7.26.20 Huddle

Zach Below   -   July 24, 2020

Intro Question

  1. Who is the most famous person you ever met? Share the story.

 

  1. Historian and writer (War of the Worlds), H.G. Wells said, “I am a historian. I am not a believer, but I must confess as a historian that this penniless preacher from Nazareth is irrevocably the very center of history.”

Do you agree or disagree with H.G. Wells? How would you respond to someone who did not agree?

 

Scripture Engagement

Read Luke 5:27-32

 

27 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.

29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them.30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

 

Scripture Engagement Questions

  1. What stands out to you from the text?

 

  1. How would you describe Jesus in this story?

 

  1. What questions/confusion does it bring up?

 

  1. What does Jesus model (if anything) in this story?

 

 

LUKE 5 CONTEXT

Here are a few context considerations . . .

  • Israel was occupied by Rome. As a tax collector, Levi—a Jewish man—was working for Rome. He would have been thought of as a traitor.
  • Tax collectors also grew wealthy by over-taxing their fellow Jews. Levi would also have been thought of as a cheat.
  • Generally, Rabbi’s would select the top students to be their disciples. The fact that Levi had already began a career means that he was passed over by all other Rabbi’s.
  • By this point in time, Jesus’s fame was exploding. He would have been a well-known Rabbi.

 

  1. Do these contextual considerations add any new dynamics to the story?

 

  1. Jesus specifically called out 12 disciples. One of them was Levi—a tax collector with allegiance to Rome. Another disciple was a man known as Simon the Zealot. A zealot was a member of a Jewish Sect that was working to incite a revolution to violently overthrow Rome. Why would Jesus put both of those men in close proximity? What does that fact tell you about Jesus? What do you think dinners were like when those two sat next to each other?

 

LUKE 5:31

Re-read Luke 5:31

31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

 

  1. What do you think Jesus meant by this statement?

 

  1. On Sunday, Bret pointed out that Jesus is modeling that “you can say a hard truth with kind words.” What hard truth Jesus is giving in this text?

 

  1. What are some “hard truths” that are often difficult to address . . . or . . . address with kind words?

 

  1. How does this story expand your picture of Jesus?

5.  What is one action that this story can inspire for the upcoming week?

 

 

CLOSE IN PRAYER