Peace and grace in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Luke 5:27-32is about 'Levi the tax collector follows Jesus'.
Luke 5:29-32
5:29. Then Levi gave Him a great feast in his own house. And there were a great number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them.
5:30. And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His disciples, saying, "Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"
5:31. Jesus answered and said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
5:32. "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."
Jesus comes to the world to call sinner to repent and be saved. Why must there be a call from God?
Genesis 2:7, 1:26
2:7. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
1:26. Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
God forms man of the dust of the ground namely man who is as glorious as God is, in His image and having His likeness.
Genesis 3:4-7
3:4. Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.
3:5. "For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
3:6. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
3:7. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.
Man is tricked by serpent (strange voices that do not match spiritually, false teaching) that he eats fruit that is forbidden by God, does sin, gets naked, loses the glory of God and he is cast out to the world.
In the world, naked man keeps doing sin up to the peak of sin namely sin of eating-drinking and marrying-giving in marriage. Consequently, man is getting away from God and separated forever. That is why Jesus calls man that he does not perish.
Luke 5:27-28
5:27. After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, "Follow Me."
5:28. So he left all, rose up, and followed Him.
Receiving God's calling is same as repenting, which means as follows:
By receiving God's calling, we become mortar again and return to Hand of the Creator.
God will create us in two things as follows:
In the process to become new man, there are a lot of broken vessels.
For example: Levi who should be in the temple of God, but he is in tax office.
Genesis 1:2
1:2. The earth was without form, and void; and darknesswas on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
The condition of broken vessel is like the earth before it was created, those are as follows:
Jeremiah 18:1-6
18:1. The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying:
18:2. "Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words."
18:3. Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel.
18:4. And the vesselthat he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.
18:5. Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
18:6. "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?" says the LORD. "Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!
God wants to call broken vessel through the Word of God. If we want to repent, God’s merciful Hand is able to form us from broken vessel to new one to glorify Him until we become new man.
The Hand of God is able to make all things beautiful in His time. Do not prolong in the fault!
Romans 11:29
11:29. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. He will always help our life until we become witness and glorify Him.
God blesses us.
Luke 5:27-32is about 'Levi the tax collector follows Jesus'.
Luke 5:29-32
5:29. Then Levi gave Him a great feast in his own house. And there were a great number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them.
5:30. And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His disciples, saying, "Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"
5:31. Jesus answered and said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.
5:32. "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."
Jesus comes to the world to call sinner to repent and be saved. Why must there be a call from God?
Genesis 2:7, 1:26
2:7. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.
1:26. Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
God forms man of the dust of the ground namely man who is as glorious as God is, in His image and having His likeness.
Genesis 3:4-7
3:4. Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die.
3:5. "For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
3:6. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.
3:7. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.
Man is tricked by serpent (strange voices that do not match spiritually, false teaching) that he eats fruit that is forbidden by God, does sin, gets naked, loses the glory of God and he is cast out to the world.
In the world, naked man keeps doing sin up to the peak of sin namely sin of eating-drinking and marrying-giving in marriage. Consequently, man is getting away from God and separated forever. That is why Jesus calls man that he does not perish.
Luke 5:27-28
5:27. After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, "Follow Me."
5:28. So he left all, rose up, and followed Him.
Receiving God's calling is same as repenting, which means as follows:
- believing and receiving Word of God,
- to stop doing sin and return to God.
By receiving God's calling, we become mortar again and return to Hand of the Creator.
God will create us in two things as follows:
- the vessel for honor of God, vessel of mercy.
Romans 9:20-23
9:20. But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, "Why have you made me like this?"
9:21. Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honorand another for dishonor?
9:22. What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,
9:23. and that He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had prepared beforehand for glory,
The vessel of God's mercy is used toglorify God. It means we are formed as the priests and kings, minister of God.
Duties and obligation of the servant of God are to glorify Him always.
If we want to serve God, we have to sacrifice our right like flax is willing to be burned in order to shine. If we insist our right, we will make the heart of God grieved a lot.
Isaiah 49:3-4
49:3. "And He said to me, 'You are My servant, O Israel, In whom I will be glorified.’
49:4. Then I said, 'I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for nothing and in vain; Yet surely my just reward is with the LORD, And my work with my God.’"
If we can glorify God, our reward and work are in His Hand.
We have guarantee for present, future and eternal life. Everything is in the merciful Hand of God.
Isaiah 60:21-22
60:21. Also your people shall all be righteous; They shall inherit the land forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified.
60:22. A little one shall become a thousand, And a small one a strong nation. I, the LORD, will hasten it in its time."
If we glorify God, the small thing will become big, the weak will become strong and we win over all problems. - New man that is same as God.
We are changed continuously up to being in one image of God.
Galatians 5:22-23
5:22. But the fruit of the Spiritis love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
5:23. gentleness, self–control. Against such there is no law.
Love, joy, peace = image of God the Father.
Longsuffering, kindness, goodness= image of Son of God.
Faithfulness, gentleness, self–control= image of God of Holy Spirit.
In the process to become new man, there are a lot of broken vessels.
For example: Levi who should be in the temple of God, but he is in tax office.
Genesis 1:2
1:2. The earth was without form, and void; and darknesswas on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
The condition of broken vessel is like the earth before it was created, those are as follows:
- Being without form of righteousness and holiness.
- Being void, or one never feels satisfied and happy. His life is void, so he looks for the world satisfaction and falls into sins up to the peak of sin.
- Darkness, the lamp is quenched. It means that one does not become light, but makes God, parents, and shepherd grieved.
His future is dark, broken and destroyed.
Jeremiah 18:1-6
18:1. The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying:
18:2. "Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words."
18:3. Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel.
18:4. And the vesselthat he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.
18:5. Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
18:6. "O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?" says the LORD. "Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel!
God wants to call broken vessel through the Word of God. If we want to repent, God’s merciful Hand is able to form us from broken vessel to new one to glorify Him until we become new man.
The Hand of God is able to make all things beautiful in His time. Do not prolong in the fault!
Romans 11:29
11:29. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. He will always help our life until we become witness and glorify Him.
God blesses us.