2nd Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 5, Year A
Matt.9:9-13, 18-26
Rev. Misa Furumoto
Today we enter the long green season of the Church Year. Two weeks ago, on the Day of Pentecost, we remembered how the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples from heaven, fifty days after the Resurrection of Jesus. Last Sunday was Trinity Sunday, when we reflected on the mystery of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Now we begin the season after Pentecost, which continues until the First Sunday of Advent. The color of this season is green. Green is the color of growing plants and trees. Just as branches stretch out and leaves grow, we pray that our faith may also grow and mature. During these months, we follow the life and teachings of Jesus through the Scriptures, learning how he lived and what he taught, so that we may renew our commitment to follow him.
Today’s Gospel contains the calling of Matthew, the healing of a woman who had suffered for many years, and the raising of a leader’s daughter. At first glance, these seem to be separate stories, but they share a common theme: God shows mercy and calls people into salvation.
Let us begin with Matthew. Matthew was a tax collector. In those days, tax collectors collected taxes for the Roman Empire, which ruled over Judea. They were deeply disliked. Many Jews resented paying taxes to a foreign pagan power. Moreover, tax collectors often enriched themselves by collecting more money than was required. As a result, tax collectors were regarded as sinners and were despised by many people, especially by the religious leaders.
Yet Jesus approached Matthew and said, “Follow me.” And Matthew immediately got up and followed him. Why did Jesus choose someone like Matthew? If Jesus was gathering disciples to help proclaim God’s kingdom, we might expect him to choose respected and righteous people. Yet he chose someone whom society rejected. Jesus did not say, “You are a sinner, so you are not worthy.” He did not say, “First become a better person.”
He simply said, “Follow me.”
Later Jesus shared a meal at Matthew’s house, where many tax collectors and sinners were gathered. In that culture, sharing a meal was much more than eating together. It was a sign of acceptance, friendship, and fellowship. When the Pharisees saw this, they were shocked. “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” For devout religious people, eating with sinners seemed unthinkable. They believed that close association with such people would make them spiritually unclean.
But Jesus answered: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.” Of course, Jesus was not speaking only about physical illness. He was speaking about the deeper sicknesses of the human heart: loneliness, fear, grief, despair, guilt, and spiritual brokenness.
When we stand before God, none of us can honestly claim to be completely healthy. We have all hurt others. We have all failed to love as we should. We have all become absorbed in our own concerns and forgotten the needs of our neighbors. In that sense, all of us are patients who need the Great Physician. The important question is whether we recognize our need.
Matthew knew that he was regarded as a sinner and an outcast. But the Pharisees were confident in their own righteousness. They believed that they were already acceptable before God. If Jesus had approached such a person and said, “Follow me,” perhaps the response would have been, “No thank you. I am doing just fine.” A person who believes they need no help may never hear the invitation of Christ.
Jesus then continued: “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’”
Here Jesus quotes the prophet Hosea. The people of Israel faithfully offered sacrifices in the Temple and observed religious practices. Yet God was not satisfied with religious rituals alone. If worship does not lead us to compassion, then we have missed God’s heart.
What God desires is mercy. Mercy is more than feeling sorry for someone. Mercy means turning our hearts toward those who suffer. Mercy means refusing to abandon the weak.
Mercy means not casting aside those who have failed. Mercy means treating others as God has treated us.
The Pharisees focused on their own righteousness. Jesus focused on the suffering of others. The Pharisees asked, “Why does he eat with sinners?” Jesus answered, in effect, “Because they are the ones who need mercy.”
The two miracles that follow illustrate this same truth. A woman had suffered from hemorrhages for twelve years. We can hardly imagine the loneliness and hardship she endured. She may have been isolated from society and nearly deprived of hope.
Yet she believed: “If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well.” She came to Jesus in faith, and Jesus did not reject her. Instead, he said: “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.”
Likewise, a leader came to Jesus after the death of his daughter. Faced with overwhelming grief, he sought help from the Lord. Both the woman and the leader had reached the limits of their own strength. Yet Jesus welcomed them.
He restored the woman. He gave new life to the girl.
What we see here is not condemnation but mercy. This is the heart of God.
God continually pours out mercy upon each one of us.No matter how great our sins may be, no matter how rejected we may feel, no matter how weak, inadequate, or broken we think we are, the voice of Christ still calls to us: “Follow me.” “Do not be afraid.” “I am with you.” When we hear that voice, let us rise as Matthew did and follow him.
As we encounter God’s great love, we are given a new beginning. We are transformed into people who can love ourselves, love our neighbors, and walk faithfully with Christ.
And if anyone here today is carrying sorrow, anxiety, or pain, take heart. Entrust your burdens to God and continue following Jesus. Even when the road ahead is unclear, our Lord walks with us.
May we hear his invitation anew today: “Follow me.”
And may we respond with faith and trust.
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
