Tuesday 11/25/14

Tuesday’s Recap summarizes the previous evening’s Pizza and Prayer. If you couldn’t join us last night, or if for some strange reason you can’t remember what happened (amnesia?), here’s what you missed:

Once again he went out along the sea. All the crowd came to him and he taught them. As he passed by, he saw Levi, son of Alpheus, sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners sat with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many who followed him. Some scribes who were Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors and said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinner?” Jesus heard this and said to them “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.

Mark 2: 13-17

Whenever I hear this passage I am always struck by three things: the charisma of Christ, the jealousy of the Pharisees, and the wisdom of Jesus’ answer to them.

The story begins with a tax collector sitting at a custom’s post until Jesus tells him to come with him. That’s all it takes. The tax collector leaves his job to follow Christ. What incredible charisma! If Jesus walked through the door right now, I have no doubt that you would do the same. Confronted with God Himself, how could we refuse such an offer? The trouble is, we don’t get to experience Jesus the same way that Matthew did. We can be in his presence through prayer, and He is physically present in the Eucharist, but it’s still not quite the same. We can’t see His face or hear His voice the way we could when he was incarnate. There are moments when we can feel His presence in a real way. Sometimes in adoration, or other prayerful moments we can feel very connected to God, and in those moments we would do anything for Him. Maybe you have experienced it before. Maybe you haven’t and are searching for it. Keep searching.

The second thing that always strikes me is the jealousy of the Pharisees. I think it is really easy to laugh at the Pharisees in scripture. They always seem to miss the message that Jesus is preaching, and He is always showing them up. That’s not quite fair. The Pharisees made mistakes, sure, but they were not some evil marauding group out to hurt others. They were the people who were following the laws and teaching people about the scripture. They were the “Church” people. If the messiah were coming, they thought he would come to them. Imagine if this Sunday, while you were in Church, Jesus came back. Now imagine He walked right past the Church to go to a house full of people whose sins are well known and documented. Wouldn’t you be a little jealous? Wouldn’t you want to know why He didn’t come to the people who were in Church?

That brings us to the third thing which always strikes me about this reading: the wisdom of Jesus’ response. “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.” It must be very little consolation for the healthy. After all, Jesus is more than just a doctor. Jesus is God. Jesus is the only thing which can fully satisfy us. We were intentionally created with a longing for God. It is an emptiness we feel that people try to satisfy with all sorts of things, relationships, friendships, careers, money, fame, drugs, alcohol. The only thing that will fill that hole, though, is God. Though the Pharisees have been righteous and are not as “sick” as the tax collectors and sinners, they still want to spend time with God. Still Jesus’ answer is wise. He needs to go to those who most need Him.

I would like us all to take some time to reflect on this passage. Put yourself into the story. Who are you? Are you Levi, being called away from your post to follow the Lord? Are you one of Christ’s disciples who was following Him all along? Are you one of the tax collectors or sinners He ate with? Are you a Pharisee, jealous that He is reaching out to sinners and passing over the righteous? I think we would all like to think of ourselves as Levi or one of the disciples, but that fact that you are reading this website means that you probably have a little bit of Pharisee in you, too. It’s alright. There’s no “right” or “wrong” person to feel like in the story. There are lessons for all of them. Let’s all take some time to put ourselves into the scripture.


Lord,
Help me to know you and hear you when you call. Help me to turn away from sin and follow you. Once I am healthy, grant me strength of character to not be jealous of your relationship with others or judge their position in life, for as you said, those who judge will be judged.
Amen


Last night's playlist:
God of Wonders – Third Day
I Will Follow – Chris Tomlin
Lord I Need You – Matt Maher
The Old Rugged Cross – Crowder
The Heart of Worship – Matt Redman
You Can Have Me – Sidewalk Prophets
Sweet Redeemer – Steve Angrisano
Give Me Jesus – Jeremy Camp
From the Inside Out – Hillsong
Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone) – Chris Tomlin