Levy
Page 4.11-24
- Again by sea: cf 1.16 call of 4, again in 3.7; again great crowds
- Almost word for word of first call: saw, called, immediate response, Levy noted as ‘son of…’ like James and John; soon in Levy’s home as with Simon; perhaps parallels w/ mother-in-law serving and Levy giving dinner;
- Sin is again a topic, cf paralyzed man
- Clean: leper was unclean; these people are considered ‘unclean’. This is really an interp, see below
- Possible parallel to faithful 4 friends: Levy has brought Jesus to his friends
- Jesus and his disciples share a meal with the wrong type of people
- Another announced purpose: first to go to other towns, now “I have come not…but…’; a new name for Jesus: Physician; interesting to note Jesus’ sense of purpose, his understanding and commitment to God’s call and commission to him
- Again questioning by scribes, this time identified a ‘of Pharisees’
- Who was Levy? What is a tax collector? Why this occupation linked to ‘sinner’?
- Significance of eating together in that cultural context
- Second question of religious leaders: this one is as significant in the minds of the scribes as the first: why? What was it about Jesus’ association with Levy et al that raises doubt in the minds of the religious leaders?
- What does Jesus mean by his statement of intent, that he came to call sinners, not righteous?
- Who are the righteous?
- Who are today’s tax collectors and sinners?
- How might Jesus’ priority of healing the sick impact our association with sinners?
- Do we consider ourselves to be the righteous? Or the sinners? How does that impact our ability to participate with Jesus’ emphasis on the lost?
- Are we willing to invite Jesus to our home, among our friends?
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