God's Great Call

The Power of God Calling

Mark’s Gospel is a powerful story of Jesus’ ministry. It is my favorite biography of Jesus’ life and ministry because it is told from the perspective of one of the most easily understood disciples, Peter.

Peter was called by Jesus from His life of fishing to be a disciple, but he has a problem that we all share - his mouth moved faster than his brain.

Have you ever had this happen to you?

Where you said something that was followed with a slap on your forehead.

Or, you begin to realize that you have a foot-shaped mouth?

Either way, the main character today is Levi, a man some of you know as Matthew. Or maybe you don’t know that. And I want you to hear me say tonight that that is fine. I want you to know that this is a place where you can bring questions. Bring uncertainty. Bring misunderstanding. I don’t care how big you think your question or uncertainty or misunderstanding is, the God who is in our midst tonight is bigger, more certain, more clear, more able to answer your questions than anyone else here is. That is why the first thing I want you to know about God calling people is how powerful He is.

When He called Peter in Mark 1:17 and Levi or Matthew in 2:13, they had questions man. He’s mighty enough to say just two words,

FOLLOW ME

and people follow. The Bible says “So, he got up and followed Him.”

These people had just witnessed the healing of a man who was paralyzed and this is how the story ends

Mark 2:12 (HCSB)

Immediately he got up, picked up the mat, and went out in front of everyone. As a result, they were all astounded and gave glory to God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Ya’ll ever had that response to something? I’m certain they hadn’t seen anything like that. From their eyes, they saw something impossible.

Let me tell you, the story ain’t done yet.

Let me ask you something, if you got into a boat and you had no knowledge of sailing, and the only two items in the boat were a sail and an orr, which one would you use?

Wrestle with this question for a minute.

Boats follow the wind when they’re sails are unfurled.

Has God spoken to you tonight to unfurl the sails of your heart and allow His Holy Spirit to breath your life in a new direction?

Maybe you thought it was God, but you really don’t know how to respond. Jesus met him where he was, and challenged him along an avenue with which he was familiar. ‘Take a risk, make your mind up now, and come.’ Levi did.

The Precision of God Calling

You’d think with all this power, God might be afforded the chance to have a mis-dial.

Ya’ll know what I’m talking about right? Someone calls and they’re looking for someone else.

Let me tell you something.

God doesn’t misdial.

From our eyes, from the eyes of the people in this story, from people’s eyes who read this story for the first time, God’s calling of Matthew doesn’t make any sense.

People HATED tax collectors, which was Matthew’s occupation. He worked for a guy named Herod Antipas and His approval rating was bad. They were lumped together with murderers and robbers, and they would get their job when they were the highest bidder - who would cheat the people the most. Tax collectors were despised by the Jewish people.

God had every intention to call Matthew, He doesn’t mis dial.

Oh, God wouldn’t call me. You don’t understand Pastor, I’m a fill in the blank.

I’m

God’s not interested in me, I have nothing to offer.

Mark 2:15 (HCSB)

While He was reclining at the table in Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were also guests with Jesus and His disciples, because there were many who were following Him.

You can’t separate the power of God’s call and the precision of His call.

God never calls someone to the wrong place

How do we know this? Well, because the text says so.

Do ya’ll ever recline to eat? Probably not, but in this story that phrase is intentionally used because it shows just how precise God was in His calling of Matthew to follow Him and be engaged in this meal.

Jesus is reclining at the table, which means, He was taking on a posture only used among the Jewish people for very specific meals or celebrations, such as the Passover. And, because of His call to Matthew, his entire house was full of people who were supposed to be there!

But, when the tax collectors and sinners (comment) saw who was there, they had to think ‘this ain’t the right address.’

In that house were also a group called the Pharisees, people who couldn’t stand that fact that there were all these horrible people around.

God always joins the called

Mark 2:16 (HCSB)

When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that He was eating with sinners and tax collectors, they asked His disciples, “Why does He eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

Have you ever had someone call and ask you to go do something but they don’t stay on the phone? this is not the way of Jesus

I want to tell you four powerful words from the Bible

I AM WITH YOU. He’s not leaving Matthew on his own to do what He called him to do. He invited Matthew and all of his despised friends to eat together. He’s not a figure it out on your own kind of God. When he calls, he equips, engages, and empowers.

When He called Matthew, In Jesus’ time, to eat with someone often meant to be identified and reconciled with them. What the Pharisees saw was Jesus eating with the wrong people. When Jesus found me, I was part of the wrong people group.

Jesus has no problem or reservation about being identified with such people.

What I want you to answer is do you want to be identified as one who eats with Jesus? Who clings to His Word? A person who others look at and go -

What is so attractive about how they live their life? Can I have that same life? Yes. And it’s because when Jesus calls, He does’t leave - He ate with Matthew and all his sinner friends.

But, Jesus doesn’t eat and leave people where they are.

The Purpose of God Calling

The final verse, Mark 2:17

Mark 2:17 (HCSB)

When Jesus heard this, He told them, “Those who are well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do need one. I didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Jesus’ life and ministry is filled with irony. This statement, I didn’t come to call the righteous but sinners is an example of this.

The Pharisees saw themselves as righteous - meaning they had a right standing with God. But they believed in their standing under the Law, that by their keeping of the Law, God saw them as ‘right.’ They saw no reason, no need, and no purpose to repent and believe in Jesus as their Savior.

Jesus knew that everyone, including these self-righteous Pharisees, are sinful. That everyone includes you and me. Jesus came into the world to call sinners, which are those people who humbly acknowledge their need for forgiveness.

This is the first purpose of Jesus calling people to Himself - to receive forgiveness of sins.

The second purpose of Jesus calling people to Himself is actually something I’ve already shared -

TO FOLLOW

This is also why Jesus ate with sinners - He was leaving for us a model for the very people He called all Christians to be. He intended to call Matthew to follow Him, and then to show him what it was going to look like.

To go to places where sinners are found hopeless and to share the hope of the Gospel - the promise of eternal life by faith in Jesus Christ.

To go places where people think they’re saved by their own strength or by their own good works and show them the grace of God.

The people around Matthew and the sinners and tax collectors heard

How about you tonight?

Are you being called to follow Him tonight?

Maybe for some this isn’t a first-time calling, but another calling from God -

Where is God calling you to go?

Matthew was called right from his job to follow Jesus.

Is God calling you tonight to something more than you’re living now?

If He is, then you need to know that He will engage, equip, and empower you to whatever it is He is calling you to. He is going to stay on the phone with you in this conversation and see you through.