"Unlikely, Undesirable, and Unhealthy"

Up on the platform a kind of looking out and into some kind of struck me. That was just a moment. And then I'm going to read from Mark chapter 10 just of snip it before we do that verses 13 through 16 this says and they were bringing children to him that he might touch them and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus saw and he was indignant and he said to them let the children come to me do not hinder them or to such belongs to the kingdom of God truly. I say to you whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it. And he took them in his arms, and he blessed them laying his hands on them. I was up there and I tell it. And I noticed there's a 90 + year age Gap in our congregation this morning. Our littlest ones about 3. I will not mention who our oldest one is, but he's getting upwards of about 94 + and I thought that's the beauty of the kingdom of God. That in and of itself that at multi-generational books loving people all the way through from the youngest to the oldest is a beautiful part of who we are as Christians in our face and it is it's encouraging to me to see our older folks standing and singing and it's encouraging to me to see our young ones being the Rowdy young people they are and I just want to just say that that's a blessing for all of us and I hope you see it that way as well because it is that's free. No extra charge. Just thought I'd share that that's why I was up there. Like it just kept running through my head that that's what God wants from us. Is this beautiful multi-generational family under this one? Messi kind of rough and it just blessed me to see that they were there for getting there. Alright, so we are in Mark chapter to relocate verses 13 through 22 and title this unlikely undesirable and unhealthy and then we're going to see kind of wires as we kind of look through this today, but let's go ahead and and dig into our time in the wordless. Let's go ahead and start first 13 and he went out again beside the sea in the crowd was coming to him and he was teaching them and as he passed by he saw Levi the son of alphaeus sitting at the tax booth and he said to him follow me and heroes and followed him. NFC reclined at table in his house many tax collectors and sinners are reclining with Jesus and his disciples were they were many who followed him and the scribes and describes the Pharisees when they saw that he was eating with Sinners and tax collectors said to his disciples. Why does he eat with tax collectors and Sinners? And when Jesus heard it, he said to them those who are well have no need of a physician but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous but Sinners did you pray with me? By the way, we look at this small chunk of scripture today. And we see Jesus in an act of of calling out Levi and in eating dinner with tax collectors and Sinners and we see that there is the love of God in him pouring out to those who seem unlikely undesirable and unhealthy father. We pray that as we enter into this time that we we we worship you through the hearing of your word that you would speak to our hearts. He would challenge us he would convict us you would moving us to Take something away open more than just our ears and our minds but open our hearts to your word.

Let us be doers of the word and see the example that Jesus set here not just hearers. In Jesus name I pray amen.

So I'm looking at this Jesus has already been out and about. He's already kind of the Ministries in in Wexford last week in full swing and Interiors. He's back in capernum. And then he's been teaching and that's his Focus. We see him continuing this focus on teaching the word that the primary focus of Jesus ministry is preaching and teaching the word it. It's it's widely loves to do. It's who Jesus like you just what he wants to do if he believes that the small house they was just in last week where the paralytic guy was there. And he goes where more people can hear and see you can hear him see him and hear what he's teaching. The Jesus goal is to reach the lost with the message of the gospel and in to do this, he has to go where the Lost are. It's a real simple concept, right? To reach the lost. You must be with the law * and three Selassie must also share the gospel with the lost. So if we're at church, and we want to reach our community, Martinsville Morgan County, whatever for the kingdom of God. There's absolutely no way for us to do it inside of these four walls.

We get visitors at Calvary Heights and that's a good thing. I'm not I'm not saying it's not a bad thing to be get visitors, but it's interesting that the folks who visit most of the time. Already say they have a relationship with Jesus Christ and are just looking for a new home Church. And we're one. on a dozen pecan on a dozen list I've just things are inspecting and checking out.

We're long past if you build it, they will come sure it works in in the field of dreams, but that was baseball players. We're looking to find people who are lost looking to find people who need to hear the Gospel of Jesus and we have to go where they are. Now. This is not mean you're going to go ministering to people on ever and in you know in the bar on Saturday night. That's not exactly what's going on that we need to be where the Lost are at. We need to be friends. Then we need to love on the Wii need to share the gospel with them not just hang out but share the gospel turn the conversation toward Jesus Christ. And that's what he's doing here. He's out where the Lost are and he's sharing the gospel. We have to go to The Lofts we have to spend time with him sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We see that here already. He's out and about preaching and teaching and he sees Levi. Now we later know Levi is Matthew, right like The Gospel according to Matthew Matthew. He's sitting at this text with him. So he gets this name change. We're going to see that happening in in Mark Chapter 3 Verse 18. We see it happening in Matthew chapter 9 verse 9, and he just looks at Levi sitting here at this tax booth and he says follow me. Nothing else know. I'm going to do this. I'm going to do that. Just follow me. And Levi does just that this is this is not some happenstance encounter. This is not Jesus. Just walking alongside the beach. They're the Sea of Galilee and go you follow me. I didn't see you there. This is planned. Right this this is this is a god looking for someone to bring into the fold and in Jesus knows that he's going to be there. This is you set up these tax bruise on purpose. This was not a just so I guess I'll set up here today kind of thing. This was that he was there on purpose so Levi when he's called by Jesus. He's sitting at this tax Booth by the Sea of Galilee. This means he was collecting taxes from the sailors and the fisherman who fished there, that's what he was doing. And being a tax collector in Palestine, 2,000 years ago means a lot.

That means he was probably trained as a young boy to be a scribe but he went to the Hebrew schools. You would have known the word of God. He would have known how to read and write he would have known how to do all this was a big deal because the Romans kept good records and he'd have been responsible for maintaining that as a tax collector. I already kind of Internet the Romans. The juice didn't issue taxes. You paid tithes to the temple. You didn't pay taxes to a King. If you were Jewish unless you are under an occupied army or an army of occupation and they were so for Levi a young Jewish man who have been trained as a scribe most likely to be collecting taxes meant he was a collaborator with the army of occupation.

as a traitor we don't have another word of saying that that is a traitor. And that's huge trailer. That's the third point that he was a traitor to Israel. He literally

Sold his loyalty to his own people for his own personal gain. I was thinking historically like, I don't know that in the United States. We have any traitors that this would have been comparable to I thought it was just like the Rosen Rosen Rosen bombs that sold the bomb to not really is just like Benedict Arnold. No, World War II generation. This is like the folks in occupied France that collaborated with the Nazis. It turned in Jews that were being hidden. This is folks who would have turned it over folks who were working in the in the in the resistance during periods of occupied Europe. It's that level of Traitor them is how the Israelites saw a tax collector. Right, and if you've ever seen footage of what happened, then those folks it when they got when American Tank started rolling through parts of occupied Europe and end and the Russian tanks. They would take those collaborators in the women. They would shave their heads publicly to shame them for what they have done. Like that's the level of disdain. Jews would have had for tax collector 2000 years ago in Roman occupied Israel. That's where Levi sets.

You've also been considered a thief and that's a big to we think about that. Now this is this is

so it's being a tax collector you're at your traitor to your country and you're a thief because it was really not a thief like we think of this isn't petty theft. This is kind like Jewish Mafia. This is organized crime with a little bit of government assistant. This is corruption. Probably like at the Nixon Watergate level kind of corruption.

This guy would have went to do this to to make to make money. You kept the books you gave to the Romans. You need to keep the books except for yourself. This is kind of help tax collecting worked. Then he always had a little bit of something you put aside for you at the Jewish books ancient Jewish books of the mishnah and the talmud thieves and murderers in the same category as tax collectors. That's how reviled these people were in this time. They ran rackets. They extorted people they were banned from synagogues. If you were a Jewish tax collector, you were basically excommunicated you could not worship in the synagogue and you certainly didn't get in the synagogue couldn't get very far into the temple.

They were The lowliest of the lowly if if a tax collector came into your home, your home was deemed ceremonially unclean meeting the priest had to come in and do the whole thing to get your home clean again.

It was so bad among tax collectors. And these guys were so low and Society it was it was considered an okay send to lie to one. The priests and scribes and the Pharisees and Sadducees were just like he's a tax collector. He deserves to be lied to me. These are the people that you know, do not bear false witness. This is like one of the Big Ten right and so they would lie to these guys know it's okay.

Now just kind of on this the the name change that happens later is very interesting Matthew. This is Levi. He's later called Matthew Matthew in Hebrew means gift of Yahweh. Gift of God. So this is what's beautiful about this story. Is that the man who had stolen from the people of Israel receive the greatest gift God can give Redemption of his sins through Jesus Christ the greatest gift any of us can ever get and then return the man who had stolen will now Bless the people by sharing the gift of Jesus Christ back with them. The swindler will become a Gift Giver and a blessing.

Let me tell Jesus works that way that's just that's just how Jesus works the swindler will become a Gift Giver and a blessing to the people. And that's just the beauty of how Jesus Works he does. Just that. This is the kind of transformation that the gospel does in the lives of people. Nothing else. Does this kind of transformation except for a gospel active in the hearts of the people who receive it?

In Levi what Jesus saw was a sinner saved or a sinner in need of Grace and salvation? Jesus saw what he would become not believe I was in the moment.

Levi wasn't just a low-life who deserve condemnation, but he was an image bearer of almighty God who needed Redemption. He was his followers of Jesus. need to ask the Holy Spirit to help us see our neighbors that way right is as we follow Christ are we looking around town and seeing people that are unlikely people people that are a little off a little different a little Peculiar from us and are we saying Holy Spirit open my eyes to see them the way Jesus season open my eyes to see them as a people who need Grace open my eyes to see the mess of people who need Salvation open my eyes to see them as image bearers of God. We know we were made in His image. Even if we're not following him. We're still made in His image.

We need we need to ask the Holy Spirit to help us see those Rough Around the Edges people that way she will never as a church. Where were the Jesus's main goal here is to share the gospel to preach the good news to tell people that they needed salvation to bring Salvation to people who felt like they couldn't get it.

work hard to follow that And will never share the gospel with those people who need it the most if we don't see them as people created in the image of God who need the same Grace and Redemption that we have already been given will never do that on her own. But we have to go to the Holy Spirit and ask help me. See these people the way you see them Jesus. Break me of my bigotry towards others. He's continues on and he heads over to Levi's house and have dinner and a good time and this is really appropriate like it seems a little odd that all of a sudden the same story like he calls Levi and then they will have dinner and there's a party in it, but it's so appropriate because we should celebrate salvation. When one twin of someone who is is lost in there said who is floundering around and not following God repents comes God accept Christ moves on in in Jesus becomes a follower. There should be a celebration. The day of salvation is a day of celebration in a day to be celebrated. It is a joyous occasion. And as a tax collector here, we see that Levi was probably wealthy and he had what appeared to be a fairly large home. He invites a lot of friends and acquaintances is over for this meal with Jesus. If you read this account Luke chapter 5 verse 29 tells us that this meal was a great feast. spared no expense The purpose of this meal was to honor Jesus and to share Jesus with his friends. Now I love this is what he says and he reclined at table that is such a weird phrase in Western English reclined it and we sit very proper. There's I don't lie and I were at 8 and an event Friday night at their their winter formal for Heritage Christian Academy. We're chaperoning and it's a dinner dance thing and there's all these extra forks. And then you got to know how to use other sports above my plate Forks to the left. And how do I start from the outside and work your way in and you know, there's like a skip the salad course and then drum do I use the salad fork? Anyway, you know how it worked two thousand years ago in Israel. It would have been this kind of low-slung table coffee table height right couch kind of in a u shape are in a little bit like u-shaped and it would have been all these kind of cushions around the room. Maybe a couch on the right with the folks who were being honored site in the center. And then everybody else sat right there around him and it is out their heads toward him in her feet toward the wall. Like I don't know like like I don't want to do it cuz I wouldn't be able to get up like that idea of like laying on your side propped up on your elbow. You know, that kind of that's how they ate dinner and it was kind of nice Fancy Feast eat dinner. And so they're doing that but you would get your head close.

Jesus at this time and it's weird to think about this because dinner with people is an intimate act. I don't think about that very often, but it is if you really ponder it we we don't just have meals of people just because we need to eat. Are those those moments when we just need to eat? It's in a bag in the in the passenger seat of our automobile. Let's be honest. We just put it in her mouth when we go on about our day, but when we're having dinner, we're having lunch with somebody. The people that are special dice right there people that do we care about we have meals with those people. We have meals with the people. We want to get to know better. We have meals with people that are family. We have meals with our closest friends even at work. right those of us that have a place of work where there is like a an employee lounge or or a break room or whatever you go in there and you still can have your own little assigned seat, right? And you have your table and it's your is your lunch but he's right in and nobody moves from that table. Like I came in to lunch a couple weeks ago a little late and my spot at my table was taking up in my lunch, but he's had somebody else and I didn't know what to do and it kind of freaked me out and you know, you have those moments. Right and we laughed because we know it's true, but there is something intimate about sharing a meal with somebody.

Eating a meal with someone is intimate in Jesus here showing intimacy with tax collectors and sinners. By having this Feast with it.

Intimacy, but this is shocking. This is stunning the people who were invited to the table had to be shot had to be stunned in summer. Garlic. Why is this young Rabbi up-and-comer in in teaching? Why is he choosing us? Why is he allowing us to sit close to him at this table? You shouldn't even be in the room and if we're in the room, we should be against the wall. We shouldn't be here.

Why on Earth isn't just not know what I've done. The answer to that is yes. Jesus didn't know what they had done and he still wanted to have dinner with them still wanted to get to know them better and it wasn't just shocking to the people invited to the meal. It was all so shocking to the religious leaders of the day the tax collectors and sinners came to Jesus humble and thankful. But the religious leaders came with anger and we're offended think of that. Now this word Center here, maybe kind of a term used by the Pharisees for people who just didn't live up to their standards of righteousness. Are there standards of holiness?

Early Puritans refer to themselves as the Saints and everyone else. It's kind of how many that they kind of referred to themselves. If you've ever done business with the Amish, there are amongst the Amish people. There are the Amish or the Saints. They sometimes refer to themselves as the Saints and then there's the English everybody else who's not up to their standard that word Center might kind of be similar to that that we are who we are is Pharisees and you are who you are as people not up to our standards. And so that might have been kind of how they saw that that these people were undesirable among Israel and they were undesirable because of what they've done to the Pharisees view the tax collectors and sinners of people who failed and following the Mosaic law. They thought that Jesus needed to keep himself completely clean from such people and away from them.

So we see here, is that bigotry?

Can invade the mindset of people who think they have a religious superiority?

This isn't saying that there's multiple ways and no Jesus Christ is still the way the truth and the life. There's no one comes to the father except through him. Not that but when we get a mindset of religious superiority this is this isn't the main point of this message. It's not what what was happening here, but it's real and it's prevalent right bigotry displays the nature of one's heart the depths of depravity and send that even the most religious looking people have inside of them.

We may have hearts like this. May we have hearts like those tax collectors and sinners. I should be our prayer. May I have a heart like them showing humility and a desire for knowing I need Grace and it may our hearts show Grace and love towards those who don't yet. See the need they have for grace and mercy.

You need to be thinking that way our hearts into be changed that way.

Because what we see here is that Jesus welcomes. The targets of bigotry is honored guests. Any invites them into the family of God as they come to faith in him?

I thought about this and in this is interesting this this meal with these. Tax collectors in the center is in the in the small little pocket of Apostles that Jesus is called out which is not many in this point. We're we're looking at for 5 now. We have Levi added write the smaller pocket. This is this is kind of a foreshadow of the great banquet that takes place revelation 19:9. Right did it shows that the kingdom of God includes all who put their faith in Jesus Christ and Jesus alone that Jesus the Messiah calls and eats with Sinners people of every nation every tribe every people group who call upon the name of Jesus Christ for salvation will be there. The table will be filled with people that will shock us to look like us and may never have talked like us. Going to be different Jesus calls a seemingly most undesirable in the seemingly most unwanted to himself.

Xenoverse 16 received the Pharisees instead of asking Jesus directly why is having a meal with the tax collectors and sinners? They asked his disciples behind his back doing what's this about in the question really is asking why would Jesus lower himself to be with those people?

Now we need to kind of pause a second. Is the Pharisees are going to come up a lot and is we're preaching through a gospel book hole as much as we can go. See these guys come on. So we need to understand who the Pharisees are a little bet. They're kind of a unique group in the history of of Judaism. Right? So they have this this mentality. We need to understand it and then understand who they are. So most of the time the Pharisees these guys would have been middle-class Pious Jews rigorously follow the law of Moses. They were middle class of merchants.

Shopkeepers that's where stuff they but they were really really Pious. Not not Pious in a bad way the pious in a way that they were seeking to become Holier by strictly following the law. They knew that the law was good. They have held it they revered it and they were going to follow it. These guys are also very openly opposed to Roman rule over Israel.

And they were different there's there's two groups the kind of show up a lot in scriptures fish in the gospels the Pharisees and the Sadducees. The Pharisees are different than the Sadducees and we're going to talk about this education. We get more to them. They've not come up yet. But try not to get the two groups confused. Alright, the Sadducees were mostly wealthy. They were mostly Aristocrats and they were also folks from the Priestly line. Pharisees were not from that levitical line middle class working class kind of guys about the Sadducees. Is that some different theology than the Pharisees and where we'll get into that one. It's time to get into that. But know that they had their was differences in their theology. The Sadducees had a greater political influence in Israel through Rome. But the Pharisees kind of Grassroots eat and they had a bigger influence amongst the general population than the Sadducees had.

The first sees big big thing was a strict adherence to the law not just a written law scripture, but also the oral law that have been passed down and it was in their desire to protect the law and they want isolating themselves from common people and looked down on them because of it. The gold Four Seasons to go close to God by fervently obeying his law and maintaining personal Purity their intent was Noble but their practices got in the way of what their goal was. A lot of times. We we kind of like to think of the Pharisees being kind of connected possibly to like, he's independent fundamentalist movements. Probably not a great comparison. We can see where that happens. It does look a little bit like that, but it's not the best of comparison. So we got to be cautious of that does thing that's that's interesting about this is to is Jesus and the Pharisees probably will really had very similar theology. Is a Theology of Jesus was much closer to the tsalagi of the Pharisees. And Jesus is by the way theology as the Son of God is the right one would have been much closer to the Theology of the Pharisees had already been to the fair the Theology of the Sadducees and and so when Jesus confronts them, which he does often and he confronts them in their own kind of backyard. So to speak he's like right up there in their space is because he knows what they know if he knows it better. The big thing is is the Pharisees in their good theology lost the grace and love that Jesus had Jesus had the best theology the Son of God. So he also had the grace and love that they were missing. Jesus wanted them to see that they needed Grace that he was showing towards these centers in these Tax Collectors. He one of the first used to know that they're in need of him just as much as these people are but their own practice has their own desire to follow the law into miss out on the love that is in the law of the Forgiveness that is in the lot of patients that is in the law is keeping them from seeing God in his fullness. He wanted them to see that uses desire was to see them come to Salvation as well and he's going to confront them and he's going to do so on their home turf, but that confrontation when Jesus confronts the Pharisees, It is done so they can see their need for a savior every time. Jesus overhears their questions about eating with tax collectors and sinners in the answers the first sees by saying those who are well have no need of a physician. But those who are sick. I came to call the not to call the righteous, but to call centers Jesus compares the well to the righteous and the sick to sinners. Return goes back to what we saw at the beginning of chapter 2 right when when Jesus was healing the paralytic his primary focus is the spiritual well-being of people. This is Jesus's mission. He has come to seek and save the Lost. Jesus doesn't say who they are. Who's who here right. This is this you can kind of picture yourself. Who are you? Which side you think you're on? It is allowing the Holy Spirit to work in the lives of those who are hearing the word. Right. So the Pharisees are kind of left to determine for themselves if they are sick or if they're well.

Here's the thing though. 20/20 that you know hindsight's 20/20. We're reading this 2000 years later we can we can look at this in this this story is depicted. Free playland in three gospels very similarly in three gospels. We can see the lack of Mercy in the Pharisees and that lack of Mercy in the Pharisees indicates that they are spiritually sick, even though they think they're righteous.

We read through this passage of scripture this chunk. There's so much here right receive it if there's three things. Jesus Calls the least likely to follow him. think about that the people that that we will look at and say

the people that Jesus looks that goes. Oh, yeah. Do we need that? There are people that are going to be able to share the gospel to other people. But I'm not going to able to share the gospel with but I'm not going to have any street cred. So to speak with those folks. All right, I grew up around heavy equipment operators bikers and in truck driver how I became an elementary school teacher. I'll never figure that out. But I don't probably have as much street cred with truck drivers heavy equipment operators and bikers is a guy who still living that who knows and loves Jesus.

media I get it, but I'm not living it the way they're living it and they can live both of us. Right. I know all my school nurse is pretty well and I make sure to give him thank you cards and every once in awhile chocolate when it's been a really rough week. So I tried to take care of those but I'm not going to be able to share the gospel with other nurses other people in the medical field. The way God is going to use a nurse to share the gospel song.

He's going to find people that are unlikely in and whatever situation it is to use them for his glory to share his Gospel of Truth about salvation in Jesus Christ.

We also see that Jesus. Calls the undesirable here to follow him. He brings the undesirable in tax collectors and sinners.

There is some scandal in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And in the Scandal is at the gospel Jesus Christ goes to everybody. If everybody can get it. And everybody can receive the good news of the Gospel. How is that Scandal set sound? I'm scandalous Until you realize that. The guy in the 3-piece business suit and the guy that's been homeless for 22 years receive the same Gospel of Jesus Christ. That's kind of scandalous because even in in a western world, or we believe in our democracy We Believe In fairness, we believe in Justice. There are things that not everybody gets right. There are things that not everybody has access to Scandal the Gospels it if we're doing our jobs as Believers in Jesus Christ the first sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ actively fully telling people that this is what it is. This is the truth. You need Jesus you're separated from a holy and just God because of the sins in your life. And the only way to get the connected back to that God. It's because of the work Jesus did on the cross and you accepting that you understand that you surrendering to that. That gospel message is scandalous.

And the Scandal is it it's available to all just one of the scandals in that actually, there's numerous candles in the gospel. We think about it that way. And Jesus calls to spiritually unhealthy to fellowship with him.

I didn't you know the well don't need a physician.

Life we had that conversation. He was felt like last Sunday, or maybe it was Wednesday evening that that if you're the only time especially men will know what time we go to the doctors and we don't feel well and typically it's been we haven't felt well for months before we finally get ourselves there. We're bad about this. I hate going in for my annual checkup. This bike my least favorite activity in the world.

But Jesus wants to fellowship with those who are spiritually unhealthy. Why why in the world would Jesus the son of most high God what a fellowship is virtually unhealthy cuz he's the great physician.

He heals what spiritually wrong with us. And fellowshipping with Jesus Christ are spiritually sick condition gets better now. It's never fully healed until we're The Other Side of Heaven. As followers of Christ, but it gets better and better and better the more we fellowship with him.

We need to know that we need to take that the people. This is Jesus's mission to bring the good news of redemption of God to a people who knew they needed redeemed, but thought it was beyond them. Think about this Levi we described who he was and how he was viewed.

by the Jewish people A traitor a thief a backstabber unable to Worship in the synagogues and able to go to the temple.

But he knew he needed salvation in new he needed Redemption. But up to Jesus saying you've got it in me. It was beyond him.

It's going to be Beyond any of us without Jesus. Jesus is our way to Redemption. These were people who thought they couldn't have it. And I love this that Jesus ironically points out the hypocrisy of the Pharisees.

They need the Redemption just as bad as those tax collectors in those centers.

They missed it. I thought they already had it by by following these rules by showing up every Sabbath in the synagogue every every every High holy holiday in the temple. They thought they had it. They had a list of rules. They followed and followed well. And they looked good and it looks good on paper. But they were just a sec.

Spiritually as the others.

They are just as needy. Of redemption is the tax collectors and sinners, but they don't see themselves in need of redemption. They are blind in their own lostness. Church, we don't want to be blind their own lostness. We we don't want others to be blind in our losses. We want to help that we want to have the cure for that in Jesus Christ. We want to take that out to the me want to share that.

When we see this week, we see that. We have to see ourselves lost before we can be saved. We must know that your spiritually sick before you can be spiritually healed. He must be spiritually dead and sin before he made spiritually alive in Jesus Christ Our Savior.

That's the message we're supposed to take. That's the love we're supposed to share. We need to do that. Now the other thing that we seeing this is that means you're going to hang out with people. We wouldn't know he's hang out with. And it may cause us to get our hands a little bit dirty.

Jesus doesn't succumb to the life of the tax collectors and sinners, but he goes where they're at. He loves on them in spite of that. We are called to do the same.

He's going he's just going he's been preaching and teaching along. He's just in that mode and he finds Levi this tax collector. All me Levi's up and goes. He continues with his mission of teaching and preaching I can imagine this dinner. There's this big feast and rauf. I'll just eagerly like literally listening to Jesus. What you going to do? Turn on selfish story. He's not going to tell about this time. He smashed his thumb really really good with a hammer as he's in his dad shop and he's about twelve now. He's going to tell the gospel. He's got this attentive audience wants to know the truth. He's going to tell her we are to do the same. Jesus is a friend to sinners. Because those who seem unlikely to be used for his purposes, he seeks out and hangs out with the socially undesirable.

He heals the spiritually sick. Jesus spent time with these folks he loved and cared for them. If we call ourselves followers of Christ. And we see him doing this shouldn't we also do it?

Call to action day our invitation time. Is this that if you're a follower of Jesus Christ. On way to think of this. How are you going to show love and care for the unlikely the undesirable in the unhealthy that you know? baby, drop that down come up with a plan. Jesus says meeting with Levi was purposeful. It wasn't happenstance books. We're not going to show. Love and care for the unlikely undesirable and unhealthy. just by happenstance We need to pray I have a plan for that. That plan has to be something outside of these for brick walls.

How will you spend time with him? How you share the Gospel of Jesus with them make a plan and carry it through.

Now maybe you're one of those folks who you feel like you're part of the unlikely undesirable an unhealthy know this Jesus disagrees with your assessment of yourself.

He sees you as an image bearer of God in need of redemption that he offers. All you have to do is ask him to forgive you and he will.

Bothering him. We just thank you so much again.

We see this word we see. Who Jesus is and how he loves those that seem so unlovable?

Father if we're calling ourselves followers of you followers of Christ Christians, the word literally means little christs imitators of him and we are not showing that same kind of love convictus of that.

Father put it in our hearts to go to those we know or lost and share the love of Jesus.

shirt no real

impractical Manor Not forsaking the teaching of the word of Jesus Christ in that. Father for somebody here who maybe doesn't know you do his not. Surrender who hasn't said I know I am a sinner in need of Grace and salvation. Holy Spirit, we pray that you just continue to convince them that they would just cry out. Jesus forgive me. I know who you are. You are the son of the most high God you were the Messiah you were the chosen one who took on the sins of the world. I may be saved. You have paid the debt. I cannot pay for my Rebellion against the holy and just God. Jesus I Surrender myself to you just that simple.

We asked you would move in them.

And it probably take us who know the gospel truth and have us love them and share that with him. I can come to you.