I'm trying to imagine how Levi must feel after being called as a disciple, and not by just any rabbi, but by Jesus who is now the most famous rabbi in Israel. No other rabbi will even speak to Levi, much less offer him the opportunity to be a disciple. We don't know how long Levi has been a tax collector for the Roman government, but I think it's long enough for him to have tried to harden his heart against the hatred of his people. I think it's long enough that he's tried to convince himself he doesn't mind being banned from the synagogue and from the company of believers. He's told himself he's used to being shunned by his fellow countrymen, but I think deep down in his heart it hurts when people cross the street to avoid him. I think it chips away at his self esteem day by day when people sneer at him in disgust while dropping their tax money into his hand.
Levi is overwhelmed with joy that the greatest rabbi in Israel has given him his dignity back. At last a person of his own nation sees value in him. Jesus has invited Levi to a new life and to a new sense of self-respect; in return Levi invites Jesus to his house for dinner.
"While Jesus was having dinner at Levi's house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with Him and His disciples, for there were many who followed Him." (Mark 2:15) With the exception of Jesus and the disciples He has already called, tax collectors and sinners are the only people willing to eat at Levi's house. The devout Jews consider Levi no better than a pagan Gentile and, since eating at the house of a Gentile would make them ceremonially unclean for a period of time, they wouldn't dare accept a dinner invitation from someone they consider on the same level as a heathen. I think it's quite possible that Simon Peter, Andrew, James, and John feel a bit uncomfortable sitting at Levi's table, but Jesus is as cool as a cucumber. He knows what He's doing. He knows that Levi will become Matthew, the author of one of the gospels. He also knows that the other tax collectors and sinners in the house are there to hear the truth of God's word, and He will gladly teach it to them. I would be willing to bet Jesus feels far more comfortable in Levi's house than He would feel in the house of a self-righteous Pharisee.
Speaking of the self-righteous Pharisees, they are always lurking about to spy on Jesus. They aren't willing to set foot in Levi's house, but they don't mind standing in the yard to peer through the doors and windows. "When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw Him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked His disciples: 'Why does He eat with tax collectors and sinners?'" (Mark 2:16) To their way of thinking, no godly rabbi would associate with such people. They conclude that Jesus cannot be a righteous man if He eats with the outcasts of society. Jesus overhears their question to His disciples and answers it Himself. "On hearing this, Jesus said to them, 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.'" (Mark 2:17) Amen! Jesus knows these people are sick. They are sick with sin and they are sick of sin. He has the cure for what ails them. Unlike the Pharisees, these people are willing to admit they've made mistakes. They aren't righteous in their own eyes. They are humble enough to admit they are sinners who need the Savior. This is why so many outcasts in the New Testament come to a saving faith in Christ while those who refuse to see or acknowledge their own imperfections fail to find healing for their souls.
One of the chief accusations the Pharisees ever brought against Jesus is that He was a "friend of tax collectors and sinners". (Matthew 11:19, Luke 7:34) This just so happens to be one of my favorite titles for the Lord: friend of sinners! If He weren't, where would I be? I'm a sinner and I need a Savior. If Jesus weren't willing to be my friend, what hope would I have?
Since this song goes so well with our passage today, I'm posting a song link below about Jesus, the friend of sinners. It also talks about the dangers of feeling self-righteous and looking down on others. It's one of my favorite songs and I hope you enjoy it.
Jesus, Friend Of Sinners
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