“And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.” Luke 5:28
How did Levi respond to Jesus’ call? He left everything. The other disciples were fishermen. When Jesus called them, they left their nets and followed Him. But they had a trade to return to if things didn’t work out. Levi was in a different position. The Romans would not have welcomed him back. This was an irreversible decision, and Levi made it.
When you follow Jesus, you will have a new way of life. Jesus called Levi to a new and completely different life. The call was not to add “believing in Jesus” to his old way of life. It was a call to leave his old way of life for something new, which he would find as he followed Jesus.
When you follow Jesus, you will have a new identity. Levi had been known as a tax collector, but now he would be known as a disciple. People would remember what he had been, but what he had been would no longer define him. He was now a follower of Jesus. His life became an example of the change Jesus brings.
When you follow Jesus, you will be part of a new community. Levi had his own community. When he held a party in Jesus’ honor, he had a long invite list, and clearly the people he invited came. They wanted to meet this Jesus who had such an impact on him that he had left his lucrative career.
The other disciples were fishermen. They paid taxes, and they would have despised tax collectors. Levi came from a different place socially, educationally, politically, and financially. The other disciples would never have had anything to do with Levi, but when Levi followed Jesus, these men became brothers. Jesus meant more to them than all that made them different.
How has following Jesus changed your life?
