He went out again beside the sea, and all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. 14 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.
If Zoom has taught us one thing, it is that technology makes many things possible in a virtual meeting but gathering together remains the most productive and fulfilling. These devotionals also fall well short of gathering together on the Lord’s day. There is something to be said for the presence of another in fellowship. Now imagine that “other” is the Lord Jesus Christ. In Mark 2, the presence of Jesus healed, taught, and called. Here Jesus called Levi (Matthew) and he rose and followed him. There was no online program or event to attract Matthew to follow the Lord. The Lord called him. May that be a lesson to our churches.
We live in a technological age. We can have “friends” on social media. We can watch sermons on Youtube. We can have Bible studies on Zoom and read devotionals online. All these are good things that we do at Cape Community Church. They are all worthless though, without the presence of Jesus Christ. He calls us to himself. He teaches us. He heals our souls. He is present in our world. He does not need to log in. he enters our lives and we are saved because of it. May we gather together this Sunday to celebrate and worship his presence in our midst.
Dear Lord, thank you for your presence and that you are the Living and Risen Christ. May we worship you as your presence teaches us. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Pastor Brad Boyer
Cape Community Church