Jesus went out again beside the lake; the whole crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. As he was walking along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.
And as he sat at dinner in Levi’s house, many tax-collectors and sinners were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples—for there were many who followed him. When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax-collectors, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does he eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard this, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’ – Mark 2:13-17
So many of the gospel stories of Jesus feature him talking to, interacting with, or helping people he wasn’t supposed to, according to law and custom. The hemorrhaging woman, his dead friend Lazarus, the Samaritan woman at the well, and even tax collectors. The last was a class of Jewish people who collected taxes for the Roman empire, adding extra onto the official amount to make money for themselves. It was a known fact, which didn’t make the collectors any more popular to the people than the Roman empire, to whom they had to pay the taxes.
Not only did Jesus tell Levi, the tax collector, to follow him, but he also ended the evening having dinner at Levi’s house along with many other collectors and others considered to be on the edge of being outcast. Undoubtedly, Jesus spoke and taught in a way that captured Levi’s heart, for Levi did become a disciple. Others probably followed Jesus as well, being drawn in by Jesus’s words and the power behind them.
Inevitably, Jesus came in for criticism for behaving in this way, actually eating with a bunch of sinners who did not follow the law, or perhaps not entirely enough to suit the finger-pointers. It seemed there were always people around eager to cast aspersions on Jesus or try to get him in trouble.
Tattle-tales and judgy people seem to have been around since sometime after Creation. Noah’s neighbors must have laughed at him as he built the ark in his back yard, a place large enough to hold a massive boat but without any water around to float it in. Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery because Joseph had talents they didn’t; they let their jealousy get the better of them. Workers pointed fingers at co-workers who made the same amount even though the co-workers actually put in fewer hours. It hasn’t changed much. Neighbors still gossip and sometimes laugh, brothers (and sisters) attempt to gain a higher place in their parents’ esteem. Workers are often eager to figuratively back-stab their fellow laborers to climb the corporate ladder or gain some superiority.
Jesus had the Pharisees and Scribes as major tattle-tales and finger-pointers. They followed him around, making notes and sending back reports to their superiors in Jerusalem to add to the growing file on this Jesus of Nazareth.Jesus went out again beside the lake; the whole crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. As he was walking along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.
And as he sat at dinner in Levi’s house, many tax-collectors and sinners were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples—for there were many who followed him. When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax-collectors, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does he eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’ When Jesus heard this, he said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’ – Mark 2:13-17
So many of the gospel stories of Jesus feature him talking to, interacting with, or helping people he wasn’t supposed to, according to law and custom. The hemorrhaging woman, his dead friend Lazarus, the Samaritan woman at the well, and even tax collectors. The last was a class of Jewish people who collected taxes for the Roman empire, adding extra onto the official amount to make money for themselves. It was a known fact, which didn’t make the collectors any more popular to the people than the Roman empire, to whom they had to pay the taxes.
Not only did Jesus tell Levi, the tax collector, to follow him, but he also ended the evening having dinner at Levi’s house along with many other collectors and others considered to be on the edge of being outcast. Undoubtedly, Jesus spoke and taught in a way that captured Levi’s heart, for Levi did become a disciple. Others probably followed Jesus as well, being drawn in by Jesus’s words and the power behind them.
Inevitably, Jesus came in for criticism for behaving in this way, actually eating with a bunch of sinners who did not follow the law, or perhaps not entirely enough to suit the finger-pointers. It seemed there were always people around eager to cast aspersions on Jesus or try to get him in trouble.
Tattle-tales and judgy people seem to have been around since sometime after Creation. Noah’s neighbors must have laughed at him as he built the ark in his back yard, a place large enough to hold a massive boat but without any water around to float it in. Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery because Joseph had talents they didn’t; they let their jealousy get the better of them. Workers pointed fingers at co-workers who made the same amount even though the co-workers actually put in fewer hours. It hasn’t changed much. Neighbors still gossip and sometimes laugh, brothers (and sisters) attempt to gain a higher place in their parents’ esteem. Workers are often eager to figuratively back-stab their fellow laborers to climb the corporate ladder or gain some superiority.
Jesus had the Pharisees and Scribes as major tattle-tales and finger-pointers. They followed him around, making notes and sending back reports to their superiors in Jerusalem to add to the growing file on this Jesus of Nazareth.
Jesus just continued to do what he knew his job to be – preaching, teaching, and modeling a life God wanted for all the people. His parables were teaching tools where people considered outsiders were the heroes and the ultra-observant the protagonists. People were always glad to listen to stories, especially ones set in familiar settings with people like themselves as characters and work they understood very well. The stories lured them closer to Jesus, and his miracles and care for others showed them a better way of life. It still works today.
The statement, “‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick,” certainly rings with us in this age of pandemic and seemingly endless variants. So many deny that there is anything wrong, that they can get sick or even die, or that they can make others ill and risk death because they take no precautions for themselves or others. We know so much more about epidemiology and health care than the people in Jesus’s day. Yet, we ignore warnings and possible aid because Jesus didn’t get vaccinated or wear masks. They assert God will protect them, something like what Noah’s neighbors said when Noah explained about the upcoming flood. To have faith in God is extremely important, yet God expects us to help ourselves and, even more critical, our neighbors, whether we know them or not.
Rather than point fingers or judge, it might be good for us to try and be humble, working harder on curing our own faults and far less on those of others. Yes, there are times when we have to be judges to prevent harm and protect the less fortunate. But those times should be few, far between, and to the benefit of the community, not the judge. Jesus would want it that way.
Jesus just continued to do what he knew his job to be – preaching, teaching, and modeling a life God wanted for all the people. His parables were teaching tools where people considered outsiders were the heroes and the ultra-observant the protagonists. People were always glad to listen to stories, especially ones set in familiar settings with people like themselves as characters and work they understood very well. The stories lured them closer to Jesus, and his miracles and care for others showed them a better way of life. It still works today.
The statement, “‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick,” certainly rings with us in this age of pandemic and seemingly endless variants. So many deny that there is anything wrong, that they can get sick or even die, or that they can make others ill and risk death because they take no precautions for themselves or others. We know so much more about epidemiology and health care than the people in Jesus’s day. Yet, we ignore warnings and possible aid because Jesus didn’t get vaccinated or wear masks. They assert God will protect them, something like what Noah’s neighbors said when Noah explained about the upcoming flood. To have faith in God is extremely important, yet God expects us to help ourselves and, even more critical, our neighbors, whether we know them or not.
Rather than point fingers or judge, it might be good for us to try and be humble, working harder on curing our own faults and far less on those of others. Yes, there are times when we have to be judges to prevent harm and protect the less fortunate. But those times should be few, far between, and to the benefit of the community, not the judge. Jesus would want it that way.
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