Matthew 9:2-17

Just then some people brought a paraplegic man to him, lying on a sleeping mat. When Jesus perceived the strong faith within their hearts, he said to the paralyzed man, “My son, be encouraged, for your sins have been forgiven.” These words prompted some of the religious scholars to think, “Why, that’s nothing but blasphemy!” Jesus supernaturally perceived their thoughts, and said to them, “Why do you carry such evil in your hearts? Which is easier to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or, ‘Stand up and walk!’? But now, to convince you that the Son of Man has been given authority to forgive sins, I say to this man, ‘Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk home.’ ” Immediately the man sprang to his feet and left for home. When the crowds witnessed this miracle, they were awestruck. They shouted praises to God because he had given such authority to human beings. As Jesus left Capernaum he came upon a tax-collecting station, where a Jewish man named Matthew was collecting taxes for the Romans. “Come, follow me,” Jesus said to him. Immediately Matthew jumped up and began to follow Jesus. Jesus went to Matthew’s house and made himself at home. Many other tax collectors and outcasts of society were invited to eat with Jesus and his disciples. When those known as the Pharisees saw what was happening, they were indignant, and they kept asking Jesus’ disciples, “Why would your Master dine with such lowlifes?” When Jesus overheard this, he spoke up and said, “Healthy people don’t need to see a doctor, but the sick will go for treatment.” Then he added, “Now you should go and study the meaning of the verse: I want you to show mercy, not just offer me a sacrifice. For I have come to invite the outcasts of society and sinners, not those who think they are already on the right path.” The disciples of John the Baptizer approached Jesus with this question: “Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast regularly, but not your disciples?” Jesus replied, “How can the sons of the bridal chamber grieve when the Bridegroom is next to them? But the days of fasting will come when the Bridegroom is taken away from them. And who would mend worn-out clothing with new fabric? When the new cloth shrinks it will rip, making the hole worse than before. And who would pour fresh, new wine into an old wineskin? Eventually the wine will ferment and make the wineskin burst, losing everything—the wine is spilled and the wineskin ruined. Instead, new wine is always poured into a new wineskin so that both are preserved.”