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Unstoppable Mission

February 2, 2025

FEBRUARY 2

UNSTOPPABLE MISSION

Jesus demonstrates the relentless and inclusive nature of His mission. He calls Levi, a despised tax collector, to follow Him, and then shares a meal with him and other social outcasts. Through this encounter, Jesus shows that His mission is unstoppable because it’s not limited by social boundaries or human judgment. He doesn’t seek the righteous, but those who recognize their need for Him. The message of forgiveness and healing is for everyone—no one is beyond His reach.

Work through the following questions and scriptures on your own or get together with your group, spiritual running partners, or family to talk through what you are learning.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  1. What is a catchy phrase people say that you know is true, but you don’t resonate with?
  2. If you were hired to write a phrase that best describes your view of life, what would it be?  (For example – “No matter what the night brings, there’s always hope with a new dawn.”)
  3. Tell everyone about the best team you were a part of. Why was it the best team?
  4. Read Mark 2:13-17.

Make some observations about this passage (What does the text say?):

  • What do you notice and what are you curious about? 
  • What do you make of the Pharisees questioning Jesus at dinner with sinners? 
  • What do you notice about Matthew’s version of the story, and the addition of mercy over sacrifice?

Make some interpretations (What does the passage mean?)

  • What do you learn about God and how he views those who might be considered outsiders?
  • What do you learn about humanity? 
  • How do Matthew 9 and Hosea 6 complement each other?

Now make some applications (what’s my response?)

  • How are you encouraged, challenged, or convicted by this passage?
  • What should be our response to this passage?
  • Do you regularly go to Jesus for healing? Are you aware of your need to be healed by the Healer or do you tend to view life like you have it together and can go it alone?
  • Do you see others, who are in need of Jesus, and go out of your way to extend the same mercy to them that God has extended to you? If not, what could you do to cultivate greater mercy and compassion toward them?    

KEY SCRIPTURE

Mark 2:13-17  Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them.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.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. 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?” 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.”

PRAYER

God, thank you for  Jesus, who shows us truly what you are like. An example to not only learn from but as Levi did, one to follow. Thank you for the love and mercy extended to me through your son, and the awesome responsibility we have to extend that same mercy and healing to others. Forgive me for the days when I think I am above healing and finding wholeness in you. Today I acknowledge my need for you, and ask that you continue to heal my heart, mind and body. I want to be fully restored to the original design you have for my life, and to be an example to others as they seek restoration from their own brokenness.

PRACTICE

Take a few minutes and think of someone in your life (work or personal) who is not following Jesus. What would it look like for you to extend a hand of mercy and grace to them today?  (A simple text, share a meal, watch a game together, etc…)

Humble yourself and ask a trusted friend, spiritual running partner, roommate or spouse a question like this: “When you observe me, and the way I live my life, what is one area in which you think I still need healing?”