Called to the Table

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. Matthew 9:10

When Jesus called Matthew, He didn’t simply add another disciple to the group. He opened a door for an entire community of people who had been pushed aside. Matthew’s first response was to host a feast, gathering his fellow tax collectors and outcasts, and giving them the chance to sit at the table with Jesus.

To the Pharisees, the sight was scandalous. A respected teacher sharing a meal with those labeled “sinners” seemed unthinkable. Yet Jesus’ answer was both simple and profound: a physician belongs with the sick, not with the healthy. His presence at that table was not compromise—it was healing.

The story raises questions for today. Who is being left off our guest list, not out of hatred, but out of fear? Fear of what might be stirred up in old memories, fear of the unknown, or fear of being misunderstood. Still, the example of Christ shows that the very people often avoided are the ones who may be most ready for mercy.

Many know the pain of leaving a chair empty at the table because of past hurts or wrongdoings. That is a separate but related matter of forgiveness and reconciliation, and it deserves its own careful reflection. For now, Matthew’s story directs the focus outward: Jesus did not shrink back from those the world shunned, and neither should His followers.

The lesson is clear: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice” (Matthew 9:13, NIV). Religious performance can look tidy, but mercy is personal, costly, and compassionate. Mercy listens. Mercy invites. Mercy heals.

Not only is it worth asking whether we personally have grown comfortable but also if the church has grown more comfortable with the respectable than with the broken. Jesus was holiness with open arms, and His company drew both seekers and skeptics alike. His mission statement still rings out: “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Luke 5:32, NIV).

The Kingdom of God is wide enough for everyone. The challenge is whether the tables of His people are wide enough too.

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Reflection

 Who is being left off the guest list, and what one step could widen your table this week?

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Prayer: 

Lord, teach us to choose mercy over appearances. Give courage to welcome the ones You came to call, and grace to reflect Your heart at every table. Amen.