NOTES for Mar 2:13-17

It appears that there is nothing strange in this verse; this is exactly how everything should have happened. Jesus says, "Go," and Matthew gets up and goes. The only strange thing is that a man leaves a profitable, though not very respected, job as a tax collector, asks no questions, rises, and follows the first person he meets. Only a theoretical and superficial observation of the Gospel narrative can draw sentimental rosy pictures here. It is enough to think about what is happening to understand how powerfully the presence of Jesus affected everyone who encountered Him.

All of us who do not see Him as they saw Him should thank God for His mercy, because we do not face the most demanding spiritual choice: to acknowledge that this Man of flesh and blood is God. To acknowledge that He is not equal to all the rest.

To grasp this impossible and incredible fact is a serious problem for a person, especially a person of our time, accustomed to postulating the relativity of everything, even good and evil. But the need to decide how you personally relate to this fact does not disappear. For Jesus is the refusal of relativity, because He is the Truth. That is exactly why His presence will always cause so many problems and appear inconvenient and untimely. Because it forces us to decide whether we are following Him or not.

It seems there is nothing strange in this verse; this is exactly how everything should have taken place. Jesus says: “follow me ", - Matthew gets up and follows Him. It is strange that a man abandons the work of collector of taxes which is profitable, although not much respectable; he doesn’t give questions, he just gets up and follows the first comer. Only a speculative and superficial observation of the evangelic narrative can painter upon these good images of pink color. We only need to ponder what is taking place here, to understand how the presence of Jesus strongly operates on all those who come across Him. Each of us, who doesn’t see Him as they saw Him, should thank God of His mercy, because we don’t have in front of us the most important spiritual choice: admit that this Man by flesh and blood is God. Recognize that He is not equal to the other people. To acknowledge this incredible and improbable fact is a serious problem to Man, particularly nowadays Man who used to postulate for everything, even for good and bad. But the need to define our personal position to this fact does not disappear. Because Jesus is the rejection of relativity, since He is the Truth; and that is why His presence will always cause so many problems, will seem uncomfortable and inopportune; because it compels us to take a position: are we going or not with Him.

The scribes grumbling against Christ can be understood. Near Him they see people with whom a "normal" righteous believer would never even speak, much less sit at table... Bribe takers and racketeers, collaborators and "ordinary" sinners who are not concerned about scrupulously carrying out rituals... Homeless people and the mentally ill, vagrants and women of dubious reputation: all those who have cut themselves off from God, who have no right to hope for His mercy. And out of these people He wants to gather the Remnant of Israel?

But God's mercy surpasses our understanding. The Lord says, "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." And in another place He says that tax collectors and sinners are going into the Kingdom of God ahead of you. They simply heard the voice of Jesus, heard His word of hope, and responded to His call to repentance. An important practical conclusion follows from these words of Christ. First, the possibility of repentance and amendment is closed to no one. And second, you can find the Kingdom of God only if you acknowledge that you are no better than those very sinners who are so unpleasant to you yourself.

We can understand the scribes murmuring about Jesus Christ. They see near Him people with whom a “normal” righteous Christian would never talk to, not talking of sitting down to a table…Bribetakers and racketeers, collaborationists and “common” sinners, who don’t care about the scrupulous fulfillment of rites…Homeless people, lunatics, vagabonds and doubtful girls – everyone, who excommunicated himself from God, who don’t have the right to expect God’s mercy. Is it from these people He wants to gather the Remnant?

But God’s mercy surpasses our understanding. “I came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance” says the Lord. He says in another place that tax collectors and sinners will enter the Kingdom of God before us. Because they listened to the voice of Jesus, heard His words of hope and responded to His call to repent. An important pragmatic conclusion comes out of these Jesus’ words. Firstly, the possibility to repent and redress is open to everyone. Secondly, we can find the Kingdom of God only if we admit that we aren’t in anything better than those sinners, who are so unpleasant to us.

In today's passage, three episodes can be distinguished: the calling of Levi son of Alphaeus, the conversation with the disciples of the Pharisees and of John the Baptist about fasting, and the conversation with the Pharisees about keeping the Sabbath. In all three episodes, the growing conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees is shown. The Pharisees cannot accept the newness in relations with God and with people that Christ offers them. In their view, the main thing is the letter of the law. They condemn Jesus because He associates with tax collectors, who collected taxes for Rome. Such people were considered traitors and great sinners. For a pious person, it was considered unacceptable to sit at the same table with them. But for Christ something else proves important: the thirst for salvation that makes many tax collectors and sinners follow Him. Levi leaves his profitable place and immediately follows Jesus.

Jesus' attitude toward fasting is also incomprehensible to the Pharisees. Fasting is an ascetic means to which ascetics have resorted since ancient times in the hope of drawing near to God. But Christ's disciples cannot fast, because the One toward whom they strive is already with them. The time for fasting will come when Christ is no longer nearby. Christ compares the Pharisees' lack of understanding to the way old cloth cannot be mended with a patch of new cloth, and old, fragile wineskins cannot hold new wine. In order to receive the new relationships that Jesus offers, people themselves must be renewed.

Thus Christ places the Old Testament law about the Sabbath not above the human being, but at the service of the human being. For God, the human being is more important. The Sabbath has no value in itself, but was established for the human being. Christ, God become man, the "Lord of the Sabbath," affirms the primacy of the human being over the letter of the law, replacing it with relationships of love and faith.

Today's reading is a short but rich description of Jesus' preaching in His native Galilee, where He, as is clear, often preached not only in houses and synagogues, but also in the open air (v. 13; by "sea" here is meant not the Mediterranean Sea, but Lake Gennesaret). People whose reputation in the society of believers was not very good often found themselves in the same house with Him and at the same table (v. 15).

In the Gospels, "tax collectors" are collectors of taxes and tribute, like Levi son of Alphaeus, who is mentioned in the passage (v. 14). In Jewish society they were considered traitors, because they collected taxes for the treasury of the Roman Empire, under whose power Palestine was at that time, and many regarded them as accomplices of the occupying authorities. It is no wonder that such respected people among believers as the scribes and Pharisees did not care for this kind of company (v. 16).

In the Gospels, "Pharisees" are members of special religious brotherhoods that existed at that time around the synagogues. They were the most active part of the Synagogue; the Pharisees devoted much time to preaching, not only among Jews but often among Gentiles, to charity, and to religious education. With good reason they considered themselves the core of the synagogue community, and being near people who, from this point of view, had no standing, people known for an obviously unrighteous way of life, of course had to offend them. Besides, they did not consider such people worthy of fellowship with a Teacher like Jesus, and they considered it shameful for Him to sit at one table with them.

As for Jesus Himself, on the contrary, He considers such people worthy not of rejection, but of help: each of them can repent of his sins and turn to God (v. 17). And He does not treat religious life as formally as many religious people did at that time. For Him both fasting and the Sabbath are not ends in themselves, but means for establishing a relationship with God, so necessary for the human person, who always remains the main goal (vv. 27-28). Such a position, of course, inevitably had to lead to conflict with religious formalists, for whom any departures from established norms and rules are unacceptable by definition. So the image of new wine poured into an old wineskin, or skins (v. 22), could hardly have produced anything in them except irritation.