Luke 5 is the chapter when Jesus begins to call disciples to Himself. First were Peter and his brother Andrew and the brothers James and John. Midway through the chapter He calls the tax collector, Levi, also called Matthew.
In between the calling of the two sets of fisherman brothers and the outcast tax collector, Jesus heals a leper and a paralytic.
The part of Chapter 5 I like best is when Matthew throws a party at his house for Jesus, the new disciples, Matthew’s tax collector friends and “others who were guests.” [5:29 HCSB]
I do not know if the “others who were guests” included religious leaders but Luke does say that the party irritated the Pharisees and scribes who complained to the disciples about the quality of the company Jesus was keeping.
“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” [5:30 HCSB]
Jesus was the one who replied to the complaints of the Pharisees and Scribes. “The healthy don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” [5:31-32 HCSB]
Only sick people need a doctor. Only sinners need a Savior.
If we are too arrogant to acknowledge our need for a doctor, we may die.
If we are too arrogant to acknowledge our need for a Savior, we will die eternally.
Only those who know their need will be saved.
