Acting Cozy with the Riffraff: The Study of the Book of Mark

Chapter two of Mark begins with the story of Jesus healing the paralyzed man who was lowered through the roof. The next story is the one for today. Here he calls Levi, who happens to be a tax collector. The people of Israel hated tax collectors. Tax collectors were viewed as low-lifes who would sell their own people down the river to make a buck. They were lumped with the worst of sinners. Now here comes a powerful and influential leader in the person of Jesus and he is calling one to be a disciple and then going and eating in his home.