13 Jesus went out again by the seaside. All the multitude came to him, and he taught them. 14 As he passed by, he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax office, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he arose and followed him.

15 He was reclining at the table in his house, and many tax collectors and sinners sat down with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many, and they followed him. 16 The scribes and the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with the sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why is it that he eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?”

17 When Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Mark 2:13-17 - World English Bible

In Mark, Jesus grew in reputation and in followers. Like the call of the fishermen, now he called a tax collector, Levi. His public friendship with these people scandalized the religious elite. They treated sinners in the same way they treated disease, with separation. However, Jesus treated the shunned the same way he treated those with illness, with intimacy. Like the doctor, he identified with the patient, not the malignity; he came to call sinners, not the righteous to repentance.

Could anyone be so righteous as not to enjoy Gods mercy?

Think of someone who has scandalized you. Can you empathize with them?