YL Lakewood - Luke 5:27-32
Luke 5:
27-32
Later on, Jesus went out and
looked straight at a tax-collector called Levi, as he sat at his office desk.
“Follow me,” he said to him.
And he got to his feet at once,
left everything behind and followed him.
Then Levi gave a big reception
for Jesus in his own house, and there was a great crowd of tax-collectors and
others at table with them. The Pharisees and their companions the scribes kept
muttering indignantly about this to Jesus’ disciples, saying, “Why do you have
your meals with tax-collectors and sinners?”
Jesus answered them, “It is not
the healthy who need the doctor, but those who are ill. I have not come to
invite the ‘righteous’ but the ‘sinners’—to change their ways.
One of my favorite things in
Young Life is getting the opportunity to sit down with kids over a meal. It's
not often anymore that kids slow down for an hour with a trusted adult to talk
about their day, share things they're excited about or struggling with, or even
just joke with each other. It's crazy to reflect over the last year the number
of times a student has started a statement (usually at Chipotle, which I view
as sacred grounds) with the line, "I haven't told anyone this yet,
but..." I can tell you from those conversations that kids are dealing with
very real issues, and it's a challenge - but also a privilege - to get to walk
through those things, as a friend who is living life with them day-in and
day-out.
I imagine Jesus sitting at the
table with Levi, listening intently to his friends, saying, "I love you
and care about what you're dealing with... I want so much more for your life.
Let me tell you why life in relationship with me is so much more valuable than
giving your life to (fill in the blank)." If you look through Scripture,
Jesus legitimately ate his way through the gospels. He was almost always going
to a meal, at a meal, or coming from one.
We get to share Jesus' words with
kids, because we consistently show up in their lives similar to the way Jesus
put on flesh to walk among us (John 1: 14) and frequently take a
break to talk with his friends over a meal.
Lakewood Young Life's own version
of the banquet feast.
@AlexMeyers
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