In the first five chapters of Luke we learned a lot about Jesus and his being. From chapter five onwards we start to hear about the work of Jesus the Messiah. He is calling disciples to follow him and they will be the ones He is going to send out into the world to bring the good news to everyone.
The first to be called was Simon Peter and his friends. Jesus met them one day when He was preaching beside the lake and many were pressing against him so much so that he asked Simon to let him sit in one of his boats so he could speak to the crowd. After he finished talking he urged Peter to go back into the water and fish. Peter resisted saying that he has been trying all night but could not find any fish. He however agreed because Peter saw Jesus as somebody who are superior and better equipped than he was even at fishing. They caught a massive number of fish, they had to call their friends to come and help them. At this Peter fell on his knees and acknowledged his inferiority and sinfulness. They left everything and followed Jesus.
The next person he called was Levi, a tax collector. They Roman government employed people to harvest tax from the people. They were given a quota but could raise a bit more to sustain themselves. Unfortunately they were corrupt and ended up exploiting the people. Apart from that they were also traitors because they were seen as on the side of the invaders, the Roman empire.
When Jesus was confronted by the religious elite of the day at a banquet that Levi organised, he replied in one of the most beautiful verses in the Bible saying that people who are well don’t need the doctor but those who are sick. He came to heal the sick that is his job. Jesus came to save to lonely, the destitute and the vulnerable.
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