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"And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him." (Mark 2:14)This short verse tells us of the calling of Matthew, also known as Levi. In recent years archeologists have discovered that Capernaum had a man-made harbor. The main road from Rome went right by the synagogue, Peter's house, and the harbor.Matthew very well may have been collecting the tax on goods that went on and off the ships. Tax collectors often would pay the tax to Rome and then collect it plus some extra loot for themselves. They weren't in that business to make friends and influence people. They worked that job by fleecing the folks for as much as they could get out of them. They were disliked by their fellow Jews because of their service to the nation that controlled them. The other disciples probably thought the choice of Matthew to be a strange one. Now, those theologians tell us that it was Matthew who wrote down the first record of Jesus' sayings in Hebrew and was the resource for some of the sayings in the Gospels. If that is so, we owe a great deal to Matthew and can now see what a wise choice Jesus made. Matthew most likely made a very humble disciple. If we are honest, we might confess that we wonder about some of God's choices today. However, those who know they need a Saviour and that they bring nothing to offer at the table are often the humblest of God's servants. They are quick to see the need in others and they often bring talents that have previously been dormant because of their life of sin.We know my experience that the Lord Jesus is the great transformer of lives. He loves to take the worst ones and those who many Christians want nothing to do with and make them examples of the greatness of His grace. Matthew left his worldly wealth and the disdain of his fellow citizens and became a beloved name to believers around the world.Friends, that homeless person, drug addict, or drunkard just might become one of God's most fruitful servants if we would make an effort to give them the Gospel. Only the grace of God can transform the most unlikely, the most unusual, and the most unworthy people and make them His own. I mean, look what He did for you and me!