And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.
— Mark 2:14
Levi, also known as Matthew the disciple of Jesus, was a tax collector. Now, this is of great significance. Tax collectors were outcasts in Roman society and traitors. Tax collectors were local collaborators with the Romans, meaning Levi was a Jew who was hired by the Romans to enforce taxes on the Jews. And not only did tax collectors enforce Roman taxes, they often over-taxed and enriched themselves with the extra.
Jesus walks by and sees Levi in the tax collector booth. I find this incredible. Levi was not at the temple begging for forgiveness. We are not told he is actively seeking a new position because he is uncomfortable with his social standing. Jesus walks up to Levi in Levi’s corrupt position and asks Levi to follow him.
And he does.
Then, Jesus hangs out at Levi’s house with all Levi’s traitor friends! The call to follow Jesus is not get all cleaned up and then follow, it is to follow and allow Christ to clean you up.
Christ is calling you right where you are, right now. Say yes and get connected into a local Church, that is the body of Christ. Watch what God does when you invest yourself into His body!