TRY SOMETHING NEW

INTRO:

Why We Can’t Wait

It was April 16, 1963 that Rev. Dr. Martin L. King Jr. was arrested for his participation in non-violent demonstrations against segregation and incarcerated for 8 days in Alabama. While there he wrote the now famous “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” in response to criticism of several white clergymen that he was moving too fast. In response to their objections Dr. King said:

So often the contemporary church is a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound. So often it is an arch-defender of the status quo. Far from being disturbed by the presence of the church, the power structure of the average community is consoled by the church’s silent – and often even vocal – sanction of things as they are. But the judgment of God is upon the church as never before. If today’s church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century. Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into outright disgust.

These words have proved to be prophetic because everywhere we look there is proof of what holding on to the status quo has produced. Dr. King pointed it out in the twentieth century and yet in this 21st Century it is still a major problem. It has often been said that doing a thing the same way and expecting different results is the definition of insanity. I think the Lord is reiterating and stressing the point that “We Can’t Wait”, we need a revival or we will die.

Context of the Text

Scholars believe that the author of this gospel is a man named Luke. Not much is known about him except that he was a Gentile (Greek), a historian, and physician. He is also given credit for authoring the book Acts of the Apostles. The Gospel and Acts address an individual named Theophilus, but most biblical scholars agree that it was intended for the general public and most especially the Greek public (NIV Keyword Study Bible). The book “The Gospel of Luke” is believed to have been written between AD 60 and 85 for the purpose of providing an accurate report of the words and actions of Jesus that supports the claim that He is, in fact, the Savior of the world.

We picked up our study of Luke in Chapter 5 of this Gospel and witnessed Him calling disciples and changing them from fisherman to Fisher of men, We have observed his compassion for the outcast as he touched a leper who came to Him for healing, We experienced him forgive and heal a paralyzed man whose friends tore up a roof to get him to Jesus. The last passage ended with the people saying “We have seen remarkable things today!”

As Luke continues with his narrative, he brings us to a personality called Levi. The name Levi is used by both Mark and Luke, but Matthew identifies him a Matthew. He was sitting at his post, minding his business, when Jesus saw him and said follow me. That call of Levi set in motion episode of our text and decision to do so led to the events and lessons that I believe the text teaches today:

The Lord desires his disciples to be Change Agents.

Associations (Luke 5:27-30)

Luke 5:27–30 NASB 2020

After that He went out and looked at a tax collector named Levi sitting in the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me.” And he left everything behind, and got up and began following Him. And Levi gave a big reception for Him in his house; and there was a large crowd of tax collectors and other people who were reclining at the table with them. The Pharisees and their scribes began grumbling to His disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?”

Explanation

Jesus had been doing remarkable things and as the result, his social status was elevated and he had become the most popular personality of his day. However, he did not attach himself to the organized religious society of the day. Instead, he chose to associate with those in low social status group. The text informs us that Levi was a tax collector (aka: Publican). He was a person tasked with collecting taxes for a government. Often these people were either corrupt or perceived to be corrupt in that they would collect more than was necessary and pocket the extra themselves. In Greco-Roman times tax collectors among the Jews were considered to be Roman sympathizers.

Despite his stigma and label, Jesus found him where he was and said “Follow me.” Right then and there, he did not hesitate; the text says that he “left everything behind, and got up and began following Him.”

I could camp out right here and preach awhile, but Luke moves the story along to show us that Levi was grateful to Jesus for the goodness, mercy, and grace he had received and put together a big reception for Him. Notice that the text said “BIG.” This was not some little BYO get together, Luke says that Levi lavished his gratitude on the Lord by throwing a Big party.

Now when he was making out the guest list the people whom he knew and associated with were other people like him. And so, Jesus was invited as the guest of honor to a reception with a house full of tax collectors and sinners.

The text tells us that the Pharisees and their scribes questioned the disciples of Jesus about “why Jesus would associate (eat and drink) with those kinds of people?” It sounds like they had to be there to be able to ask such a question but The Pharisees and their scribes would not have attended the banquet given for tax collectors and sinners. They would not have been invited, so this conversation was probably when the guests were departing the banquet that the Pharisees approached the disciples.

They were implying that He and they were classified by association: in other words they were saying “birds of a feather flock together.”

Illustration

A drunk man who smelled like beer sat down on a subway seat next to a priest. The man’s tie was stained, his face was plastered with red lipstick, and a half empty bottle of gin was sticking out of his torn coat pocket. He opened his newspaper and began reading. After a few minutes the man turned to the priest and asked, “Say, Father, what causes arthritis?”

“My Son, it’s caused by loose living, being with cheap, wicked women, too much alcohol and contempt for your fellow man.”

“Well, I’ll be darned,” the drunk muttered, returning to his paper.

The priest, thinking about what he had said, nudged the man and apologized.

“I’m very sorry. I didn’t mean to come on so strong. How long have you had arthritis?”

“Oh, I don’t have it,” the man said. “But I was just reading here that the Pope does.

Application

Practice inclusive fellowship: The call to follow Jesus does not mean that you cannot associate with those who have not yet come to faith.

Associated by Necessity

Explanation

The disciples of Jesus did not have to answer the question and accusation of the Pharisees and their scribes because Jesus did. His response seemed to suggest that His association with society’s undesirables was predicated by necessity. Luke shares his christology with us here , stating: “And Jesus answered and said to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous to repentance, but sinners.”

Jesus’ reply makes it clear that recovery, not quarantine, is the message of his ministry. Jesus pictures himself as a doctor who treats the sick, not the strong. The remark takes the Pharisees’ perspective, though it does not endorse their righteousness. Jesus’ point is that those who know they need help will respond to the Physician. Often the unrighteous are aware of their need, whereas the unrighteous “righteous” are not. The unrighteous need a breath of potential acceptance and a whiff of God’s grace to open up to his work. The appeal to physician imagery is common in Judaism (Is 3:7; Jer 8:22; esp. Sirach 38:1–15; Bovon 1989:259, n. 24).

Jesus’ second point is a mission statement that explains why he seeks the outsider. This is one of several such mission statements in Luke (7:34; 12:49, 51; 18:8; 19:10). Jesus has come to minister to those who have need of repentance. He calls to them to repent. Repentance is a major Lukan theme, and only Luke mentions it in this scene (3:3, 8; 13:1–5; 15:7–10; 16:30; 17:3–4; 24:47). Here Jesus offers a picture of true repentance: it is like going to a doctor for help. The “cure,” if it is to come, must come from outside of oneself. A repentant heart is open to God and to his administering the necessary medicine for life. God graciously gives this medicine to those who seek forgiveness through him. Jesus sees opportunity for restoration for sinners and works to achieve relationship with them so they can experience the healing they need. When tax collectors and sinners come to the table in the clinic, Jesus, the Great Physician, is not about to turn them away. As in the other events chronicled in Luke 4:31–5:32, Jesus reaches out to all types of needy people. All can benefit from the power of his healing presence.

Illustration

Imagine a small, rural hospital in a quiet town. The hospital is known for its excellent care and the compassionate touch of its doctors. One day, a man is brought in after a terrible car accident. He’s in critical condition, bleeding and barely clinging to life. The hospital’s best surgeon is called in. As he prepares for surgery, a group of well-dressed individuals enters the hospital lobby. They are the town’s most respected citizens, known for their good health and wealth.

They demand the surgeon’s immediate attention, insisting on a routine check-up because they believe it’s essential for maintaining their perfect health record. The surgeon looks at them and then back at the man fighting for his life. He says, “It’s the sick who need a doctor, not the healthy. I came here to attend to those in dire need, to save lives, not to cater to those who are well.”

Application

Outreach and Compassion: Just as Jesus reached out to those who were marginalized and considered ‘sinners,’ we can apply this teaching by extending our compassion and help to those who are often overlooked or judged by society. This could mean volunteering at a shelter, visiting prisoners, or simply offering kindness to someone who is struggling.

Personal Reflection: We can use this passage to examine our own lives, recognizing that we all have flaws and are in need of grace. It’s an invitation to self-reflection and to seek personal growth and healing.

The Issue of status quo

See Luke 5:33

Luke 5:33 NASB 2020

And they said to Him, “The disciples of John often fast and offer prayers, the disciples of the Pharisees also do the same, but Yours eat and drink.”

Explanation

At the heart of this conflict is the issue of the status quo. Status quo is “the existing order of things; present customs, practices, and power structure. The Pharisees recognized that Jesus indeed had status and because they did not respect him for it they were working overtime to take it from him. Not willing to relent after his last comment to them they raised the issue that as a rabbi, he was not teaching the observance of fasting as John the baptist or the Pharisees. They were accusing Him of breaking religious discipline protocol.

In a social system like that of Palestine at that time, the system of honor and shame were pivotal values.

The Dictionary of New Testament Backgrounds states: Generally speaking, honor takes two forms: Ascribed and Achieved. Ascribed honor is social recognition arising from who one is by virtue of factors such as birth, wealth, class and social status.

Acquired honor is social recognition on the basis of what one has done, especially one’s achievements in the ongoing competition for status and reputation so characteristic of Greco-Roman society.

Honor, whether ascribed or achieved, is the greatest social value in antiquity, valued more highly even than life itself. This is because a person’s identity and worth arise in a social context. As C. Osiek (27) sums it up: “Without a good reputation life has no meaning.”

It goes on to say: The correlate of honor is shame. This can be understood negatively as loss of honor through a refusal or withholding of social recognition. But it can also be understood positively as a proper sensitivity toward one’s own honor and the honor of one’s significant others, such as one’s spouse, household, friends, patrons and clients.

These antagonist thought they would shame Jesus into following the Status quo but Jesus refused to entertain it.

Illustration

Application

Stuck on the old

Explanation

The last part of this text has the Lord responding to the keepers of the status quo. He gives them something to think about when He appeals to what was culturally relevant. He said: Is it right for the groomsmen of the wedding party to fast while the groom is with them? Again we see Luke’s christology.

He then introduces a parable involving cloth. In the first instance, he posits an old cloth garment that is being patched with a piece of cloth from a new garment and insist that the fix will not work. Second, he raises the problem of new wine being poured into old wineskins and states that it will not work because the new wine will destroy the old wineskins. He concludes that the real problem was that they were stuck in their way.

Illustration

Imagine you are watching the Olympics. All these different skaters come out with their impressive performances. Now in the Olympics the athlete will be judged on the difficulty of their routine as well as the precision and grace with which the carry it out. In evaluating then you are looking for the overall quality of performance in seeing how many errors they make as well as how complicated what they are doing really is so then an athlete who attempted a more challenging jump may actually get more points for trying and failing or making a slight mistake than if they didn’t try at all. As a judge then what would you do if one of the skaters came out and just slowly skated in a circle? They took no risks, and didn’t do anything challenging. Sure their performance might have been close to perfect but nothing was noteworthy. Anyone could have done what they did. Often times when we hold on to shame in our lives that is exactly what we do. Rather than trying anything or doing anything we just skate safely around. How would you judge that? Even just watching at home you’d sit there and think really? These others did such incredible routines and all you did was skate in circles, how did you even get in to the Olympics. You certainly wouldn’t say well done. That is the effect that shame has on our spiritual lives. It keeps us trapped in this fear of failure so that we are reluctant or unwilling to do anything.

Application

Conclusion:

Jesus calls

Jesus is concerned

Jesus Saves