Have you ever wondered what life was like for the disciples before they met Jesus?

Peter, Andrew, James and John were fisherman, actually they were partners, along with Zebedee, the father of James and John.  Fishing was somewhat of a hard life, physically demanding, and unpredictable.  These men were certainly physically strong, familiar with disappointment,  and able to whether various storms.  They would know the value of teamwork, and the need to be able to trust the people you work with.  Character would have been extremely important to them.

Life for the Jews of Capernaum would have been quite different from life for the Jews of Jerusalem.  There would have been a smaller Roman presence there.  There would have even been some benefits to the area because of the Roman improvements – such as better roads and safer travel.  Still, the Jews living in this fishing village paid a price for the Roman “improvements”.  Romans were to be feared, because Jews rarely came out on the winning side of any disagreement.  Most Jews went about their business, and kept a low profile when it came to the Romans.

Then, there was the taxes to be paid.  Jews paid upward to thirty percent of their income to Rome, and Rome appointed (or sold the rights to) certain Jews to collect the taxes from their fellow Jews.  These Jews were given a set amount that they needed to collect, and turn over to Rome.  The tax collectors income was based on whatever he charged over and above that set amount – and it was completely up to the tax collector what he chose to charge.  There were no appeals, and often people who were unable to pay the tax where charged high interest rates.  Tax collectors generally became very wealthy, but their wealth came at a price.  They were considered traitors by their fellow Jews – the worst kind of criminals.  Both the religious people and the common people scorned them.  They were “excommunicated” from the Jewish community.  They were not permitted in the synagogues.  In the temple, they could not go past the Court of the Gentiles – a violation punishable by death.  Not even their money was accepted in the temple treasury.  Some rabbis taught that a tax collector was “beyond repentance”.

In Capernaum, Andrew, Peter, and the others would have felt the pain of paying the tax collector.  They would surely have sometimes felt a level of injustice in the amount, and carried a grudge against the man who took their hard earned wages to grow his own wealth.

Then, Andrew met John the Baptist, and became a follower.

John 1:35-42

The next day John was there again with two of his disciples.When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”

When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”

They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

“Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus.

Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).

Andrew was eagerly looking forward to the Messiah.  Like most other Jews of his time, he probably viewed the Messiah as the one who would deliver them from the oppression of Rome, the Roman Soldiers, and the hated tax collectors.  When John the Baptist pointed out “The Lamb of God” to him, Andrew changed direction, and followed Jesus.  The Messiah he had been longing for had arrived.  He eagerly introduced Peter to Jesus, and their lives changed forever.  They continued working as fisherman, but began developing a relationship with him, getting to know him; their faith growing.  Then one day Jesus called them to go “all in”.

Luke 5:1-11

One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret,the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

 Mark 1:19-20

When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets.Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.

“Follow me.”  It appears the decision was simple for them.  What could not have been simple for them, however, was another occasion that they heard Jesus speak those words.

Matthew 9:9

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 – also known as the tax collector of Capernaum.  The one who collected taxes from the people of Capernaum, from Peter, Andrew, James and John.  Matthew surely had been observing Jesus, maybe even talking with him.  But Matthew was still in his tax collector’s booth when Jesus spoke those words – still collecting taxes.  It is hard to believe that the men of Capernaum were thrilled at this new addition to their inner circle.  This was personal!  They probably felt that they had been personally wronged by Matthew.  So now the words of Jesus were hitting close to home:

Matthew 5:43-48

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Just when we think we’re doing good, Jesus has a way of raising the bar.  They didn’t even have time to digest this turn of events, when Jesus led them on, “into the house of the tax collector”.

Matthew 9:10-11

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

They had committed to follow Jesus, but they didn’t necessarily see this coming.  Jesus was defining his ministry, and refining his disciples – and he needed Matthew.  It is perhaps with this turn of events that Jesus acquired a new title –  “Friend of Sinners”.  Now it was up to his other disciples to do the same.  To be a follower of Jesus, was to become a friend of sinners

This verse that Jesus quotes is from Hosea chapter 6.  Jesus looks at the most “spiritually educated” people in the room, and tells them “go, and learn”.

Hosea 6:6

For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,

    and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.

The word translated “mercy” here is the Hebrew word “hesed”.  It is one of the most researched words in the Bible.  There isn’t a word in English that completely defines Hesed.  Sometimes it is defined as mercy, other times as loving-kindness, and other times as covenant loyalty. It is a characteristic of God, that expresses itself in these attributes.

God is saying:

“What I really want is to see my heart beating in you, expressing my character in you.  This is so much more important than all the religious activities, pious words, and good intentions.”

This is what the Pharisees needed to hear.  Perhaps this is what his disciples needed to hear.  Perhaps it is what we need to hear.

This verse is at the heart of Jesus’ ministry.  It must have left an impression on Matthew.  He is the only disciple that records these words.   He also is the only one that records another occasion that Jesus references Hosea 6:6; only this time, Jesus is defending all of his disciples, not just the tax collector:

Matthew 12:1-8

At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.”

He answered, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. Or haven’t you read in the Law that the priests on Sabbath duty in the temple desecrate the Sabbath and yet are innocent? I tell you that something greater than the temple is here. If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’you would not have condemned the innocent. For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

The calling of Matthew was a huge moment in the ministry of Jesus.  It sifted the character of the would-be followers.  Jesus had not appointed the “twelve” as of yet.  Many other disciples had already answered the call to follow him – put their hand to the plow, and this would most likely test their commitment to that call.  Who was willing to follow  into the house of a tax collector?”  In all likelihood, not everyone.  Who laid down their place in this great story because they couldn’t follow “there”?

Raising the Bar!  Sifting his followers!  Similar scenarios would occur at other points in Jesus’ ministry:

John 6:57-69

Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”

From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.

“You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.

Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”

“Follow Me.”  No lengthy explanation of goals, destinations, or expectations was offered. There would be places they didn’t want to go; things they didn’t want to do; people they didn’t want in their inner circle; and walls that they didn’t want toppled.  This is what was required.  They were not – are not – words for the weak or the semi-committed.  To be a follower of Jesus is to be willing to become whatever he calls you to become – to step into the “House of the Tax Collector”, whatever that may represent in your life.

These are words for the one who can do nothing else – can see no other option – but to lay everything down, leave everything behind, and simply follow the Holy One of God!.

“Lord, to whom shall we go?

You have the words of eternal life.

We have come to believe and to know that

you are the Holy One of God.”