Mark 2:13-17 NIV
13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.
15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
INTERCEDE: Jesus came to seek the lost. When Jesus asked Levi to follow Him, He made a very public statement that even the worst of sinners, even a tax collector, would not be excluded from His invitation to follow Him.
Do you know anyone whose work, lifestyle, or social status keeps them from coming to church or hearing Jesus’s invitation? How might you find time to pray for them over the next 20 days?
Looking to go deeper into today’s Scripture?
1. Sit quietly for a few minutes. Take a deep breath calming your heart and mind in the presence of Jesus. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your soul to hear what Jesus wants to tell you.
2. Read today’s Scripture slowly. Listen for God’s voice to you in the text. Read it again and try to identify one word or phrase that stood out to you or caught your attention.
3. Ponder/meditate what God is saying to you. What is going on in the passage? What is God wanting you to know? What is the good news He wants for you?
4. Begin to pray from this Scripture passage. Pray in response to what God is saying to you. What is the Holy Spirit laying on your heart out of this passage? Do you need to pray for a confession? Do you need to pray for action? Do you need to pray for a conviction or an affirmation?
5. Share with your family or friend. What is your key take-away from this passage? What will you put into practice? Who do you want to pray for to come to know Jesus?
21 Days of Prayer & Fasting 