Saint Matthew: The Call to Follow Jesus for Kids
Updated: Oct 3
At a tax collector’s table, Jesus offers Matthew an unexpected invitation: follow him. A meal with people in need of mercy becomes a lesson about the new life Jesus offers.
This story and its free teaching pages explore conversion, welcome, and fair choices. They help children connect God’s mercy with taking an honest next step.
Available free on YouTube since September 14, 2026. Watch the complete video above. Runtime: 3:50. Suggested ages: about 7–11.
Free teaching resources
Use these printable materials at home, in a Catholic classroom, in homeschool, or in parish religious education. The complete four-page packet includes a two-page leader guide with discussion questions, answer cues, an activity, prayer, and teaching notes, plus two student response options. Choose Draw & Tell or Read & Write to suit the child. PDFs are US Letter and suitable for black-and-white printing.
Talk about it together
What did Jesus ask Matthew to do?
Why did some people object to the meal?
What does Jesus’s welcome offer?
How can you choose a fair next step?
A next-step card
Use a pretend example of unfairly keeping extra game pieces. Write a truthful admission, a fair repair, and an adult helper if needed. Connect the plan with responding to Jesus’s invitation to live differently.
A note for parents and teachers
The story paraphrases Matthew 9:9-13 and adds imagined feelings and scenes. Matthew’s connection with the Gospel is traditional; its composition and sources are more complex than the simplified writing scene. Avoid presenting all tax collectors or Pharisees as alike, or assigning blame to Jewish people.
Pray together
Jesus, thank you for calling us with mercy. Help us leave wrong choices behind and follow you with honest, generous hearts. Saint Matthew, pray for us. Amen.
Learn more
Original video release: September 14, 2026. Website article and teaching resources added October 3, 2026.
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