After this he went out and saw a
man named Levi at his work collecting taxes. Jesus said, "Come along
with me." And he did—walked away from everything and went with him. Levi
gave a large dinner at his home for Jesus. Everybody was there, tax men
and other disreputable characters as guests at the dinner. The
Pharisees and their religion scholars came to his disciples greatly
offended. "What is he doing eating and drinking with crooks and
'sinners'?"
Jesus heard
about it and spoke up, "Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? I'm
here inviting outsiders, not insiders—an invitation to a changed life,
changed inside and out." They
asked him, "John's disciples are well-known for keeping fasts and saying
prayers. Also the Pharisees. But you seem to spend most of your time at
parties. Why?"
Jesus said,
"When you're celebrating a wedding, you don't skimp on the cake and
wine. You feast. Later you may need to pull in your belt, but this isn't
the time. As long as the bride and groom are with you, you have a good
time. When the groom is gone, the fasting can begin. No one throws cold
water on a friendly bonfire. This is Kingdom Come!
"No
one cuts up a fine silk scarf to patch old work clothes; you want
fabrics that match. And you don't put wine in old, cracked bottles; you
get strong, clean bottles for your fresh vintage wine. And no one who
has ever tasted fine aged wine prefers unaged wine."
Luke 5:27-39 (The Message)
I love Jesus.
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