As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting in the tax booth, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him. Mark 2:14

Matthew’s (Levi’s) immediate response to Jesus’ call was a big deal. He did not leave a fishing boat that’d still be there if he changed his mind, but a much sought after, get-rich-quick job under Herod Antipas. If he thought about it for a moment, either way, he’d be despised, maligned and stigmatized—a tax collector and a Jesus follower—but the call of Jesus was irresistible.

Next we find Jesus throwing banquet in Matthew’s apparently spacious home given the number of unsavory participants and disciples named. Unfazed by the certain noteriety he’d gain, the Great Physician made a house call.

The minds of the Pharisees’ scribes were collectively blown, either by Jesus’ act of stepping into a vile tax collector’s home, or their apparent lack of an invitation (they surely met Jesus’ entry requirements!).

Jesus heard their scuttlebutt and put them on notice. He was here to heal the souls of men, and he was prepared to go anywhere to do it. So should we.