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Matthew the Apostle

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Matthew the Apostle

The Call of Levi: From Tax Collector to Disciple

Jesus agreed to go to the great banquet that Matthew was having, in which He would find Himself amongst other tax collectors and sinners: "Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples." -- Matthew 9:10

So let's take a quick moment to mention a few things, when it comes to Matthew the Apostle. First off, when it comes to his name, know that it signifies: The Gift of God. The Scared Record informs us that when Jesus had called Matthew into His inner discipleship circle, he was at the time, a tax collector. Also know, Matthew was the "recorded sinner" who'd invited Jesus to come back to his house, so that the Son of God could dine with him and his friends.

I also like to point out, this dinner Matthew was having, would be part of a great banquet. Be that as it may, Jesus would agree to go to the great banquet that Matthew was having, and it would be at this time, Jesus would find Himself amongst other tax collectors and sinners: "Now it happened, as Jesus sat at the table in the house, that behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down with Him and His disciples." -- Matthew 9:10

Now I would like to point out that some of the Pharisees were at Matthew's dinner as well. And when they had seen Jesus sitting at a table that were full of sinners, they questioned His judgment. For they'd asked Christ's disciples: "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" Now Jesus had heard the questions that the Pharisees had just asked His disciples. And after hearing what they had asked, Jesus took it upon Himself to answer them: "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." -- Matthew 9:12-13

However, what Matthew didn't know at the time, is that he would be found to be in both a privileged, and honorable position, of being able to come into Jesus' inner circle of disciples. And because of this, Matthew would be able to witness first hand, when it came to the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. And not only that, because of the unique position that he held from within Jesus' inner circle, he would be given a great responsibility, when it came to writing the gospel that would be later known as: The Book of Matthew.

Matthew's writings would become part of a greater ensemble that dealt with the story of Jesus Christ. A great ensemble that would be eventually known as: The Four Gospels. I would also like to take this time to point out that each of the four Gospels, were written within a certain style. And not only that, each Gospel was written in such a way, they would be considered geared towards a certain group of people:

The Book of Matthew: This book was written in a style that was best suited for teaching, and was geared more, towards the Jewish people.

The Book of Mark: This book was written in a style that was best suited for preaching, and was geared more, towards the Romans.

The Book of Luke: Was written in a style that was best suited for historical purposes, and was geared more towards the Greeks.

The Book of John: This book was written in a style that was best suited for theology, and was written for the world as a whole.

Christian Martyr - Matthew the Apostle

The Four Gospels

Now history would lead us to believe, Matthew had written his book about eight years after Jesus Christ had ascended into the heavens, and had taken His place from within the Eternal Kingdom, as He sat on the right hand side, of the Almighty God. As I pointed out earlier, it's to be believed, this particular Gospel was written specifically for the Jewish nation, and as I've stated before, Matthew's writing was very unique, being that it was compared to a style that was best suited for teaching.

Now when it came to his writings, Matthew put a strong emphasis on Jesus in such a way, it constantly reminded his readers that Jesus, was indeed, the Promised Messiah. For he constantly pointed out that Jesus was that Messiah, who had fulfilled all of the Old Testament Messianic prophecies. Matthew also focused more on the sermons, Jesus had preached, which were more, than any of the other four Gospels did.

Christian Martyr - Matthew the Apostle

The Martyrdom of Matthew

Now I would also like to point out, there isn't much history that is written on Matthew (outside of the Four Gospels) especially when it comes to how he was killed. But when it comes to what little we do have, we're lead to believe, he had preached in the land of Palestine for some years. It's also rumored, he had traveled to different foreign countries.

And eventually his journey would lead him to the land of Ethiopia. It would be there, at this place, Matthew would become associated with Candace. For she was the reining queen of Ethiopia during that day.

Sadly, it's also rumored that later on, Matthew would be pinned to the ground, and was then later beheaded by the ax from within the Ethiopia city of Nadabah, somewhere around the time of 60 A.D..

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