Mark__2

Scripture  Mark 2:14-15 

As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting in the tax booth, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.  And it happened that He was reclining at the table in his house, and many tax collectors and sinners were dining with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many of them, and they were following Him. Observation-What does it say?  The book of Mark was most likely written by John Mark, a close associate of Peter.  This account of the life of Jesus Christ is a written version of Peter’s sermons to the early Christians and addresses their needs.  Evidence of Mark’s close ties to Peter, Paul and the early church comes several times throughout the book of Acts.  Mark even traveled with Paul and Barnabas during Paul’s first missionary journey (Acts 13:5).  In the second chapter of Mark, we see the introduction of Levi, also known as Matthew (the author of the gospel).  Matthew was a tax collector, which was one of the most detestable groups of people.  “As a class, the tax collectors were hated by their fellow Jews. This was almost inevitable. They represented the foreign domination of Rome. Their methods were necessarily inquisitorial. That they often overcharged people and pocketed the surplus is almost certain. In the rabbinical writings they are classified with robbers” (biblegateway.com).  Jesus, through his interactions with characters like Matthew and Zacheous, showed his deep love for all humanity.  Additionally, Jesus proves himself to be a pursuer of the church, His bride, as described in the book of Song of Solomon.   Understanding-What does it mean?  As a young man I was quite persistent.  As I get older, that persistence looks a little more like stubbornness.  The persistence, though, is what made me successful as a runner.  My size, contrary to popular belief, makes me not very suitable to be a runner.  While my long legs could give me a longer stride, my height also gives me the disadvantage of carrying more weight than my competitors.  But, my persistence and my willingness to endure hardship also helped me to be able to outwork my competitors.My persistence also helped me marry a woman above my class.  When I began to show interest in my wife, she turned me down...a lot.  I asked Jen out for dates on several different occasions (somewhere north of ten times over a period of several months), before she finally told me yes.  If you ask her, she’ll probably tell you I pulled a fast one on her and left a bag in her trunk, which I needed to get and then had her cornered for a short period of time.  Luckily for me, my persistence paid off again.  Jesus is more persistent than me in His love for His chosen and beloved.  Where I would have taken a hint at some point, Jesus never took a hint, he showed His love for us and took it to the ultimate lengths by dying for us.  Jesus didn’t even care what people thought about his love.  He wasn’t ever embarrassed to be seen around those he loved.  He didn’t care about his reputation or his appearance, He just needed to be with the ones he loved, no matter what.  It didn’t matter to Jesus that Matthew wasn’t popular, He loved him anyway.  And Jesus loves us the same.  Jesus’ love knows no end. Life Application  Jesus, help me to love with abandon like you.  Help me to reach those who are on the fringes of society.  Help me to place the mission above my reputation.    
-Tyler Galloway