Hi, kids! In the post Andrew's Big Catch, we learned that Jesus chose people to become His disciples. Today, we meet another one of those disciples—a man named Matthew!
Did you know that before Matthew became one of Jesus' followers, many people did not like him? Let's find out why!
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| Matthew Follows Jesus Story Illustration |
Matthew the Tax Collector (Matthew 9:9-13)
During the time of Jesus, in the busy town of Capernaum, there lived a man named Matthew. Matthew worked as a tax collector.
Do you know what a tax collector does?
A tax collector collected money from the people to give to the Roman government. Many people did not like tax collectors because some of them collected more money than they should. Because of this, people thought tax collectors were greedy and dishonest.
So Matthew was not very popular.
Every day, Matthew sat in his tax booth counting coins and collecting taxes from the people.
Jesus Calls Matthew
One day, something wonderful happened.
Jesus was walking through the town, and a large crowd followed Him. Everyone wanted to hear His teachings and see the miracles He performed.
As Jesus walked by Matthew's tax booth, He looked at Matthew with kindness and said,
"Follow Me."
Matthew was surprised!
Why would Jesus choose someone like him?
But Matthew saw the love and kindness in Jesus' eyes. Without waiting another moment, he stood up, left his tax booth behind, and followed Jesus.
From that day on, Matthew became one of Jesus' twelve disciples.
Matthew Follows Jesus
Matthew traveled everywhere with Jesus and the other disciples. He watched Jesus perform amazing miracles.
- The blind received their sight.
- People who could not walk were able to walk again.
- The sick became well.
- Even people who had died were raised back to life!
Matthew listened carefully as Jesus taught everyone about God's love, forgiveness, and His kingdom. Every day, Matthew learned more about loving God and loving others.
A Changed Heart
Many people remembered Matthew as a tax collector. Some people even wondered why Jesus spent time with someone like him.
But Jesus knew Matthew's heart could change. Jesus did not choose Matthew because he was perfect. He chose Matthew because He loved him and knew that Matthew was willing to follow Him.
Matthew left behind his old life and became faithful to Jesus. Later, God used Matthew to write one of the four Gospels in the Bible—the Gospel of Matthew! Through his writing, people all over the world can learn about the life of Jesus.
What Can We Learn from Matthew?
Matthew teaches us an important lesson.
No matter who we are or what mistakes we have made, Jesus loves us and invites us to follow Him.
When we choose to follow Jesus, He helps us become the people God wants us to be.
Just like Matthew, we can leave behind wrong choices and choose to obey God every day.
Isn't that wonderful?
Next time you hear Jesus' words in the Bible, remember Matthew. He said "yes" to Jesus and lived his life as God wanted him to.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Let's see how much you remember!
What was Matthew's job before he followed Jesus? (He was a tax collector.)
What did Jesus say to Matthew? (“Follow Me.”)
What did Matthew do after Jesus called him? (He immediately followed Jesus.)
What wonderful things did Matthew see while following Jesus? (He saw Jesus perform miracles and teach about God's kingdom.)
What lesson can we learn from Matthew? (Jesus loves everyone and invites us to follow Him, no matter who we are.)
MEMORY VERSE
Matthew 9:9
"As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. 'Follow me,' He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him."
KIDS ACTIVITIES
1. Follow Jesus Footprints
Cut out paper footprints and place them around the classroom. Let the children follow the footprints while saying, "I will follow Jesus!" At the end of the trail, place a picture of Jesus.
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| The children should follow the footprints going to the picture of Jesus |
2. Color and Tell
Let the children color the black and white version of the story illustration "Matthew Follows Jesus". You can download it here. Then, let the children tell the story using the illustrations on the colored page about how Matthew followed Jesus.
3. Follow Me Game
Choose one child to be the leader. Everyone else follows the leader's actions, just as Matthew followed Jesus. After the game, remind the children that we should follow Jesus every day by obeying His Word.
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