Jesus Was No Moralist

When people’s lives are turned upside down, where do they turn? Do they turn to the church? Do they turn to us as followers of Christ?

In a broken world, people instinctively look for a place of healing. That’s why hospitals exist. No one questions whether a hospital is a good thing. If you’re sick, you go. If someone you love is hurting, you go. It’s automatic. But what happens when people no longer see the church in the same way?

Although dated, research from David Kinnaman’s UnChristian first drew attention to some of the most common perceptions outsiders have of Christians. I have little reason to believe this data has significantly changed:

• Hypocritical – Christians pretend to be something they’re not. They have a polished image that is not real.

• Too focused on getting converts – Outsiders wonder if we genuinely care about them.

• Anti-homosexual – Outsiders say we are bigoted and hateful towards gays and lesbians.

• Sheltered – Christians are old-fashioned, boring, and out of touch with reality.

• Too political – Christians are overly motivated by a political agenda.

• Judgmental – Outsiders think we are too quick to judge others. They doubt we really love people as we say we do.

In conclusion, Kinnaman states that, “Only a small percentage of outsiders strongly believe that the labels ‘respect, love, hope, and trust’ describe Christianity. A minority of outsiders perceive Christianity as genuine and real, as something that makes sense, and as relevant to their life.”

That raises a sobering question: When people are hurting and searching for help, do they think of Christians as safe people to approach?

As Darrell Bock has noted, the reputation of Christianity will change only when people can say, “I know Christians, and they are not bigoted, hateful, or intolerant.”

So what does it look like to be that kind of people? Mark 2:15–17 gives us a compelling picture.

“And as he reclined at table in his house [Levi, the tax collector], many tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. And the scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” – Mark 2:15–17

At first glance, this scene is striking—not because of what Jesus taught, but because of who he chose to eat with. In the ancient world, table fellowship wasn’t casual. It was one of the deepest expressions of friendship and acceptance. To share a meal with someone was to signal belonging. And Jesus is not just casually interacting with “sinners”—he is reclining at the table with them.

The groups mentioned here are important.

Tax collectors were not merely disliked, they were socially and religiously ostracized during the time of Jesus. As William Lane wrote in The Gospel of Mark, “Levi’s seat of customs was located at Capernaum, the first site of importance around the northern end of the Sea… Levi would be a Jewish tax official in the service of Herod Antipas. Such officials were detested everywhere and were classed with the vilest of men. The practice of leasing the customs duty of a district at a fixed sum encouraged gross oppression by tax officers anxious to secure as large a profit as possible. When a Jew entered the customs service he was regarded as an outcast from society: he was disqualified as a judge or a witness in a court session, was excommunicated from the synagogue, and in the eyes of the community his disgrace extended to his family.”

“Sinners” in this context refers broadly were a despised group of outcasts who did not follow the Pharisaic laws.

And then there are the Pharisees, a strict Jewish group who followed the Law rigorously. Jesus should have known better than dining with this “impure” group. In their banquets, the Pharisees had exclusive fellowship and Jesus offended them by ignoring their time-honored tradition.

So their question makes sense from their perspective:

Why would a religious teacher associate so closely with people like this?

In Mark 2:17 Jesus gives a metaphor to help us understand the need of humanity:

“It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

The passage in Mark shows us two important truths in relation to the state of humanity:

1. “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” – Romans 3:23

2. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” – 1 John 1:8,

Jesus is using “righteous” ironically towards the Pharisees who are self-righteous. Actually, the “sinners” are more open to God’s kingdom than those who follow the law!

People who go to a doctor are those who are sick and are willing to seek outside help. Jesus did not come to call those who believe they are righteous, but those outcasts who knew they needed to be made whole. Jesus knew that people need his grace and forgiveness first (medicine), and then they would be empowered to live differently.

Jesus was no moralist! He knew that people need his grace first (medicine), and then they would be empowered to live differently.

Who goes to a hospital? Those who are sick, know they are sick, and humble enough to admit they can’t fix themselves.

In the book Who is Jesus?, Darrell Bock said that, “It is important to see here that Jesus does not sit at the table and merely accept those on the fringe. He challenges them to live differently or mentions forgiveness as a motivation for the sinner’s response, which assumes a reaction to previous sin” (p. 57).

The problem is we want people to be moral before they realize they’re sick and even need a doctor.

We need to remember that the whole meal was an extension of God’s grace to sinners – you and me! Jesus’s table fellowship with sinners is an anticipation of the messianic banquet.

There is an invitation for each of us to consider:

How do we show love to non-Christians in your work, family, neighborhood? When people are hurting, thrown out of the raft of life, are you the kind of person they want to be with?