Matthew Became My Name

Image via Wikipedia

Good deeds?  Yes, I’ve done good deeds,

I’ve had my share of helping others,

But I, Levi, got caught up in my own greed,

 

As a tax collector I was selected,

I swore to do my best in office,

But my dishonesty was soon detected,

 

All the good deeds I had ever done,

Were all forgotten by those I served,

And I lost all the trust I had won,

 

I was required to go before a judge,

I secretly offered a share of my profits,

But the man was honest and wouldn’t budge,

 

I found out he was afraid of the trouble it might bring,

He suspected officials were on to him,

Trying to snare him with legal strings,

 

I didn’t need to take an honesty test,

I’d take whatever the Romans gave me,

And of course, I would steal the rest,

 

Money was always worth fighting for,

Why worry about what the rich were getting,

There would always be the poor,

 

Because I stole I was always the one to blame,

When I was called to follow Jesus,

Matthew became my new name,

 

Most of the population still hated me,

They knew I worked for the Romans,

And the Romans were the enemy,

 

I don’t know why Jesus gave me mercy and grace,

But he said my sins were completely forgiven,

They were gone without a single trace,

 

Hated by the Pharisees, I was still a Jew,

But a different world was revealed around me,

And the more He taught, I knew.