Mark 2:13 And he went forth again by the sea side; and all the multitude resorted unto him, and he taught them.
14 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.
15 And it came to pass, that, as Jesus sat at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him.
16 And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners?
17 When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
As we have already noted, Jesus was very popular among the common people. They liked His contrast to the Pharisees. Not very many actually surrendered to His teaching, but they liked the tone of His message.
We find the same thing today. There are people who like to hear someone exposing the poison in our governmental system. Some like to see someone teaching the Word of God with clarity. However, when it comes to taking a stand for truth, few will stand on the side of truth. Most people are blinded by the numbers game. They forget the words of Jesus, where He warned that the broad way has many people on it.
In verse 14 we read that as Jesus was walking along the sea side, He passed by a man named Levi. Levi was also known as Matthew. Levi was a tax collector. He was a Jew, but he worked for the Roman government. This made him very unpopular among the Jews. The Jews despised the Roman government. They were looking for a “messiah” who would deliver them from that bondage and give them back their own independent country with their own government. They often looked back to the time of king David. He is still a revered man in the eyes of many Jews.
The tax collectors of that time were known to be crooks. The Roman government gave them orders as to how to tax the people. The Roman government was a corrupt government and it did not care if these tax collectors would demand extra money from the people. As long as they gave the Roman government what they demanded, they could cheat the people out of extra money. The common people did not have much recourse against the corruption that was taking place.
The system then was not that much different from our system today. Those who pay attention to what is happening know that our current government is likely the most corrupt government this country has ever known. Yet the “polls” are telling us that it is likely that they will form the next government in this country. Time will tell. One thing everyone should understand is that you do not trust what a politician says. You need to pay attention to what they do. We do not have any born again Christians in government today. If there was, they would not be a part of any organized party.
In our text, we know that Jesus knew all about Levi. He called out to him and told him to follow Jesus. We see that Levi did not hesitate to leave his custom’s table and follow Jesus. This would have been a drastic change for him. We learn from the Bible, that when a person responds to God’s call for salvation, they are drastically changed. We learn from modern day “Christianity”, that secular salvation does not mean much in the person’s life. The world has largely tuned out “Christianity” because it makes little to no difference in the claimant’s life. Levi responded positively to Jesus’ call, and he was fundamentally changed at that moment and would learn how to walk faithfully with the Lord.
In verse 15 we find that Jesus went to Levi’s house and there were many publicans and sinners there. Levi would fit in with the publicans. Jesus brought His other disciples with Him to this house. Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, Son of man. He came to save sinners. He sat with Levi and others like him in order to reach them with the truth. Jesus did not have a bottle of wine with Him, nor did His disciples. Jesus never sinned and He never endorsed sin.
In verse 16 we read that the pious and self-righteous scribes and Pharisees were at it again. They saw Jesus sitting and eating with the publicans and sinners and they went on the attack. At this time, they did not attack Jesus directly. They went after His disciples. They went after the weak link. They wanted to know why Jesus was eating and drinking with publicans and sinners. They did not realize that they too were sinners. They based their righteousness on their faulty law keeping.
Jesus was not far from His disciples. He heard the leading questions being asked of His disciples. He answered them. His answer was a rebuke to these self-righteous individuals. Those that are whole don’t need a physician. A healthy person does not go to the doctor. The sick go to the doctor. That was quite easy to understand. Jesus then stated that He did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. The scribes and Pharisees considered themselves to be righteous. Jesus was not going to waste His time on them. They were so “righteous” that they did not want to hear what He had to say, except to try to find fault with Him. They were not interested in truth.
The publicans and sinners knew they were not right with God. The scribes and Pharisees made that very clear to them. They were despised by the common people as well. As we mentioned, not many of them truly believed in Jesus at this time, but they liked how He taught the Scriptures. They probably liked how He exposed the scribes and Pharisees. They did not have the ability to do that, but Jesus certainly did.
We see again, that Jesus came to call sinners to repentance. Repentance is an important Bible word. It is not often taught in religious circles. Most people are told to ‘trust in Jesus’ or ‘accept Jesus’ or ‘give your heart to Jesus’, etc. That terminology sounds good but it falls short of true Biblical salvation. It is true that the repentant sinner will trust in Jesus, but in order to trust in Jesus he or she must turn to God, which means turning away from everything else.
A lost person cannot do this on their own. A saved person cannot stay away from sin on their own either. The lost person who repents is the one who has listened to the convicting work of the Holy Spirit and in doing so is enabled by God to turn to God and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. In John 15:5, Jesus told the disciples that “without me ye can do nothing”. That is true of Christians, and it is also true of unbelievers. Joshua told the nation of Israel:
Joshua 24:19 And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD: for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
The nation of Israel was not interested in submitting to God. They had made that abundantly clear. Yet that is what is needed for those who would follow God. That is what Jesus demanded of His disciples. They left their nets, and Levi left his custom’s table. The disciples would still go fishing at times because they needed food to eat. Levi never went back to his customs table because that was a corrupt task that was not for a true disciple. There are certain occupations that are acceptable for those who are saved and there are other jobs that are not suitable for born again Christians.
It is important to note that just as Jesus was close at hand when the disciples were being accused by the false teachers, so too, Jesus is near those who are born again today. The Holy Spirit indwells every born again Christian. He will guide the true child of God to be able to give an answer to those who falsely accuse them. The true child of God must join a true local church where they can be taught and they can find that help needed to grow in the Lord.
It all begins with repentance. It begins with a dying to self and being given life in Christ. That is what true salvation is all about.
Pastor Bartel
