A Blossom Bible Podcast
A Blossom Bible Podcast
Mark 2:13-17 From Tax Collector to Disciple: The Journey of Levi
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Have you ever wondered why Jesus chose to surround Himself with society's outcasts? In this episode, we uncover the significance of Jesus' encounter with Levi, the tax collector, in Mark, chapter 2, verse 13. By exploring the cultural disdain for tax collectors during Jesus' time, we highlight the profound message behind His decision to call Levi, later known as Matthew, to follow Him. We draw a vivid analogy between the bustling atmosphere of Jesus' ministry and the hustle and bustle of a modern-day airport, encouraging listeners to be more aware of the stories and lives unfolding around them.
Why did Jesus dine with sinners, sparking controversy among the religious elite? We delve into the transformative moment when Matthew left his lucrative job under Roman rule to follow Jesus, challenging societal norms and expectations. This episode sheds light on the cultural significance of sharing a meal in Jesus' era, emphasizing the radical nature of His actions. We also discuss Matthew's unyielding faith and dedication to his new path, even leading to his martyrdom, painting a powerful picture of true discipleship.
Recognizing our spiritual sickness is the first step towards healing. We conclude our episode by exploring Jesus’ role as the ultimate physician for our souls, contrasting the humility of the tax collector with the self-righteousness of the Pharisee. Through the parable in Luke 18, we emphasize the necessity of genuine repentance and the transformative power of God's mercy and forgiveness. This episode invites you to embrace God’s compassion and extend the same to others, urging us all to seek His unwavering love and grace in our daily lives. Join us as we navigate through these profound lessons from the heart of Jesus’ ministry.
I think that's it. Let's turn to Mark, chapter 2. Mark, chapter 2, verse 13 is where we'll start. Verse 13 is where we'll start. So just to kind of review, we've been considering the life of Jesus not a bad thing to do, for sure. The ministry of Jesus, god in flesh, his interactions with people from all walks. He called fishermen, he healed sick, he freed those that were bound by the devil, he touched people with leprosy, which is a big deal, and healed them. Last week he set a man who was crippled back on a new track, both physically and, more importantly, spiritually, as he tells him Son, your sins are forgiven you. So the heart of God shown in the life of Jesus, god in flesh. It's a beautiful thing to see and today is is no less sweeter than the other times we've read. So verse 13 is is where we'll pick up. So verse 13 is where we'll pick up. And he, that's Jesus, went out again by the sea and all the multitude came to him and he taught them and he passed. As he passed by, he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax office and he said to him follow me. So he arose and followed him.
Speaker 1:So again here in verse 13, we see that Jesus went out by the sea. Picture it. It's the Sea of Galilee. We would probably know it as a lake, so you can picture that. Just put a lake in there, kind of a Mediterranean climate, and the plants and all around there it's. You know, it's got that Mediterranean look, but it's beautiful, it's calming. You can kind of feel the sea breeze there off of the lake and Jesus is there and he goes out. The multitude came to him and he taught them. I think we see the miracles that Jesus does and the healings we'll see healings over and over again. But the fact that Jesus went out and taught them, how amazing and inspiring that must have been, as people listened. He's not teaching us like other people teach us. He knows about these things and he did, and Jesus shared the heart of the Father with him, the truth of the Word with him. What a beautiful thing I'm sure that was. But we read there as he went out and he taught, he passed by and he saw Levi. Now Levi, we find out, is a sick old tax collector. He's not physically sick, but spiritually. He's sick like the rest of us. But you may know this guy not as Levi, but, as Matthew right, four Gospels Matthew, mark, luke and John Matthew is this guy that is called Levi here. He's a tax collector, More than just someone as we would think of a tax collector as working for the IRS.
Speaker 1:Right, they were a little different back then. The ability to collect taxes was like a franchise, if you can picture that they would make a deal with the Roman government Okay, I will give you this much money per month, I will collect this much money in taxes for Rome per month, and whoever had the best offer there to the Roman government would get that tax franchise, so to speak. So they would make the best bid. They could Now check it out. Tax collectors then would collect what they promised to collect for Rome, and then anything they could get over and above that, that was their income Right. So so once you fulfilled your obligation to roam, everything else was gravy right, and tax collectors were known as shifty, without scruples. Now, none of us enjoys taxes. None of us look fondly at the idea of taxes. But Levi here was even worse, because everybody knew it was kind of the shakedown Well, how much money do I owe for these taxes? Well, how much money you got right, and that's kind of how it went down. And as Jesus passed by, as Jesus passed by, he saw Levi, he saw Matthew there at the tax hut I guess you could see is a little shelter on the side of the road and that's where Matthew did his business and collect taxes and such as Jesus was passing by.
Speaker 1:Now, a little later, today, we get that opportunity to go to an airport, which is not something I necessarily look forward to, but you know, it's a different world, isn't it? When you go to an airport, usually we're so wound up, you know, as we go, you know I'm usually late, believe it or not, you know, and you know you're just rushing to get your bags checked in and then through the TSA and then to your gate. You're breathing hard and if you're lucky, you get to buy a twenty dollar sandwich before you get on the plane. You know, but you're just like, think about it. You ever have like a layover or something and you think about the culture of an airport.
Speaker 1:You know the places that people have been, right as they're running past you with that same panicked look on their face. You know where have you been? You know, have you been to Nairobi, africa? Is that where you've been, you know. Have you been to Japan? You know? Have you been over in Europe? Where have you been? You know? Where are you going, right, are you going home? Are you going to business? Are you going to a graduation, like you know, like us? Are you going to a funeral?
Speaker 1:You know, we don't really think about those things as as life is kind of passing by and all these people are passing by. People are passing us by every single day, right Wherever you're at at work, at you know, at Walmart, for goodness sake, people are passing us by at Walmart, for goodness sake, people are passing us by and we never really stop to think about the lives that people are living and the things that are on their minds and on their hearts. But every day there's people passing us by and I think it's wonderful here, as Jesus passed by, you know, with the crowd that was with him, he passed by. He saw Matthew and I don't exactly know how it went down in the heart of Jesus here, but I picture that the egg timer went off. You know what I mean, bing. The egg timer went off there for Matthew. What does that mean, you know? And he just went. Jesus said you know what. It's time. Matthew is ready. He's ready to follow me.
Speaker 1:And who knows what was going on in Matthew's head that day. Maybe he was disenchanted with the old tax collecting business. Maybe he had had a rough morning, you know, maybe sickness or something in his family, who knows? But whatever it was, like I said, it seems like the oven timer went off and Matthew was ready for an encounter with Jesus. As Jesus was passing by and we never know what people are going through and we never know when it's actually just time, it's time for an encounter with Jesus. And Jesus stops. Picture that he's got this big crowd with him. They're just following him. What's he going to say? What's he going to do? And he goes over to the tax table. Did he wait in line? I don't know, you know.
Speaker 1:And Jesus goes over to the tax table and he sees Levi. Now this word here in verse 14, he saw Levi. He saw him big deal. It actually is interesting that word to see there means he saw him and he knew. He knew everything about him. Now, jesus was God. He could do that right. He knew a lot of things. He knew what was on people's hearts, but he knew everything about Matthew at that point. He knew Matthew's past right, all the shifty things that he had done to get where he was at. Maybe he knew Matthew's future. It's funny how God knows that he knows what we're going to be. He knows the plans that he has for us before he even forms us, as he tells Jeremiah, the prophet there in the book of Jeremiah he knows his past, he knows his future. He absolutely knew his present. He knew where Matthew was that day, the things that were on his heart and on his mind and as he passed by, he saw him and as he saw him, he knew him.
Speaker 1:And Jesus gives Matthew an invitation Follow me. Jesus said to Matthew you, matthew, follow me. A personal invitation. Now slow down for a second. Slow down for a second and think about when you met Jesus in that way, when Jesus just stopped everything and said hey, you follow me, here's the plan I have for you. It's not the plan you had yesterday. Here's the remedy I have for your past and the future that I have for you. You follow me. And who knows when that time comes in each of our lives. But there's a moment where everything just stops and Jesus says hey, you follow me An invitation to a new direction.
Speaker 1:Now, matthew had a direction in his life at that point. It was a very lucrative direction. He had an unpopular master, caesar right was basically his boss, and Jesus offers him a new occupation, right, a new king and a new kingdom. And I think Matthew caught that as Jesus became his new master, because when we look at the book that Matthew would write, we could sum it up as this that Matthew presents Jesus as the king he had had a king that he served, caesar, but Jesus was the king that he absolutely wanted to follow A new direction in his life, and we see that. Crazy enough, matthew, we don't even read like he gives it any time, he just gets up notice there. So he arose and followed him. That's pretty crazy. When God puts a whole new direction in your life and it's all in an instant. You don't know why. You say yes, you don't know why you did it, but by God's grace I think you just do it. You get up and you leave it and you follow Jesus, leave it and you follow Jesus.
Speaker 1:Now, this obviously was a pretty big thing for Jesus to do to call this guy Matthew, who was a tax collector. Think about it, though you could say how far gone he was in a sense. You know we think of the IRS and none of us really care for the idea of the IRS or taxes, right, but think about it in that perspective. We do have it pretty good here in America, right. Think about it in the perspective of Rome. Rome was brutal. Rome absolutely didn't care what you said. Rome was into pounding people into the ground. Probably would be a little more like North Korea, right? A tax collector in North Korea Can you imagine kind of the disdain of giving money to someone who's just going to oppress you, not just a little bit but totally oppress you, like China or Nazi Germany or something like that.
Speaker 1:And yet Jesus came by and called Matthew, I think, the other disciples. We rarely read about their descent, but you can imagine the other disciples going. I don't know, are you sure about this, jesus? You know, simon the Zealot, who was all to knock down the Roman Empire, is like Jesus. No, you can't, calling Matthew the tax collector. And yet we read here that Matthew arose and followed him. That's his testimony. That was his response. He followed Jesus and he never turned back.
Speaker 1:Tradition would say that Matthew, aside from being a disciple and giving the word out, writing the gospel, he would eventually go to Ethiopia and be martyred by the sword in Ethiopia. So he followed Jesus and he kept following him the rest of his life. Now the controversy continues in verse 15. The rest of his life? Now the controversy continues in verse 15. Now it happened, as he that's Jesus was dining at Levi's house, at Matthew's house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and his disciples for there were many and they followed him. So there's a feast. Matthew is so overjoyed by this change in his life that he invites Jesus over. People did that in the Gospels. Mary and Martha, after Jesus there, raised their brother Lazarus from the dead. So grateful they have Jesus over A guy named Simon, the leper right, who obviously was only a leper until Jesus healed him right, has Jesus over for a meal here. Matthew's so excited, has Jesus over for dinner. Probably a pretty plush situation here at Matthew's house, and there's other tax collector friends of his, his business associates.
Speaker 1:And then notice it says this tax collectors and sinners. Well, to the religious folks that we'll see in a second, sinners would be anybody who's not as holy as them. Right, that's how us religious folks can look at things sometimes. But sinners would also include what we would say sinners, right, you've got just those of society that we go. Oh, sinners, druggies, prostitutes, all of these folk, you know, kind of on the edge of things. And so picture it here at Matthew's house, this whole crowd of people that are kind of on the outside of the religious world, all eating dinner with Jesus. Now that's a big deal. What a great thing. To eat dinner with Jesus. That would be fun, right. But that was a big deal because in that world really had to do a lot with the cuisine, right.
Speaker 1:The spread was generally a bunch of dips, picture it. Chips and salsa, right, queso, a bowl of queso, right, it was different dips and sauces and stuff like that, you know, hummus and pita, right, as it'd say over there. And what you'd do is you'd have this big bowl of dips and you would each take a piece of bread or whatever and you would dip it in the bowl. Now that's neat. But you know, thank God, at Dos Marias, you know, they give you, like, your own salsa, right. There's a reason for that, right, because it just kind of ruins everything when you're eating with your friends and just they're doing this and like a stream of drool just goes down into the dip. You know what I mean. Or you just know in your head you double dipped, I didn't double dip, you did you double dipped and you can just settle it there and say forget it, whatever, but you're not going back in that salsa. You know what I mean? Because we don't do that. So check it out Before your own dip was available.
Speaker 1:Eating with people was a very personal thing for lots of reasons. There was this idea that you were becoming one with someone when you ate food with them. That was the culture. So Jesus here eating with tax collectors and sinners. He was giving approval to them in one sense. But it was a very personal thing and that's why we'll see here that there's controversy as Jesus eats with tax collectors and sinners. But what a beautiful thing that Jesus is willing to do it. He sits down with tax collectors and sinners.
Speaker 1:Isaiah 53, verse 12 says and Isaiah 53 will come up a few times today Isaiah 53, verse 12 says he was numbered with the transgressors. Jesus took our sin upon himself there on the cross. He didn't die because he was numbered with the transgressors. Jesus took our sin upon himself there on the cross. He didn't die because he was guilty, but because we were guilty and Jesus takes our place. And Jesus sits with us at the table and he takes our shame upon himself.
Speaker 1:A lot like that leper right? Remember just a few last chapters. The leper had leprosy, a very contagious disease, and Jesus touches him Big deal. That's a big deal. That Jesus was willing to get close to a leper, that Jesus was willing to eat with unholy people. Imagine if he didn't Now come back. Imagine if Jesus didn't stop at Matthew's table. If Jesus didn't eat with tax collectors and sinners, theoretically we'd have no book of Matthew, there'd be no change in his life, no one would ever come to Matthew. And yet Jesus gave him hope. And it's so beautiful to see Jesus eating with tax collectors and sinners, not ashamed to be associated with them, showing love across borders like that. You know it's beautiful. Now, what's not beautiful is what comes next. Not beautiful Jesus beautiful Verse 16, not beautiful.
Speaker 1:And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to his disciples they didn't even have the guts to come to Jesus. How is it that he eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners. So there's others on the outside of this, the scribes and the Pharisees, who sit and they just can't believe that this teacher, jesus we thought he was maybe a good person he eats with tax collectors and sinners. How is it? And the whisper campaign starts Can you believe it? Can you believe this guy? Now, it'll go deeper than this, of course, as Jesus goes on, but these guys had a problem they have their nose turned up. Now the scribes, they're the religious teachers. They knew God's word and they taught God's word.
Speaker 1:The Pharisees we haven't seen as much the Pharisees. Their name meant holy ones. That's actually, you know, you're going to go by a name. My name is Pharisee. Holy ones that's actually you know, you're going to go by a name. My name is Pharisee. Holy one, separate from the world, separate to God. We aren't tainted by sin. We don't live like other people live.
Speaker 1:They didn't dress like other people dressed. Check it out. They would have their tassels. A lot of people had tassels. They would have what were known as phylacteries. Now picture this. I don't care about phylacteries.
Speaker 1:Phylacteries, they were actual boxes placed on the wrist or on the forehead, a box Right. And the reason why was God had said keep my word always before you. Bind it to your wrist so you can look down like your watch right God's word, always before you Put it between your eyes, so to speak. It says it actually says that in the word. And God was saying make sure you have my word always in front of you, live by it, know it, read it, get it in there right, but check it out. They took it literally. The Pharisees took it literally and they literally put little boxes on their wrists and, for whatever reason, this would be on their foreheads. That was a fashion accessory, right, a box on your forehead with a little scroll with God's word on it. This is not the point, obviously, that God's getting at, but that's what they did. So check it out. People would see them and they'd go look at those phylacteries and they'd make them big so that people could see them. The bigger your phylactery, the more holy. You were right. So they had these boxes on their head and they dressed differently because of their desire to be different and holy. They lived their life in a way that everybody knew they were absolutely set apart for God. Now Jesus had some words for them.
Speaker 1:You want a real stinging conversation go to Matthew 23. You don't have to right now, but Matthew 23,. Jesus goes off on the Pharisees, the scribes, the religious leaders, and he says you hypocrites. Ooh, jesus said that you hypocrites. You whitewashed tombs. You look beautiful on the outside, all clean and pretty, but inside you're full of dead man's bones, sick. And it was true. On the outside they looked really good, so holy my name is even holy right. And yet on the inside Jesus knew they were sinners like the rest of us. And that's the truth of who they were, that we can all look real pretty on the outside.
Speaker 1:Isn't it funny how religious things are real easy to keep, right, if it's, you know, going to church right, dressing a certain way. Those things we can do. I can do those. I can watch my mouth when nobody else is, you know, when people are around. But maybe I'm a different person when it's just my family. Right, I can easily be a hypocrite. I probably just raised my hand. I'm a hypocrite most of the time, right? I don't want to be, but I am. I fail because I'm a sinner.
Speaker 1:Now check it out. Jesus looks at these guys on the outside and he says you're whitewashed tombs. On the inside you're full of dead man's bones, your whitewashed tombs. On the inside you're full of dead men's bones, but their heart, their heart, they were looking down on everybody else and I hate to say it. I know what that's like when you do religious things and you're a religious person. It's easy to look down our nose at those sinners, those tax collectors. Right, we all have a little Pharisee in us and it's dangerous. Now check it out. That was ugly and it's still ugly. But verse 17,. When Jesus heard it he said to them and let this one soak in verse 17. It's a good verse to let soak in.
Speaker 1:Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick I did not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance did not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. So Jesus says it's not the well that need a physician, but the sick. Sick people need a doctor, sick people need help. So Jesus here compares sin to a sickness, here compares sin to a sickness.
Speaker 1:Now, what I'm not saying there is that the sins that we commit are like a sickness. You know how we use it nowadays Well. You know I'm an alcoholic, but you got to understand it's a sickness that I have and we use it for an excuse. You know the things that I do. It's well, it's not my fault. I was dropped when I was little and that's why I do the terrible things that I do. Excuse, excuse, excuse. Right, the Bible never makes do for excuses in our life. We do the things we do because we're messed up. We do the things we do so many times because we're just straight out selfish. We all are right. So, jesus, comparing sin to a sickness isn't to say that well, you don't have a choice, it's not your fault, you're just messed up. We are messed up but we do have to take responsibility. The Bible always points us to responsibility.
Speaker 1:But here Jesus is saying really, sin is like a sickness. Maybe we would say sin is like a cancer. Right, cancer, serious stuff. Right, consumes a person. You've got to deal with it in one way or another. Right, jesus and others in the Bible compare sin to leaven, exciting. Right, yeast, leaven, sin is like leaven, it consumes whatever it's in. Right, if you make some sourdough bread, as was popular during the COVID times, right, you make some sourdough bread, you make the best sourdough bread. That little bit of yeast or leaven, it works its way through the dough until it's completely saturated with the leaven. Sin is the same way, like cancer, like yeast it saturates our life.
Speaker 1:We have to be careful, and Jesus says the sick need a doctor, those that are sick with sin. How to deal with it? Right, there's only one cure, though, and this is important, so come back. Only one cure for the sickness of sin. It's Jesus. Hebrews 9.22,.
Speaker 1:According to law, almost all things are purified with blood, but without the shedding of blood, there is no remission. Cancer terms, right? Without the shedding of blood, there's no taking away of sin. And yet Jesus, of course, became the sacrifice for us. The good physician, jesus, the good doctor. Jesus became the remedy for our sickness. Now here we are.
Speaker 1:As Jesus says, those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick, sick people, need a doctor, sick people need a cure. Where does that put the Pharisees in all of this? Jesus tells them it's the sick people that need doctors. Guys, y'all don't need a doctor, they need a doctor. That's why I'm hanging out with sinners and tax collectors. Is that what Jesus is saying? No, because the Pharisees needed a doctor, just like the tax collectors and sinners.
Speaker 1:The problem was they wouldn't see it. They didn't see that they had any problem. They didn't see that they had their own nasty sin covetousness, lust, anger, bitterness. They didn't have their own nasty sin saturating their own hearts. They didn't need anything and they were in the most dangerous spot. Now that's scary because I don't relate as much personally with sinners and tax collectors.
Speaker 1:If you were to say which one are you more like? You know I'm not a sinner, I'm not a tax collector, I'm not one of those. I probably would, by nature, relate more to the Pharisees. I know God's word, I try to do the right thing. You know I'm a good person. But that's the dangerous place to be, because sick Pharisees would never come to Jesus for help. Sick Pharisees would never come to the answer to their sickness because they didn't need it. And so Jesus here is not saying Pharisees, you're not sick, that's why I'm coming to them. He's saying we're all sick, you just don't know it. And God has a way of getting their hearts as well, way of getting their hearts as well. But it can be a real problem when we compare ourself to those other people who have real problems and we're not honest with the sickness in our own heart, the sin in our own heart, things that nobody else knows.
Speaker 1:Jesus takes time to minister. Let's turn one last place. Let's turn to Luke, chapter 18, and this will be it. We won't come back to Mark. Luke, chapter 18. Jesus uses the whole situation as an illustration, opportunity for a story. Luke, chapter 18, verse 9. Luke 18, verse 9.
Speaker 1:And Jesus spoke this parable, a story there, to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others, sounds familiar. Right Verse 10. Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. That's a pretty real story. Jesus, the Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself God, I thank you that I'm not like other men extortioners, unjust adulterers and even as this tax collector, I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. So the Pharisee here, he says it like we understand. He says, oh God, and interesting, he prays thus with himself. That's how God sees it. Right, if you come with that heart to pray, you're just talking to yourself at that point. But the Pharisee says, oh God, I thank you that I'm not like other people. And we can always point to other people. I'm not like them. You know they're bad attitudes or extortioners. You know adulterers like this tax collector. Can you imagine, right, I'm not like the bad people and you know I do some good things, right? Notice verse 12. I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I possess I give. I fast, I do some nice religious things. God, I'm not like them, I'm pretty good. Now notice verse 13,.
Speaker 1:And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast, saying God, be merciful to me, a sinner. Jesus said I tell you, this man went down to his house, justified rather than the other. And so Jesus lays it right out in the story the Pharisee and the tax collector. Out in the story the Pharisee and the tax collector, pharisee rests in his own righteousness. The tax collector says God, be merciful to me, a sinner. He knew he was messed up, he was honest with that fact, with God, and he says be merciful Now.
Speaker 1:This is where it brings us, when we realize how far gone we are, how hopeless we are on our own. It brings us to that place where we say God, I need your mercy, god, I need your forgiveness. I can't do it, I'm not going to be able to do it. God, I need you and check it out. It falls on who God actually is.
Speaker 1:There in the Old Testament, god speaks about himself, his own character, and he says I'm merciful, showing compassion. That's who God is Gracious and merciful, he's just for sure. He's righteous and he's holy. But God is merciful. And so the sinner comes to God and he says God, I see myself, I can't do it. God, I need mercy. And that's exactly what God wants to give us. God wants to give us a second chance, third chance, fourth chance right, god wants to forgive.
Speaker 1:God went to amazing lengths to forgive us, sending his own son, a sacrifice for our sin, that whosoever believes in him would not perish but have everlasting life. And when we see ourselves for who we really are, messed up, hopeless, that's when God comes in with his mercy. Oh, he loves us so much. He wants to forgive us, he wants to restore our relationship with him. And so, God, we just thank you for your character and your heart towards us.
Speaker 1:God, when we were just helpless and literally at war with you, god, we didn't care. And yet, god, you loved us and you provided a real sacrifice for our real sins. God, jesus died on the cross for us, what we deserved, so that you could forgive us and make us righteous. When you see us, you see us as perfect because of Jesus. God, thank you for your good heart towards us. God, we also know that it's up to us to turn to you and run to you, god, to accept what you've done for us. You don't force it on anyone, and so, god, pray that we would find ourselves just depending on your mercy in this week, god, that we would see this world that's going around us and have that same mercy for others. God, you open it to everyone and pray that we would present that wonderful truth to those around us. God, give us your eyes and give us your heart. We pray in Jesus' name.