Jesus Grieves at the Hardness of Hearts (Mark 3:1-12)

 

Jesus Grieves at the Hardness of Hearts (Mark 3:1-12)

Nothing is more urgent or essential for a person than salvation. God earnestly desires to save all people. In the Bible, salvation carries two meanings: being forgiven of sins and living a fulfilled life. This salvation is obtained only through faith in God’s Son. Any "salvation" that does not go through Jesus Christ is false and not the truth.

In Mark 3:1-12, Jesus commanded a man with a shriveled hand on the Sabbath, "Stretch out your hand." When he did, his hand was completely restored. However, Jesus was deeply distressed and angry as he looked at the faithless, hard-hearted people around Him. Crowds flocked to Him after hearing reports of Him healing many, but Jesus strictly warned the demons not to tell others who He was when they cried out, "You are the Son of God."

Healing the Man with a Shriveled Hand (Matthew 12:9-14; Luke 6:6-11)

"Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath." (Mark 3:1-2)

When Jesus entered the synagogue to teach, a man with a shriveled hand was there. He had likely been attending this synagogue for a long time. His condition was a major obstacle to living a fulfilled life. As soon as Jesus arrived, the people began calculating. They were certain Jesus would heal the poor man.

The tragic part is that they viewed this as an opportunity to accuse Jesus. From their perspective, healing someone was a violation of the Sabbath. According to their Sabbath regulations, if someone was bleeding, you could stop the bleeding, but you couldn't apply ointment. You could prevent a condition from getting worse, but you were forbidden from making it better.

Ironically, they were allowed to pull an animal out of a pit on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:11). They were in error about the purpose of the Sabbath. God established the Sabbath for mankind; He blessed it and made it holy (Genesis 2:3). God blessed this day so that people could enter His rest, fellowship with Him, and enjoy peace.

To enter God’s rest, however, one must receive forgiveness for sins. One must be freed from the chains of darkness to live in the light. Through the blood of Christ, God brings back to life those who were dead under the power of sin and death. God sent His Son, Jesus Christ, for the salvation of humanity (John 3:16). This scene reminds us of how God sent His servant Moses to His people who were groaning as slaves to Pharaoh for four hundred years.

Which is Lawful on the Sabbath: To Do Good or To Do Evil?

"Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, 'Stand up here in front of everyone.' Then Jesus asked them, 'Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?'" (Mark 3:3-4a)

Jesus told the man to stand in the middle of the room. The Lord intended to heal him. Even though He knew the malicious intent of the Jews, He did not hesitate. Jesus came to this earth to save everyone and lead them into the Father’s rest. This is the Father’s will, and Jesus obeyed even to the point of giving His life to fulfill it.

In what ways is salvation urgent for us? The man with the shriveled hand was incomplete and severely lacking. He was fundamentally hindered from fulfilling his life. This is the reality of human existence. We are exposed to disease, vulnerable to the elements, and must toil to survive (Genesis 3:19, 8:22). We walk through a "thicket of thorns" in our relationships. Young people worldwide struggle to find jobs, and the advancement of AI brings the threat of layoffs in every field.

The challenges and pressures before us seem endless. On top of all this, anxiety and restlessness visit our hearts like unwelcome guests for no apparent reason. We try to leave tomorrow in the Lord's hands, but the burden feels heavy. It is heartbreaking and makes us feel powerless to see innocent lives lost in conflicts between neighbors and nations.

Even for Abraham, who migrated to Canaan in obedience to God's promise, challenges and pressures were a daily reality. Each of us, living with the hope of the eternal Kingdom of God, will inevitably face continued trials. In this way, every person desperately needs God’s help, protection, and guidance.

At that moment, Jesus asked the people—who were watching for a chance to accuse Him—whether it was right to do evil and kill, or to do good and save life. Doing good and saving life is the true essence of "resting." Doing evil and killing leads to trouble and distress, not rest (Romans 2:9).

What is evil? What is "killing"? It is evil to reject, push away, and refuse to believe in Jesus Christ, the Son whom God sent. Doing evil does not bring life; it brings death. Rejecting God's merciful love invites His wrath (Romans 1:18). God’s wrath is often revealed by Him "giving people over" to their own evil desires (Romans 1:24, 26, 28). Therefore, there are always consequences to human evil.

We can test this easily. Just look at what happens to your heart when you hate someone or refuse to forgive. It becomes anxious, heavy, restless, tense, and wandering. There is no joy, peace, stability, or rest. This is the manifestation of God’s wrath.

"The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness." (Romans 1:18)

Then, what does it mean to do good? What is "saving life"? It is to believe in, receive, and obey Jesus Christ. It is to give thanks, praise, and glory for the grace of redemption that the Lord provided by loving us even unto death on the cross. Doing good is the path to saving life. God gives eternal life to those who, by persistence in doing good, seek glory, honor, and immortality (Romans 2:7).

"But there will be glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." (Romans 2:10)

He Grieved at the Hardness of Their Hearts

But they remained silent. 5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. (Mark 3:4b-6)

Jesus felt both anger and deep grief because they remained silent in the face of such an obvious question. Refusing to believe in and rejecting the Son of God invites His wrath. For example, God commanded Pharaoh of Egypt through Moses to let His people go, but Pharaoh stubbornly refused to listen. Consequently, God sent ten plagues upon Egypt, culminating in the death of the firstborn (Exodus 7:14-12:42).

God wants everyone to be saved (2 Peter 3:9). However, if hearts remain hardened and refuse to turn back to Him, His wrath is released. Yet, God’s wrath is actually an expression of His holy love. If we do not turn to Him and instead follow our own thoughts and will, the result is ultimate destruction and eternal judgment. God displays His wrath because He is patient and does not want anyone to perish.

After looking around at the critics, Jesus commanded the man with the shriveled hand, “Stretch out your hand.” Even though it was physically impossible for the man to do so, he obeyed Jesus’ word, and his hand was restored. Jesus performed good and saved a life on the Sabbath. Instead of repenting, however, the Pharisees went and plotted with the Herodians to kill Him.

Crowds Follow Jesus

7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed. 8 When they heard about all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon. 9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him. 10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him. (Mark 3:7-10)

As Jesus went to the sea, a massive crowd from Galilee followed. People came from all over Israel, and even from Gentile regions like Tyre and Sidon, because they had heard reports of Him. The crowd was so large that Jesus had to have a boat ready to keep from being crushed.

Why did such a large crowd seek Him out? It was because He had healed so many; people suffering from various diseases were crowding in just to touch Him. The types of diseases are countless, and new ones appear every year. Sickness is like an unwelcome friend that is always nearby.

We recently experienced a pandemic that shook the entire world. Some of the most common illnesses today include heart disease, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, asthma, Alzheimer’s, and depression. While some are treatable, many are not.

Illness brings pain, suffering, and depression. However, it also makes us realize our human frailty and acts as a pathway leading us to the Lord. God has the power to prevent disease (Exodus 15:26, Deuteronomy 7:15). During the wilderness wandering, He even protected the Israelites' clothes and sandals from wearing out (Deuteronomy 8:4). Figures like Enoch and Elijah were taken to heaven without seeing death, and Moses’ eyes were still strong when he died at 120.

Yet, it is no exaggeration to say that almost everyone eventually dies from disease or the complications of aging. It is appointed for man to die once (Hebrews 9:27). But for the believer, death is a new beginning—a gateway into God’s eternal life. Because Jesus died for the sins of the world, He gives eternal life to those who believe. Sickness serves to remind us of our weakness, prompting us to come before God and seek His help.

Jesus Rebukes Evil Spirits

11 Whenever the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 But he gave them strict orders not to tell others about him. (Mark 3:11-12)

As seen in the book of Job, there exists in the spiritual realm Satan, the father of lies and a murderer. These are called "impure spirits" because they rebelled against God and seek someone to devour. Jesus did not accept their testimony; He rebuked them. Even though they spoke the truth that He is the Son of God, He rejected their words because they did not have faith. Jesus rebukes a faithless generation.

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” (Matthew 7:21-23)

However, God pours out eternal life upon those who believe in the Son He sent. Therefore, God commands us not to harden our hearts when we hear His voice. When we respond, He gives us a new spirit and a new heart, removing our heart of stone and giving us a heart of flesh.

“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.” (Hebrews 3:15, Psalm 95:7)

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 36:26)

Amen!

December 21, 2025

Buffalo Livingstone Church ©2025, David Lee Ministries ©2025 – All Rights Reserved.

Scripture quotes are from the NIV.

 

Only New Wine Is Poured Into New Wineskins (Mark 2:18-28)

 

Only New Wine Is Poured Into New Wineskins (Mark 2:18-28)

What is the mark that identifies a Christian? Is it attending Sunday worship, giving offerings, evangelism, and/or Bible study? These are true to some extent, but they are not the whole picture. A good example is the scribes of the Pharisees. Not only were they proficient in the Torah, but they also had extraordinary zeal for practicing it. They strictly followed and observed fasting, prayer, giving, and celebrating the feasts. Yet, when the time came, they refused and rejected the Son whom the LORD God had sent. In the Old Testament era, the priests and scribes also rejected, beat, imprisoned, and killed the prophets God had sent.

This fact clearly shows that while they maintained the appearance of following God's Law, in reality, they did not believe in the Lord God. Not believing in the Son of God is the same as not believing in God the Father who sent Him. Therefore, the true mark of a Christian does not depend on external things but on following the Lord by faith.

In Mark 2:18-28, Jesus teaches what the true mark of Christ is. First, it is believing in and following Jesus Christ, the Son sent by God. Second, it is showing compassion to our neighbors, based on God's merciful grace.

The Question About Fasting (Matthew 9:14-17; Luke 5:33-39)

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?” (Mark 2:18)

God gave regulations concerning fasting through Moses. God commanded them to deny (afflict, ESV) themselves on the Day of Atonement. This day was for commemorating and internalizing God's forgiveness of sins, because forgiveness of sins is obtained through the sacrifice of an animal. Sin is so severe that it demands a sacrifice. The animal sacrifice foreshadows the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, on this day, they were to fast to deeply internalize God's sacrificial love.

This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work—whether native-born or a foreigner residing among you. (Leviticus 16:29)

But how did the Pharisees come to fast twice a week? This was to display their piety and zeal for God. They started fasting with good intentions and motives. Fasting is meant to deeply internalize God's merciful grace. The problem is that fasting was used as a means to show one's piety to others.

16 “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” (Matthew 6:16-18)

Through the prophet Isaiah, God spoke about the kind of fasting He accepts. The people complained about why God did not notice them when they fasted (Isaiah 58:3). They fasted while engaging in quarreling, strife, and striking with the fist (Isaiah 58:4). The fasting that God accepts and delights in is genuinely internalizing God's merciful grace and loving and forgiving one's neighbor.

6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood? 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.” (Isaiah 58:6-9a)

No Fasting While the Bridegroom Is Present

19 Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. 20 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast. 21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new patch will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.” (Mark 2:19-22)

Jesus used the case of a wedding feast, saying that it is unlawful to fast while the bridegroom is present with the guests. It is natural to eat and drink joyfully with the bridegroom. The bridegroom refers to the Lord Jesus Christ, who came to save people from sin. A wedding feast is prepared to share joy and delight with the bridegroom. Jesus came into this world to save lives that were trapped under the power of sin and death. He frees us from the chains of sin and allows us to inherit the glory of the kingdom of heaven. Eating and drinking with joy at the wedding feast with the bridegroom foreshadows the future marriage supper of the Lamb in heaven.

However, Jesus said the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away, and on that day they will fast. This speaks of Jesus' death on the cross. They will fast because Christ Jesus, who came as the Savior, died on the cross for the sins of this world. The sin of this world is so heavy and serious that it required the sacrifice of Christ. What we ought to mourn is committing sin (Psalm 38:18).

What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? (Romans 7:24)

Also, a new piece of cloth cannot be mixed with an old garment, and new wine and old wineskins are incompatible. What is the new here? It is believing in God and His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ coming to this earth as the Son of God is something new. Jesus eating with tax collectors and sinners is a new teaching. Jesus having the authority to forgive people's sins is something new. God making Abraham into a great nation and making his name great is something new.

Then, what is the old? The old is the stubborn heart that does not believe in God. It is rejecting and opposing the Son of God, Jesus Christ, by prioritizing tradition or custom. Calling Jesus' exercise of the authority to forgive sins blasphemy is unbelief and is the old way. Refusing to sit and fellowship with sinners is the old way.

The grace of God we experience is new every day. We enjoy God's grace and love only through faith. New wine is poured into new wineskins. The mark of a Christian is faith in God and His Son, Jesus Christ. It is believing the word of God's promise against all hope, just like Abraham. It is the faith of holding onto the words, "Follow me," like the tax collector Levi, and walking the path of the cross and suffering that the Lord walked first. The true mark of a Christian is the faith that walks daily with the Lord and holds onto the hope of the kingdom of heaven.

So, how do we put new wine into new wineskins? We turn from our stubborn hearts and repent daily. When we read and meditate on the Word of God, we respond to God's leading love, which gives us understanding. By faith, we choose forgiveness and love, and we hate and keep far away from hatred and complaints. In situations involving conflicting interests, we always choose to yield and take the loss. This is the way of Christ's cross and the path into the glory of the resurrection.

We look at the suffering and pain we receive on this earth as God's refining love and endure patiently. We believe that God, who began the work of salvation, will carry it on to completion (Philippians 1:6). We daily hold onto the hope of the coming glory of the kingdom of heaven (Romans 8:18). We believe that the God who gave the promise will lead, protect, and guard us until He fulfills that promise (Jude 1:24-25). We never stop opening, reading, meditating on, and praying over God's Word every day (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:1-2).

The Disciples Pick Grain on the Sabbath (Matthew 12:1-8; Luke 6:1-5)

23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. 24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look! Why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” (Mark 2:23-24)

On the Sabbath, the disciples were passing through the grainfields and began to pick heads of grain. The Pharisees noticed this and accused them of breaking the Sabbath. They considered the disciples to be threshing, which was forbidden under the Sabbath law. Of course, the disciples were hungry and picked the grain to eat (Matthew 12:1). It is more plausible that the Pharisees were monitoring them rather than just discovering it by chance.

The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath

25 He answered, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? 26 In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for the priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” 27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:25-28)

First, the Law of Moses commanded people not to fully harvest their fields, nor to pick up the gleanings, but to leave them for the poor (Leviticus 19:9-10; 22:23; 24:19-22). This is the spirit of the Law: sharing in a society where the rich and the poor coexist (2 Corinthians 8:15; Exodus 16:18).

However, the Pharisees failed to consider God's compassionate heart. The disciples were hungry and picked the grain to eat. It is understandable that young men would pick grain when they were hungry. But because the Pharisees hated and opposed Jesus Christ, they sought to find fault with Him in everything, accuse Him, and ultimately kill Him.

Jesus reminded them of when David, being chased by Saul, ate the consecrated bread in the house of God. The Law stated that only priests were allowed to eat this bread. However, God did not punish David; rather, He showed him compassion because David and his companions were hungry and had nothing else to eat.

The Sabbath was made by God for man (Genesis 2:3). Conversely, man was not made for the Sabbath. God rested because He had completed everything according to His will and plan. Then, God invited man into His rest and blessed him to enjoy His rest.

Rest is absolutely not about doing nothing and simply being idle. Doing nothing is not rest; rather, it is pressure and stress. Entering into God's rest means entrusting everything to the Lord. It means casting away impatience, worry, and anxiety, and resting in complete peace.

The Lord Jesus Christ is the Lord of all creation, and He is the Lord of the Sabbath. Everything came into being through Him, and nothing exists that was not made by Him. The Lord established and made the Sabbath holy. Therefore, we must enter into rest. The way to enter God's rest is to hear the Lord's voice, come to Him by faith, and enjoy fellowship with Him.

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30) Amen!

December 14, 2025

Buffalo Livingstone Church ©2025, David Lee Ministries ©2025 – All Rights Reserved.

Scripture quotes are from the NIV.

 

Jesus Calls Levi at the Tax Booth, “Follow Me” (Mark 2:13–17)

 

Jesus Calls Levi at the Tax Booth, “Follow Me” (Mark 2:13–17)

“There is no one righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10). In other words, every person is a sinner. But the one who realizes before God that he is a sinner receives the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven. The one who considers himself righteous has no share in that inheritance.

In Mark 2:13–17, Jesus saw Levi the tax collector sitting at the tax booth and said to him, “Follow me.” Then Jesus went to his house and shared a meal and fellowship with many tax collectors and sinners. God welcomes anyone who repents of sin and comes to Him, giving them the banquet of the kingdom and pouring out His divine grace.

Jesus Teaches the Good News of the Kingdom

“Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them” (Mark 2:13).

Jesus went out again by the lake, and a large crowd gathered around Him. He taught them the truth of the good news of the kingdom. He opened His mouth and explained the mysteries of the kingdom.

God is the Word (John 1:1). By His Word, He created all things; by His Word, He rules and sustains all things. His Word drives out darkness and shines light.

God is light (1 John 1:5), and in Him there is no darkness at all. Just as the darkness disappears when the sun rises in the morning, God’s Word shines into the places in our hearts where pain and hardship bring a kind of darkness. His Word drives out that darkness and fills us with light.

God is life (John 11:25), so in Him there is no death. It is like springtime, when dry branches suddenly sprout leaves, flowers, and fruit. In Him there is no death, only life in fullness. Jesus died on the cross, but God raised Him on the third day. When the difficulties of life bring despair or hopelessness to the heart, God’s life–giving Word drives out death and fills us with the power of resurrection life.

This is why Jesus never stopped teaching the good news of the kingdom—whether in homes, in the fields, or by the lake. Anyone who hears His Word and opens their heart comes to understand the secrets of the kingdom.

Jesus Calls Levi: “Follow Me”

“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” (Mark 2:14).

Jesus saw Levi sitting at the tax booth. Levi became one of Jesus’ disciples, later known as Matthew, the writer of the Gospel of Matthew. As a Jew who had aligned himself with Rome, he was called a traitor. Yet he felt trapped, unable to escape that path. The harsh looks and rejection from his fellow Jews were unbearable. Tax collectors were viewed as public sinners, mentioned alongside prostitutes. For a Jew to be treated like a Gentile was deeply shameful.

But Jesus saw him sitting at the booth—He saw Levi’s pain and sorrow. God heard the groaning of the Israelites under Pharaoh’s oppression (Exodus 2:24). Jesus looked at the crowds and had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd (Mark 6:34).

God called Moses and saved His people from Pharaoh’s hand. In the same way, God does not ignore our pain or hardship. Israel’s exodus from slavery pointed forward to Christ saving humanity from the chains of sin and death.

Job’s story makes this clear. God Himself said that Job feared Him and was upright. Satan insisted that if God took away his blessings, Job would curse Him (Job 1:11). But Job did not sin (1:22). Then Satan insisted that if Job’s body were afflicted, he would curse God (2:5). But Satan was proved a liar and suffered defeat (2:10).

God knew Job’s suffering from the beginning, and it was God who allowed Satan to strike him (Job 1:12; 2:6). So suffering is not accidental and not the result of bad luck. Behind it is the deep love of God who trains His children. Our trials are evidence that He loves us.

“‘The Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.’ Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all” (Hebrews 12:6–8).

“Follow Me”

Jesus said to Levi, “Follow me.” This was both a command and a heavenly invitation. Jesus invited Levi—who had lost his way and was sitting in darkness—into the path of salvation. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He is the door, the way by which we come to God (John 10:7).

“I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:9–10).

Jesus’ call to Levi was to bring him from destruction into life. But this world is full of deception—false promises of salvation. Drugs, for example, promise sweetness but end only in devastation. Everyone knows their dangers, yet countless people fall into temptation.

Levi would have fully understood what it meant to become a tax collector. There is no way he didn’t know how tax collectors were treated by their own people. Even so, Levi became a tax collector. That’s how strong the temptation of worldly success and wealth is. No one is an exception. Now Levi could not undo what had already been done. He was sitting at the tax booth again, doing what he normally did every day, but his heart was troubled, anxious, and dark.

So then, what does it mean to follow Jesus? First, it means responding to His invitation by faith. “Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Heb 11:1). Levi did not know how following Jesus Christ would straighten out his tangled life or bring him peace. But he believed the Lord’s word and followed Him just like Abraham did.

Following Jesus also means listening to His words and putting them into practice. “Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall” (Matt 7:24–25). And those who hear and obey His words bear the fruit of love, joy, and peace.

Above all, following Jesus is not a one-time event but walking in His way every day. The Lord’s way is the way of the cross. It is the way of being the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world through sacrifice. That’s why the path of following Him is entering through the narrow gate, and few choose it (Matt 7:13–14). Many people initially follow the Lord, but when the way of the cross feels shameful or burdensome, they turn back (John 6:66).

Among Jesus’ disciples, Judas Iscariot had no faith and hated the cross, so he ultimately betrayed the Lord. In his final farewell message, Joshua told the people to choose the LORD and serve Him alone, to throw away the foreign gods among them, and to turn their hearts to the LORD the God of Israel (Josh 24:22–23). The people answered that they would serve the LORD their God and obey His voice (24:24). But it wasn’t long before they abandoned the LORD and served foreign gods (Judg 2:11–12).

Following the Lord Jesus Christ is sharing in what is still lacking in Christ’s sufferings (Col 1:24). Jesus commanded us to love our enemies, to turn the other cheek when someone strikes the right one, and when someone forces us to go one mile, to go with them two miles (Matt 5:39, 41). Jesus told His disciples that because they do not belong to the world—because He chose them out of the world—the world would hate them (John 15:19).

But following the Lord is the way to life. After our days on earth are over, there is God’s judgment (Heb 9:27). That judgment means eternal punishment for those who do not believe and eternal reward for those who do (1 Cor 1:18). Therefore, those who are not ashamed of the gospel of the cross of Christ and continue to believe will inherit the kingdom of heaven through the power of the gospel (Rom 1:16). Levi received grace to choose the path of following the Lord.

Jesus Eats with Levi

“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).

Jesus sat in Levi’s house and shared a meal and fellowship with him. At that time, many tax collectors and sinners sat with Jesus and His disciples and joined the meal. Here, “sinners” refers especially to prostitutes. For any Jew, this would have been shocking enough to fall over in disbelief. But Jesus welcomed those who came to God by faith and filled them with heavenly blessings that come from above. It is like the heavenly banquet we will enjoy in the future (Rev 19:7–9).

I Have Come to Call Sinners

“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’” (Mark 2:16–17).

But when the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw Jesus eating with sinners and tax collectors, they rebuked His disciples. In their eyes, such a thing should never happen. They could not see Levi’s faith, nor God’s grace, love, or forgiveness. All they saw was their own standards and their own thoughts. They hated that Jesus was with tax collectors and sinners. They did not understand why He would do such a thing. In the end, they wanted to kill Jesus because He did not fit their ideas.

So Jesus told them that it is not the healthy who need a doctor but the sick. Jesus did not come to call the righteous but sinners. There is no one righteous on this earth. Jesus became flesh to save all people (John 1:14).

Therefore, anyone who refuses and does not believe in Jesus is like someone who thinks he is righteous on his own. The Pharisaic teachers saw themselves as separate from tax collectors and sinners and condemned them. They did not believe in the Son of God, Jesus Christ, but rejected Him. They considered Jesus unnecessary.

Anyone who rejects Jesus and does not believe cannot receive God’s grace or the inheritance of the kingdom of heaven. But the one who admits his sin and follows the Lord receives the inheritance of the kingdom as a reward. God, in His mercy, sent His one and only Son Jesus Christ and gives every spiritual blessing through Him. By the merciful blood of Christ, God washes away the disease of sin within us. Amen!

December 7, 2025

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Scripture quotes are from the NIV.