Who Did Jesus Hang Out With?
Jesus of Nazareth, the central figure of Christianity, lived an extraordinary life over 2,000 years ago. During his approximately three-year ministry, Jesus gathered many followers and interacted with people from all walks of life, from the poorest of society to religious leaders.
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer to your question: Jesus spent time with and showed compassion to outcasts like prostitutes, tax collectors, the sick, children, and women. He also had confrontations with the religious elite of his day, like the Pharisees and Sadducees.
In this comprehensive article, we will examine the different groups of people that Jesus spent time with and get to know the company he kept during his ministry on earth.
Jesus Showed Compassion to Social Outcasts
Jesus Accepted and Ate with Tax Collectors
Tax collectors in Jesus’ day were not the most popular folks. Viewed as traitors and thieves by their fellow Jews for collaborating with the Roman Empire, tax collectors often overcharged people to line their own pockets (Luke 3:12-13).
However, Jesus looked beyond societal biases to see the humanity in people like Zacchaeus, a chief tax collector described as “rich” (Luke 19:2). Despite murmured disapproval from Pharisees and the crowd (Luke 19:7), Jesus invited himself over to dine with Zacchaeus, accepting his hospitality for a meal.
His openness paved the way for transformative change, as Zacchaeus publicly repented of his greed and promised to make amends to those he had wronged (Luke 19:8-9).
Jesus Showed Kindness to Prostitutes
In Jesus’ day, prostitutes were scorned as moral failures. However, Jesus extended amazing grace to those society cast aside. When a “sinful woman” crashed a dinner party at a Pharisee’s home to wash Jesus’ feet with her tears and perfume, Simon the Pharisee was shocked that Jesus would let such a woman touch him (Luke 7:36-39).
But where Simon saw only her past mistakes, Jesus saw her heartfelt devotion and contrition. “Your sins are forgiven,” he kindly told her (Luke 7:48). Jesus didn’t gloss over sin, but he didn’t gloss over sinners either.
As the Friend of sinners (Matthew 11:19), he was willing to meet people where they were at to transform their lives with forgiveness and redemption.
Jesus Healed and Helped Lepers
Lepers suffered from a terrible skin disease that rendered them ceremonially unclean, forcing them into isolation from society (Leviticus 13:45-46). Completely ostracized and abandoned, groups of lepers were left to fend for themselves.
Jesus wasn’t afraid to meet these untouchables right where they were. He touched and healed lepers, bridging critical social distancing gaps. “Be clean!” he commanded a desperate leper who begged healing from him (Mark 1:41).
Instantly Jesus’ authoritative word brought new life, restoring the leper’s body as well as his dignity and place in society. His healing touch communicated compassion louder than words, giving the leper (and all outcasts) a renewed sense of belonging in community.
Jesus Valued Women and Children
Jesus Had Prominent Female Followers
Jesus had many female followers during his ministry, which was unusual for that time and culture. Some of Jesus’ most faithful followers were women like Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph (Luke 8:1-3).
These women traveled with Jesus and financially supported his ministry. Mary Magdalene remained faithful even after Jesus’ death, going to his tomb to anoint his body (John 20:1). Joanna was the wife of Herod’s steward, indicating she was a woman of means who generously supported Jesus.
The gospels mention various occasions where Jesus warmly received, taught, healed, and forgave women like the woman at the well (John 4:1-42) and the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11). Jesus saw women as equal to men in God’s kingdom, inviting women to be his disciples in an age when women were often marginalized.
Jesus Spoke With and Healed Women
The gospels record several instances where Jesus took time to minister to women. When a sick woman touched Jesus’ garment and was healed, he stopped to speak with her and commend her faith (Luke 8:43-48). Jesus also healed Peter’s mother-in-law when she was sick with a fever (Luke 4:38-39).
On his way to heal Jairus’ daughter, Jesus stopped to heal a woman who had suffered from bleeding for 12 years (Luke 8:40-56). The fact that Jesus would stop to speak with, heal, and commend the faith of women was remarkable for that time and culture.
Jesus saw women as valuable individuals worthy of his time and healing. His actions toward women were loving, compassionate and restorative.
Jesus Welcomed and Blessed Children
Jesus expressed care and concern for children during his ministry. When the disciples tried to prevent people from bringing children to Jesus, he rebuked them and said “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Matthew 19:14).
On one occasion, Jesus took a child into his arms and blessed them, saying that whoever welcomes a child welcomes him (Mark 9:36-37). Jesus affirmed the value of children in God’s kingdom. He welcomed them, blessed them, and said followers of God should have childlike faith.
Jesus’ actions showed that he cared deeply about children when many in society overlooked them.
Jesus Had Conflicts With Religious Leaders
Jesus Challenged the Pharisees’ Legalism
Jesus often clashed with the Pharisees, a religious group known for strictly observing the Law of Moses and oral traditions. He criticized them for focusing on minor rules but neglecting more important matters like justice, mercy and faithfulness (Matthew 23:23).
For example, Jesus healed people on the Sabbath, which the Pharisees saw as “work” that violated religious law (Luke 6:6-11, 13:10-17). Jesus prioritized compassion over legalistic traditions. According to a 2022 Barna Group survey, 67% of practicing Christians feel legalism is a problem in the church today.
Jesus Clashed With the Sadducees Over Doctrine
The Sadducees were a sect of Judaism that denied supernatural matters like the resurrection. Jesus challenged their theology, teaching that God is the God of the living, not the dead (Matthew 22:23-33).
He refuted their denial of resurrection by quoting Exodus 3:6, where God says, “I am…the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” Jesus argued that if these patriarchs who died centuries earlier were still counted by God as living, then resurrection must be real.
His logic exposed flaws in Sadducean doctrine. The differences between Jesus and the Sadducees remind us that theological accuracy and sound doctrine do matter.
Jesus Cleansed the Temple of Money-Changers
One of Jesus’ boldest confrontations happened at the Temple in Jerusalem, where he drove out merchants and money-changers who were exploiting people (Matthew 21:12-17). People traveling to the Temple needed to exchange Greek and Roman money for Temple currency to donate or purchase animals for sacrifice.
The money-changers charged outrageous exchange rates to profit off religious rituals. Jesus was furious at them for turning God’s house into an extortion racket. By disrupting business at the Temple, Jesus made it clear that true worship is not compatible with economic exploitation.
This dramatic cleansing cost Jesus support from Temple authorities who had financial stake in the money-changing system.
Jesus Called Regular People As His Disciples
When Jesus began His ministry, He didn’t recruit religious elites to be His disciples. Instead, He chose ordinary working people like fishermen and tax collectors. This showed that the Kingdom of God is open to all, regardless of social status.
Jesus’ Disciples Came from Humble Occupations
Most of Jesus’ 12 disciples were fishermen, a common profession in Galilee. Simon Peter, Andrew, James, and John all left their nets when Jesus said, “Follow Me.” Jesus even found disciples in an ordinary tax collector named Levi (Matthew).
This showed that God calls ordinary people, not just the wealthy and powerful.
Jesus Invited Outcasts Like Tax Collectors to Follow Him
When Jesus called Levi the tax collector to follow Him, it shocked the religious leaders. Tax collectors were despised as traitors who worked for the Roman government. Yet Jesus welcomed them, saying “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick” (Mark 2:17).
His embrace of outcasts displayed God’s amazing grace.
Jesus Formed a Diverse Group of 12 Disciples
Jesus’ 12 disciples came from varied backgrounds. Peter, Andrew, James and John were fishermen. Matthew was a tax collector. Simon was a zealot bent on overthrowing Rome. They argued and jostled for position. Yet Jesus molded them into a cohesive team to take the gospel worldwide.
This showed that the Kingdom transcends human barriers.
In the end, Jesus’ choice of common folk as disciples displayed God’s heart for all people. As the apostle Paul later wrote, “God does not show favoritism” (Romans 2:11). Anyone who hears Jesus’ call can become His follower, no matter their social status, ethnicity, or past mistakes.
Jesus Reached Out to Samaritans and Gentiles
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
In the famous parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), Jesus told the story of a Samaritan man who helped a Jewish man who had been robbed and beaten. This would have shocked Jesus’ Jewish audience, as Jews and Samaritans generally despised each other at that time.
By making the Samaritan the hero of the story, Jesus demonstrated his care and concern for those considered outsiders and emphasized that loving one’s neighbor includes even those we may consider enemies.
Jesus Healed a Gentile’s Daughter
In Matthew 15:21-28, Jesus healed the demon-possessed daughter of a Canaanite woman. The disciples tried to turn the woman away, but Jesus praised her great faith and delivered the girl. This showed that although Jesus came first to the Jews, his mercy and grace extended to non-Jews as well.
As Ephesians 2:14 says, “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.”
The Great Commission to All Nations
After his resurrection, Jesus gave his followers what is known as the Great Commission: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).
This command to reach people of every ethnicity with the gospel demonstrated God’s love for the whole world. Acts 10 records how the apostle Peter came to understand that God wanted him to share the good news with Gentiles too.
And the book of Acts goes on to describe how the early church spread beyond its Jewish roots to include people of all backgrounds.
Conclusion
In his earthly ministry, Jesus broke down barriers and taught that all people have value in God’s eyes, regardless of ethnicity, social status, or gender. He showed compassion to those marginalized by society like the sick, women, and children.
At the same time, he challenged religious hypocrisy and self-righteousness. Jesus’ ministry provides a striking example of loving God and loving neighbors from every walk of life.
Though he lived in a very different cultural context than today, Jesus’ practice of embracing diversity remains relevant. As his followers, we are called to imitate his care for those society ignores and be inclusive of people from all backgrounds.
