are posted with permission from John MacArthur's
first (1993) devotional work, _Drawing Near_, and they are also sent
out daily for free to several folks via e-mail.
In addition, John's second (1997) devotional, _Strength for Today_,
is also available free via e-mail only. _Strength for Today_ follows
the same format as what you have seen here from _Drawing Near_, but
with different monthly themes.
If you would like to receive daily devotions via e-mail from either
of these series, just let me know (via e-mail), and I will gladly add
you to the list(s) of your choice.
You can hear John MacArthur daily via the Internet by visiting:
http://www2.oneplace.com/Ministries/Grace_to_You/
and
http://www.gty.org.uk/
You may email John MacArthur in care of Grace to You at:
letters@gty.org
NOTE for those of you reading via newsgroups: If you wish to reach
me, please contact me via e-mail for quickest results.
In Christ,
Peter
Peter G. Chase :: Columbus, Ohio, USA
pchase1@wideopenwest.com
STOP! Who do you think Jesus is?
http://www.gty.org/Gospel
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To forgive is to set a prisoner free, and to discover that the prisoner was you. -Alistair Begg
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