When Matthew threw a party to honor Jesus it was
not a small affair. It was as extravagant as the time Mary poured her precious
perfume on the feet of Jesus. People to whom much grace is shown demonstrate
their grateful love in deeds of magnificence and devotion. The opponents of
Jesus criticized such events as displays of opulent indulgence, but their
greatest complaints were about the people who came to the party.
Of course Matthew invited the friends that he had because he wanted
to introduce them to Jesus. It is a natural characteristic of a young disciple
that he would want others to take the same step of repentance that he had so
recently taken. And who knows? It could be that on this festive occasion,
impressions were made that eventually led some of those present to the way of
righteousness.
Looked at from the inside, Matthew’s feast was joyous, innocent and
edifying. But from the outside, it was nothing short of scandalous. The
Pharisees looked at the partygoers, judged their character, and drew the most
sinister conclusions.
“Why does your teacher eat with such scum?” they asked the disciples
of Jesus. This constant criticism of Jesus had by this time become a standing
feature of His ministry. Interestingly, He never seemed to be bothered by it.
Instead He calmly went on with His work. When He was questioned, He was always
ready with a conclusive response. His most striking answers come when He vindicates
Himself for mixing with the tax collectors and sinners. This happens three
times. The first is here at Matthews feast; the second in the house of Simon
the Pharisee; and the third was a general charge that “This man welcomes
sinners and eats with them.”
His explanations for loving the unloved are full grace and truth
with a slight touch of satire directed at the sanctimonious faultfinders. His
first argument is a professional one: “I hang out with sinners because they
need healing and I am a physician. Where else should a physician be besides
among His patients?" His second argument could be described as a political one:
“It’s good policy to be a friend of sinners who have a lot to be forgiven. When
they are restored, their love will be greater!” His third argument is a
practical one: “I hang out with sinners because this is the way to find them
and relate to them. In the same way that a shepherd goes out to find the lost
sheep, so I go to where the lost people are so that I can bring them to a place
of healing and wholeness and restoration”. His final argument was judicial. Jesus says, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to
repent”. This hints that he would leave
the self-righteous alone and call to repentance and to the joys of the kingdom
those who were not too self-satisfied to desire the benefits offered, and to
whom the gospel feast would be a real party.
