Unexpected Invitations: Hanging Out with Jesus – Mark 2 v 13-17

This passage is all about unexpected invitations and life-changing encounters with Jesus.

Verse 13-14: “Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. ‘Follow me,’ Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.”

Jesus is teaching by the lake, and a crowd gathers. Then, Jesus spots Levi, a tax collector. Now, tax collectors weren’t the most popular people in town, but Jesus sees something more. He walks up to Levi and totally unexpected says: “Follow me.” And guess what? Levi leaves everything and follows Jesus.

Verse 15: “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.”

But Jesus not only invites Levi to follow Him, He also decides to have dinner at Levi’s house. And it’s a full-blown feast with tax collectors and sinners. What do we end up with, Jesus, the disciples, Levi, and a bunch of people that society might consider “undesirable,” all hanging out together.

Verse 16-17: “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?’ 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.'”

The religious folks, the Pharisees, can’t wrap their heads around why Jesus would spend time with tax collectors and sinners. Jesus steps in with some wisdom: “Healthy people don’t need a doctor; sick people do. I’m here for those who know they need help.”

Jesus calls us, no matter our past or what others think of us. We need this reminder. It is so easy to look at someone and judge them. Jesus is all about the heart and we need to remember this. And he doesn’t just hang out with the ‘cool’ guys. He is there with anyone, challenging societal norms and showing that His love knows no boundaries.

If you have dinner with Jesus expect the unexpected. Transformations will happen. Jesus wants to be with those that know they need a saviour.

Why don’t you consider throwing life-changing dinner parties with Jesus at the centre!