When Jesus Walks Up to Your Booth
Have you ever looked at your past, your mistakes, or the labels society has stuck on you and thought, “There’s no way God could ever use someone like me”?
If so, take a close look at Mark 2:13–17.
Jesus is walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Crowds are pressing in, hanging on every word. But Jesus doesn’t set up shop in a pristine sanctuary and wait for cleaned-up people to find Him. Instead, He walks right up to the tax booth and locks eyes with Levi (whom we know as Matthew).
In first-century Jewish society, tax collectors weren’t just disliked—they were despised. They worked for the occupying Roman government, taking money and often extorting their own people. A Jewish tax collector was considered a traitor, an outcast, excommunicated from the synagogue, bringing disgrace upon his entire family. People crossed the street just to avoid them.
Everyone in town saw Levi and saw a thief, a sell-out, and a hopeless sinner.
Jesus saw a disciple.
Jesus didn’t wait for Levi to change his profession or clean up his act first. He met Levi right where he was, looked past the label, and simply said: “Follow Me.”
He Sees Who You Will Become
Before Jesus ever speaks to you, He sees you. He doesn’t just see your current address or your track record; He sees who you can become in Him.
Your past might explain where you have been, but it does not determine where you are going. When Christ calls you, the only person who will keep bringing up your past is the enemy, a critic, or your own self-doubt. God doesn’t hold your old labels over your head—He wipes the slate clean and sets your feet on solid ground.
And notice how Jesus called Levi: He didn’t hand him a 5-year business plan, outline a 401(k), or explain the next ten steps. He just gave a clear invitation: Follow Me.
Levi didn’t hesitate. He stood up, left the booth behind, and followed. Sometimes we get so caught up trying to map out God’s 10-year plan for our future that we miss what He is asking us to do today. Discipleship isn’t about having every detail figured out—it’s about taking the next step with Jesus one day at a time.
The Danger of the “Holy Huddle”
What did Levi do the moment he encountered Jesus? He threw a massive banquet at his house.
And who did he invite? The only friends he had: other tax collectors, outcasts, and notorious sinners. Jesus sat right there at the center of the room, reclining at the table and enjoying fellowship with them.
Naturally, the religious leaders had a fit. But Jesus delivered a truth that defines the heart of the Gospel:
“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” — Mark 2:17
Jesus didn’t come to endorse sin, but He relentlessly pursues sinners.
The danger for many of us who have followed Jesus for a long time is that we slowly retreat into a “holy huddle.” We get cleaned up, we get comfortable, and we surround ourselves only with people who look, think, and talk just like us. We turn church into a social club for the “frozen chosen” rather than a rescue station for the broken.
Christianity was never meant to be an exclusive circle where we isolate ourselves from the world. We are rescued on a mission so that we can be sent back out on the same mission.
Living for Jesus in Your “Third Places”
Sociologists often talk about life revolving around three spaces:
- First Place: Your Home
- Second Place: Your Work or School
- Third Place: Where you hang out and do life (the gym, the coffee shop, the ball field, the diner, or the neighborhood park).
Where are your third places?
The longer we walk with Christ, the easier it is to abandon those third places or pull away from genuine relationships with people who don’t know Jesus. But those everyday, ordinary spaces are exactly where God has strategically placed you.
You don’t need a seminary degree or a microphone to make an impact. When you show up with intentionality, genuine love, and a willingness to meet people right where they are without judgment, God uses ordinary conversations to spark extraordinary grace.
Found people find people. Who is your one more this week?
Heavenly Father,
Thank You that You never waited for me to get my life together before You called my name. You met me in the middle of my mess, looked past my failures and labels, and offered me grace I could never earn.
Forgive me for the times I’ve settled into a comfortable holy huddle and forgotten the people around me who desperately need Your love. Break my heart for what breaks Yours. Give me eyes to see the people in my home, my workplace, and my everyday third places the way You see them.
Fill me with the courage to follow You today, to live boldly for Your Kingdom, and to invite others to the table of Your grace.
In Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.
Who in your everyday circle needs an invitation to experience God’s grace this week?
Take a moment to share this post with a friend or reach out to someone who might be walking through a difficult season. At ONE Church, we believe with all our hearts that No ONE Walks Alone—and that begins when we step out of our comfort zones to walk alongside others.
