The "Scandalous" Behavior of Jesus

Tuesday of Holy Week:  He continues to cause "scandal" in our times as well.

Jesus went out again beside the sea; the whole crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. As he was walking along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. And as he sat at dinner in Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were also sitting with Jesus and his disciples – for there were many who followed him. 

When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, they said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard this, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.”Mark 2:13-17.

Jesus’ decision to eat with tax collectors and sinners was scandalous behavior in those times. Jesus sought out sinners throughout His public ministry and incurred the wrath of the Pharisees, who were enraged that He would dwell with, teach, and reach out to the sinful. 

 

Jesus continues this “scandalous” behavior in our times by continuing to reach out to His creation. Loving us is never scandalous behavior to God, and yet He incurs our wrath still by challenging us to be sanctified. Jesus loves every single one of us and encourages us to embrace holiness as we reconcile with Him, with ourselves, and with each other.

As Christians we are challenged to be holy every day, moment by moment as we live in imitation of Christ. 

 

After Adam and Eve’s original sin altered God’s plan for humanity and led to division between man and God, our merciful Creator promised a Savior to conquer sin and restore the human race. At the appointed time, Jesus became man and took our sins upon Himself to satisfy Divine Justice. The fulfillment of God’s plan came about through the sacrificial love and obedience of Jesus.

Jesus’ Passion and Death on the Cross made passage into heaven possible for all people. However, to make God’s plan of restoration and Jesus’ sacrifice come to fruition, each of us must cooperate in our own redemption. Even though Jesus died to save us, sin continues to distance each one of us from God, and a soul can still perish of its own free will by deciding not to cooperate with Him.

  

“God wants us ‘all to be saved’; for this reason He gave us His Son, and with Him and through Him, all the means necessary for our salvation. Therefore, if a soul is not saved, it alone will be responsible” (Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, O.C.D., Divine Intimacy) 1.

Sanctity is crucial to loving God, ourselves, and each other, and is essential to our apostolate. We become sanctified as we strive to be holy and accomplish the will of God. Our sanctity bears much fruit through the work of our personal apostolate. May we look to God to strengthen and guide us as we grow in holiness, each and every day.

 God is at work in you!
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1. Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, O.C.D., Divine Intimacy (Rockford: Tan Publishers, 1996), 6.
The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.