The Gospel of Matthew

Before Matthew was a follower of Jesus, he was a turncoat Jew working for the Roman government as a despised tax collector, so when Jesus’ invited Matthew to be one of his closest disciples it was nothing short of scandalous. Through Matthew’s network of influence, Jesus met many other Jewish tax collectors - so many in fact that his association with these people became one of the major complaints of the religious elite about Jesus.

Matthew wrote his Gospel to a mainly Jewish audience with the goal of helping the people of Israel see that Jesus was the hoped-for Messiah, the true King of Israel, who’s coming was promised throughout the Old Testament Scriptures. But Matthew also wanted the Jews to understand that the whole world would be blessed through the coming of the Jewish Messiah.

The Gospel of Matthew was written around forty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus, and many scholars believe that Matthew referenced Mark’s Gospel in writing his own. In contrast to Mark, Matthew included Jesus’ longer sermons or teachings including the Sermon on the Mount and seven of Jesus’ parables.

Jesus completely transformed Matthew’s life from the moment Jesus said the words, “Follow me.” Matthew followed Jesus faithfully and dedicated the rest of his life to serving him. The Gospel of Matthew, written from the perspective of a Roman sell-out who became a sold-out servant of Jesus, gives us a rich inside view of Jesus the teacher and Jesus the King.