The Universality Of The Gospel
THE UNIVERSALITY OF THE GOSPEL
MARK 2:13-22
Mark describes Jesus’ mission in bringing his love to those who needed it most.
The call of Levi resembles that of the four fishermen, but its lesson is not so much to show how men should respond to the call of Jesus as to indicate the kind of men Jesus called. Levi, otherwise known as Matthew (3:18; Matthew 9:9), was a tax-collector, engaged in collecting customs dues for Herod Antipas on goods passing in and out of Galilee, and the kind of company that he kept consisted of tax-collectors and “sinners.” The tax-collectors were, in general, in the pay of the Romans and fleeced their fellow Jews; they mixed freely with Gentiles, so that they were ritually unclean, and their morals were not above question (Luke 19:8). The “sinners” were either persons of open immorality or perhaps simply that section of the populace who made no effort to live up to the rigid standards of the Pharisees. For Jesus to consort with such people was to bring him into direct conflict with the Pharisees who were the most influential religious party in the country. The theme of the story is therefore Jesus’ defense of his gospel of divine grace and of his mission in bringing it to those who needed it most. To ask whether 2:17 implies that there are some righteous is to miss the point; the implication is surely that Jesus would welcome the Pharisees if they realized their need.
Although the Old Testament prescribed fasting for all Jews only on the annual Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:29), the Pharisees prescribed fasting on Mondays and Thursdays (Luke 18:12). Unlike John, Jesus had not taught his disciples to fast frequently. He defended them with three parables:
Consider Levi as an evangelist.