A Soul-Searching Walk Alongside Jesus, Part 2

Matthew chapter 9 records or sequence of encounters between Jesus and the people he met along his troubles, Jesus stopped to pardon the guilty feel a paralytic man and even fraternize with tax collectors today on Insight for living.

Chuck Swindoll re-creates the scenes force challenging us to receive these moments as Jesus intended.

The miracles were performed to illustrate that Jesus was indeed the son of the living God is calling on everyone he met to follow him. Chuck titled today's message of soul-searching walk alongside Jesus. Father, we thank you for answer prayer. And we realize that in answering you have your own timetable and you plan not only the depth and breath of the test you plan the length of it. You are our God. We heard it sung you are our only God one Lord, one faith only one in whom we trust to believe another God just to follow the teaching of idolatry. We want to follow you, Lord, even though the following includes the unexpected times of disappointment often surprise and frequently deep lingering lessons to learn. I pray for those today who have deep needs in their lives, about which they are praying people they love who have wondered in many of whom have never even come near the things of God, pray that you would encourage them as they wait on you to reach those who are astray.

Thank you father for never giving up on us for always seeing us is what we are to become not what we are. Thank you father that you have not written this off. Even though we have failed and will fail again thank you for the ability of the mind to imagine, help us to do that as we take this journey brief though it is on this one day with Jesus our master your son. May we feel the the boat beneath our feet when we sit in it.

The crush of the crowd in the home is the paralyzed man is brought among us. The prejudice in our own heart.

When we see you calling a man all the culture around us hates a tax collector. Help us to sit at that table that was served in honor of Jesus when those fellow tax gatherers sat with him and when he answered the critics who could never get beyond their own self righteous religion and before we leave proud of ourselves.

May we be broken.

Realizing that we too were prejudiced. We to have written people off. We too have failed to see the potential in a Matthew enable the truth that is printed on the page come alive, not only before our eyes, but within our own hearts and may believe different than when we came were grateful father that we have the privilege of helping our community. When we do so with great joy with passion with mercy, reaching out to those in need, who live across the street across the states and across the sea's. It was the faith to believe that you would use our efforts to touch children whom we will never meet on this earth but who will be fed and loved and encouraged.

We realize that the greatest message we have is a message of love from you are father, from whom we've learned in the name of Jesus Christ's. We pray and we give all God's people said Amen. Study the book of Matthew with Chuck Swindoll. Be sure to download searching the Scriptures by going to inside world.or/study another message from Chuck titled soul-searching walk alongside Jesus. There was never a more unlikely candidate for the office of disciple or apostle than Matthew. Matthew was a Jew but is working for Rome and you already know what the Jews thought of the Romans say he's a turncoat he's got his hands enjoys pockets but is answering the Roman authorities and he is one hated man Jesus reaches out and says to Matthew, follow me and be my disciple. All he's got one of us is tax gatherer Matthew got up and followed him. Luke adds.

He left everything and followed that wasn't enough, now pay attention. Being a disciple Matthew invited Jesus and us see it. Jesus and his disciples to his home. Luke tells us it was in honor of Jesus, who was the guest of honor, and he brought them along with many tax collectors and other disreputable centers.

Don't you love the word other, like say I want you to come and bring along your wife and other gossips see what it does it puts everybody in the category of a gossip bring along this man and also other crooks who worked alongside. The point is, the room is filled with people that you and I wouldn't look down on because of what they did for a living and they're all sitting together at this table and having the time of their life. Matthew was there because he so excited about their meeting his master, whom I do not know but as you would imagine. The Pharisees were looking in the windows and they were squinting their eyes and so they asked his disciples, so maybe one of you heard them. What is your teacher.

What is your teacher eat with such scum can you tell me how he gets away with this and calls himself a spiritual leader at that moment. It's great to be a disciple.

You look to Jesus for the answer, and he gives a classic answer.

Look at this without any preparation.

He responds helping people don't need a doctor. Sick people to write. I love that answer. What is it about yourself. I'm not here because people are healthy.

I'm here because people are sick.

That's why the father sent me on this mission call redemption or salvation. And then he added he says this to the self-righteous Pharisees, you go and learn the meaning of the Scripture. Now he quotes Hosea 6 verse six.

Check it for yourself.

I want you to show mercy not offer sacrifices you are busy involved in the liturgy of your religion.

You have it down pat, you got the answers for whatever is asked of you and you always come out smelling like a rose. You are the star of the show. You are the most important person in the group. I suggest that you learn the meaning of the Scripture first to show mercy, said Cassidy is the Hebrew word is the idea of loving kindness shown loving kindness and not spend your time bragging about the sacrifices that you offer for I've not come to call those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners. By the way I I love it that Jesus called Matthew to be one of the disciples.

I love it that he would sit down at the table with him and with his cronies illustrate how much of what a scandal that was to take you back to 1978 to a ballgame and you will not remember, but you will remember an event if you're a football fan. It's the gator bowl. Ohio State is the Ohio State is playing Clemson okay and Ohio State is coached by a man named Woody Hayes stay with me.

Sports fans already know where I'm going.

What he has trouble restraining is anger and feels passionate about Ohio State and they're fighting to win this game and one of the and the quarterback throws a pass right into the arms of Charlie ball almond who was a linebacker for Clemson. He catches the ball intercepts it and runs it in the other direction and winds up pretty close to where Woody Hayes is staying man what happened you football fans remember Woody lost the kid in the throat and it got on national television and it was repeated over and over and over and over appropriately. Woody Hayes was fired from Ohio State and he became a recluse is a hated man.

There were very few who still would even want to talk to Woody a you blown it royally. I understand from a private source that something happened to turn things around. There was a very special sports event gala held in honor of some who were being awarded for their athletic ability, and coach Tom Landry at that time coach of the Cowboys was invited to attend course and guess who he brought as his guest. The one you wouldn't talk to when I wouldn't have either most likely he invited Woody Hayes to be his honored guest to come with had them sit right behind him and for the first time and who knows how long he was able to connect again with the public the real world that is written them off.

Which reminds me of a brief conversation I had with Amanda this morning who said to me with a broken heart.

I've been written off the details. I'll not go into, nor would he want me to, but he said I was.

I was once a part of ministry in. I blew it. I nobody now so I have to ask you if you written anybody off. I know I know if you were to take your time, it would probably lead to the story of a scandal. And you know a lot about it and you know the embarrassment caused in the hurt too many people. But if you written that fallen person off the something here more than just another story about man on the tax boot being called to be a disciple or something about the answer. Jesus gives where he says physicians are not those who come to help those who are healthy. They're not needed by them and physicians are those who work with those who were sick those who are spiritual physicians work with the outcast the responsibility. My heart goes out Jesus would say to the outcasts, those who live in the muck and mire of disgrace and shame. My mission field is to reach them.

I was sent to clean the hearts of those who were sinful. By the way, might as well say it. A lot of us have been around churches a lot longer than we were around the outcasts. Our whole world is church. Our friends are church people we know best the church songs when we have a dinner party it's church folks we invite you have a lot to do with the neighbor who doesn't understand our world especially if that neighbors living a life that's shameful and are standard of living. I think it was Holly Hendrix who said it doesn't take the average Christian more than three or four years to remove from his or her life. Those who were lost as we center more and more attention when only those who are saved, it's a comfort zone. They understand our world, but that is not Christianity.

I love the quote I was given this past week, written by Robert Murray McShane, the Christian is a person who makes it easy for others to believe in God, like is not a thorough definition.

It's not a theological statement that is meant to be studied by theologians. It's a general statement. Listen to it, let it linger.

The Christian is a person who makes it easy for others to believe in God.

Do you know what I think. I think Jesus did.

That's why Luke tells us a lot of his followers were people like this that interested. They felt very welcome.

I appreciate the honest writing of George MacLeod. I simply argue that the cross be raised again at the center of the marketplace as well as on the steeple of the church. I'm recovering the claim that Jesus was not crucified in a cathedral between two candles, but on the cross between two thieves on a town garbage heap at a crossroad of politics so cosmopolitan that they had to write his title in Hebrew and in Latin and in Greek, the kind of place where cynics talk slot and thieves curse and soldiers gamble because that is where he died in that is what he died about and that is where Christ's men and women want to be and what church people ought to be about.

I appreciate your silence means rethinking left a message. Land hard, especially if you're the type to write off individuals because of a lifestyle.

This is a great time to come to terms with the fact that you may very well be a recovering Pharisee, who was the last time you spent an evening with a lost person or found yourself comfortable in the group of them were they told jokes.

You wouldn't have told her they drink beverages, you would have drunk is there world is not ours.

Admittedly we visited. Interesting that Jesus said I've come not to call those who think the righteous, but no other centers do you think your righteous if you forgotten the fact that you also are IRS an independent rotten sinner.

So my the day. We forget that is the day we start looking in through the window wondering why other people are not doing what we think they ought to be doing were not in charge of other people with a full-time job taking care of ourselves. I know I do and I know that before God.

I'm an undeserving rotten sinner to the cold that he had not reached me usually want to know the lifestyle I be living on a never gotten the woman I got to marry me I would never ever had any kind of impact in the lives of other people the grace of God. He reached down and looked at me inside my own tax collector's booth and invited begin to his band of men and women, and for that I'm eternally grateful why I call this a soul-searching walk alongside Jesus. I think the disciples were forever, for ever amaze at their master.

They were far tighter than he was far more judgmental far more prejudice. Would you have invited Woody Hayes to that event. See what I mean is just the way were put together and we've learned bad habits because we have gotten religious without realizing that the Christian is the one who makes it easy for another person to believe that there is a God, I urge you to take this to heart.

You don't need imagination to do that. In fact, you have to deal with reality and it is very comfortable. Just as I am, without one plea, but that that blood was shed for me.

Lamb of God. I, just as I put a great song. What a great approach as we stand before our God who knows the whole what happens when this occurs, we learn a vital lesson in humility and we leave our pride here as we walk out those doors don't we do but spell together.

It was the psalmist to preach search me oh God, and know my heart try me and test my thoughts. See if there be any wicked way in me, and then lead me in another way, the everlastingly your pride taken over. And if you found yourself really becoming prejudice really narrow, self-serving, so easy to get like that. It's a great moment for the believer to search our hearts for you who are without Jesus to know that he loves you died that you might live for gives you that you might walk in purity not in chain or heartbreak. I invite you to come to him today, just as you are just as you are soul-searching our father, we admit that and suddenly these these 13 verses jump off the page and find a place in our in our own lives.

We can see ourselves live right here in the print of the sentences and that is Bible knowledge at its best teach us. Father the value of walking in grace and truth. Guard us from self-serving statements and prejudicial looks caustic comments help us to be among your propagandists to make it easy for people to know for yourself father from herself made righteous and brings to the cross. Leave us there. I pray this for myself first and then for all of us together in Jesus name I ask everyone sitting rather than live in isolation. Jesus called us to step outside our comfort zones to share his grace and mercy with others.

You're listening to Insight for living and to learn more about this ministry.

Please visit us online@insightworld.org Chuck Swindoll titled today's message of soul-searching walk alongside Jesus. This call to action from Jesus will command our attention for the next several programs as it should. After all, Jesus said healthy people don't need a doctor.

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People are drawing near to Jesus, let me encourage you by reading a comment that just arrived from the Middle East. One of your fellow listeners said Chuck I've been working in Qatar for almost 12 years now and I don't have a Bible I just downloaded the Insight for living and Bible apps. I read your daily devotions and listen to your sermons, your words and encouragement. Reach me through technology. Well, this moment, and countless others are made possible by those who financially support the ministry of insight for living. We wouldn't be heard beyond Texas if it weren't for those who give as God prompts you to join us. We invite you to give a donation today by calling us your listening in the US dial 1-800-772-8888, 1-800-772-8888 or give a donation by going directly to Insight.org/donate. Thank you for your generous support of insight for the nine dates by state Chuck Swindoll describes a nonstop day of miracle. Listen again tomorrow to Insight for living in the preceding message soul-searching walk alongside Jesus was copyrighted in 2016 and 2021 and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. all rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited