The Call of Levi: Mercy Knows No Limits
January 18, 2025 - Saturday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Mark 2:13-17
Picture Levi, a tax collector shunned by society, sitting at his booth when Jesus approaches and says, “Follow me” (Mark 2:14). Without hesitation, Levi leaves everything behind. Only the call of five apostles is recorded in the Gospel: Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Levi/Matthew. The call of Levi comes after the healing of a paralytic. The One who has “authority on earth to forgive sins” demonstrates His power by turning a sinner into an apostle. This act speaks volumes: God’s call isn’t about our qualifications; it’s about His mercy. If a tax collector can become an apostle and evangelist, what’s stopping us from answering Christ’s call to holiness?
A Ripple Effect of Acceptance
Levi’s decision inspires others. Soon, tax collectors and sinners are gathering around Jesus, even sharing a meal with Him—a bold gesture of acceptance in that culture. This image mirrors the Church, where imperfect people are united by faith in Christ. We are a community established on the foundation of faith in Christ and the teaching of the apostles, former “tax collectors and sinners” gathered around the Eucharistic meal. Outside are those who consider themselves healthy and righteous but neglect "justice and mercy and faithfulness" (Matt 23:23).
The Pharisees did not speak directly to Christ but accused Him in front of His disciples: "Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?" Notice that they do not even bother to mention Jesus’ name or call Him their (the disciples’) teacher. In the Gospel of John, they are even convinced that Jesus is a sinner (John 9:24). If only they could hear their former member, a Pharisee named Saul, who left them and joined the community of repented sinners. In one of his letters, Saul, who became Paul, wrote: "For our sake God made him [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Cor. 5:21).
The Divine Doctor: Healing for the Broken
Jesus responds with profound simplicity: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick” (Mark 2:17). Jesus, the Divine Physician, came into the world to heal our illnesses, and all who admit their brokenness come to Him: “the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him” (Luke 15:1). But the so-called "healthy" disliked it. They did not realize that the words "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners" (Mark 2:17) also applied to them. When Paul persecuted the church, he considered himself a righteous man (Phil. 3:5-6). But when Christ called him, he understood that among sinners he was "the foremost" (1 Tim. 1:15).
Two Communities: Which Will You Choose?
We all face a choice. Will we join the community of Levi and others who acknowledge their imperfections and embrace Jesus’ love? Or will we stand with the Pharisees, clinging to a false sense of righteousness?
The good news is that Jesus is always ready to call us, sit with us, and heal us—no matter how far we’ve strayed or how unworthy we feel. Like Levi, we don’t need to be perfect to follow Him. We just need to say "yes."