Luke 5:27-32

Isaiah 58:9b-14

Psalm 86:1-2, 3-4, 5-6

Luke 5:27-32

Jesus saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the customs post.

He said to him, “Follow me.”

And leaving everything behind, he got up and followed him.

Then Levi gave a great banquet for him in his house,

and a large crowd of tax collectors

and others were at table with them.

The Pharisees and their scribes complained to his disciples, saying,

“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

Jesus said to them in reply,

“Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do.

I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, you have given me this sacred time to encounter you. Draw me into the silence of the desert so that I can hear your voice more clearly. Grant me the grace to respond to you in love with all my heart, soul, strength, and mind.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Responding to Isaiah’s Call: The First Reading from Isaiah touches on some of the things we need to leave behind. These include things like seeking ourselves, making false accusations, and engaging in malicious speech. We cannot follow Christ if we are solely focused on following our own ways apart from God. We cannot live in the Truth if we are filled with falsehood. We cannot enjoy divine blessings if our hearts are full of malice. The First Reading also speaks about having God in our lives. When we have God, light will conquer the darkness. The Lord will guide us. He will renew our strength. He will nourish us. All of these have to do with divine grace. Grace enlightens us through faith. Through grace, the Lord empowers us to walk along the path that leads to heaven. Grace purifies us, restores us, and strengthens us. And, in the Eucharist, we are given the spiritual food we need for the journey.

2. Responding to Christ’s Call: In the Gospel, Levi’s response to Christ’s call is a model for us to imitate this Lent. Levi is involved in and busy with the affairs of the world. Yet he hears the voice of Jesus Christ who says: “Follow me.” This is the heart of every Christian vocation: leaving behind the things of this world, responding to God’s call, following Jesus Christ, and serving God’s people.

3. The Divine Physician: Jesus compares himself to a physician who heals the sick. In his public ministry, Jesus often cured physical sickness. But this was a sign that pointed to something greater. Jesus wants to heal the spiritual sickness caused by sin. When Jesus says that the righteous do not need to repent, it is important to remember that we are only made righteous by God’s grace. And so, both sinners and the righteous need Jesus, but in different ways. Sinners need to repent from sin and for Jesus, the divine physician, to heal them and restore them with his grace. The righteous need to persevere in righteousness and for Jesus to sustain them, guide them, nourish them, and help them flourish with his grace.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you call me, like Levi, to follow you. Help me discern today what this means. Help me to know what I have to leave behind and what I have to embrace. Strengthen my heart with your grace so that I can turn away from what keeps me from following you.

Resolution: The task of leaving behind the world and living according to God’s will is not something we accomplish on our own. Jesus reminds us of this, telling the Pharisees and scribes that he has come for the sick, for those who allow themselves to be healed, and for sinners who seek to repent and turn their lives toward God. What is it that I, empowered by God’s grace, need to leave behind?