Do You Even Care?

Mark 2:15-17

¹⁵ While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.

¹⁶ When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

¹⁷ On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

The religious leaders during this time questioned why Jesus would eat with those whom they considered morally wrong (tax collectors) and spiritually wrong (sinners). These leaders did not associate with tax collectors or sinners. In an effort to maintain their spiritual purity they isolated and avoided those they deem impure. Then came Jesus.

Jesus knew His purpose. He knew the people He was supppose to reach. He knew the method He must use to reach them. Isolation and avoidance was not effective tools to use in fulfilling His purpose. Jesus had to show that He cared. He had to break down the barriers that prevented Him from effectively showing that He cared. What are those barriers:

1. Location: Times have changed where non-believers are breaking down the church doors to give their lives to God. You have to go and get them where they are. Jesus went to Levi's house. He went to where Levi was comfortable AND to a place He did not feel like He was compromising the prime objective of ministering to Levi. We might have to go to the prisons, bad neighborhoods, someone's house, or meet them in a resturant in order to effectively minister to them.
2. Discrimination: Souls do not have a gender, religious preference, sexual preference, ethnicity, social class or anything that we could use to decide who should or should not receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ from us. Take every opportunity to witness and be a witness. Witness through your words and deeds. Tell them about Jesus Christ and show them Jesus Christ.
3. What Other People Think: Jesus allowed Himself to be ridiculed by the religious leaders in order to gain the heart and soul of those He ministered to. His status among their ranks did not matter. Getting invited for a preaching engagement did not matter. Receiving a pat on the back did not matter. What mattered was winning souls for the Kingdom of God.
4. What We Know: Jesus knew that people did not ONLY want to know that He was knowledgeable of the scriptures, they wanted to see Him put it in practice. They wanted to see that He cared enough for them before they would even care enough about what He was preaching or teaching. Just because we can break the scriptures down upward and downward does not mean anything if we do not genuinely care for the people.

Break down the barriers that prevents you from being an effective witness. Follow the model that Jesus has set before us. Jesus said that He did not come to call the righteous but He has come for the sinners. We have to spend more time reaching out to those who need Christ in their lives.

What would you change about yourself to make you a better witness for Christ?