scum

Matthew 9

 9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.

10 Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other notorious sinners. 11 But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?”

12 When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” 13 Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”

********

Here's what I always think about whenever I read about Jesus calling Matthew...

*Jesus LIKED hanging out with "notorious sinners."

*"Notorious sinners LIKED hinging out with Jesus.

*If we claim to be followers of Jesus, do we LIKE to hang out with the notorious sinners of today?

*And are we so filled with the love & spirit of Jesus that notorious sinners LIKE to hang with us?