Tax Collector.

In the year of Jesus Christ's time, I became a tax collector we were often despised by the people because we were seen as collaborators with the Roman authorities who occupied Israel. One tax collector, however, found his life forever changed when he encountered Jesus.

His name was Levi, also known as Matthew, and he was a Jewish tax collector in the city of Capernaum. He had become wealthy by collecting taxes from his fellow Jews on behalf of the Roman authorities. However, his wealth could not fill the emptiness he felt inside.

One day, Jesus saw Levi sitting at his tax booth and called out to him, "Follow me." To the surprise of everyone around him, Levi got up and followed Jesus.

Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his house for a meal. Many other tax collectors and sinners also came to the meal, and the Pharisees saw this and criticized Jesus for associating with such people.

But Jesus replied, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Levi was transformed by his encounter with Jesus. He gave up his dishonest ways and became a disciple of Jesus, spreading the message of the gospel to others. He eventually wrote the Gospel of Matthew, one of the four Gospels in the New Testament.

The story of Levi, the tax collector, shows that no one is beyond the reach of God's love and mercy. Even those who have been despised by society can find redemption and new life through Jesus Christ. Unfortunately for me I carried on to be a tax collector and my door began to look odd and out of sorts just like me.

In the parable told by Jesus in Luke 18:9-14, the Pharisee regarded the tax collector with contempt. The parable describes the Pharisee and the tax collector both praying in the temple. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, thanking God that he was not like other people, including the tax collector who stood some distance away. The Pharisee then listed his own virtues and good deeds, essentially boasting about his righteousness.

On the other hand, the tax collector stood at a distance and would not even look up to heaven. He beat his chest and said, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

In the parable told by Jesus in Luke 18:9-14, the Pharisee regarded the tax collector with contempt. The parable describes the Pharisee and the tax collector both praying in the temple. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, thanking God that he was not like other people, including the tax collector who stood some distance away. The Pharisee then listed his own virtues and good deeds, essentially boasting about his righteousness.

On the other hand, the tax collector stood at a distance and would not even look up to heaven. He beat his chest and said, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

Jesus concluded the parable by saying that it was the tax collector who went home justified before God, rather than the Pharisee. The point of the parable was to show that it is not external acts of righteousness that make one acceptable before God, but rather a humble and contrite heart that recognizes one's need for God's mercy and forgiveness.

So, in the parable, the Pharisee viewed the tax collector with disdain and saw him as a sinner. However, Jesus used the parable to challenge the Pharisee's self-righteousness and to highlight the importance of humility before God.Jesus concluded the parable by saying that it was the tax collector who went home justified before God, rather than the Pharisee. The point of the parable was to show that

In the parable told by Jesus in Luke 18:9-14, the Pharisee regarded the tax collector with contempt. The parable describes the Pharisee and the tax collector both praying in the temple. The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed, thanking God that he was not like other people, including the tax collector who stood some distance away. The Pharisee then listed his own virtues and good deeds, essentially boasting about his righteousness.

On the other hand, the tax collector stood at a distance and would not even look up to heaven. He beat his chest and said, "God, have mercy on me, a sinner."

Jesus concluded the parable by saying that it was the tax collector who went home justified before God, rather than the Pharisee. The point of the parable was to show that it is not external acts of righteousness that make one acceptable before God, but rather a humble and contrite heart that recognizes one's need for God's mercy and forgiveness.

So, in the parable, the Pharisee viewed the tax collector with disdain and saw him as a sinner. However, Jesus used the parable to challenge the Pharisee's self-righteousness and to highlight the importance of humility before God.

Unfortunately for me I carried on as a tax collector and saw Jesus as a meddling pest and I cursed him, my door to the dwelling changed one day, it was all out of place and didn’t look like it fitted, it looked like it was about to drop off. I cursed Jesus and said “ he had done this too me” Jesus came and looked and asked me to describe my life as a tax collector to him. I was taken aback with his overwhelming peace, and genuine concern for me, I began to feel guilty as all the years I had cursed him when my life was a reflection of my front door, completely. I left everything never looked back and followed Jesus and he called me Saul. I began to live a new life free of anger, hate and frustration in taking’s off the poor to feed the rich , I became to teach and preach the word of God and my life was finally worth living again.