It was another dinner conversation and instead of just being sweet and polite, Jesus told them the truth. Several truths. And then he did the unthinkable.
One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body.
He was a guest of the Pharisee and they were all about the Law. And when he went to his house to eat, he could tell every eye was fixated on him. But among them was a sick man. My version of the Bible says dropsy. This version “abnormal swelling of the his body.” Doesn’t matter. The man was sick. I think they had him there to bait him to see if he would heal.
But first, he challenges them.
Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” But they remained silent.
He asks them an honest question. They couldn’t answer. They didn’t answer. And Jesus did what they knew he was going to do.
So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way.
I’m sure people were making sounds of anger, angst and scoffing, so Jesus responds.
Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?”
He basically states the obvious. They would do what was needed if an animal was injured and they could help. It wouldn’t be violating the Sabbath. But if a man was sick? No healing. That’s breaking the Sabbath. It’s not an emergency. It would be breaking the Law. Jesus had called out their hypocrisy.
And they had nothing to say.
Interesting. Nothing to say? It’s hard to face hypocrisy. If you don’t receive the truth of Jesus, you stay silent.
It went on.
Jesus noticed that when some came in, they took the places of honor. They had probably not even once thought about it. They had worked hard for such positions. But Jesus may have observed a situation or perhaps he was just calling out their arrogance.
When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
He calls them out for their lack of care for their host and more concern that they have the place of honor. Again, it was all about their pride and arrogance as religious leaders. Jesus instructs them to walk in humility and not in their position of respect.
At this point I’m sure the host was nodding his head in agreement. It did make for an uncomfortable situation as the host was to show honor to the most important person based on how he seated them. And if a more important person came than were seats available, he would have the awkward task of asking people to move down from their position.
But just as the host was getting comfortable, Jesus had a word for him as well.
Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Jesus told the host it isn’t about inviting the most important people to your home so you have bragging rights. Not that it’s wrong, it’s just that you won’t have any reward before God. Why? Because they can invite you back and repay you.
The greater honor is when you invite people and bless people who can never repay you because they don’t have the ability to do so. You get absolutely nothing in return other than the fact that you showed people love and honor. People like the poor, the disabled, the blind and more. That’s where it’s at.
Ok, so at this point everyone was uncomfortable around the dinner table. The Pharisees, the host and the people present. So as always, there has to be that one person who fills in the awkardness with some spiritual statement.
When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.”
Maybe he was trying to relieve the tension in the room. Maybe he was trying to show himself to be spiritual and godly unlike the others. We don’t know. But Jesus once again had even a more uncomfortable response.
Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’
“But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’
“Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’
“Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’
“The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’
“‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’
“Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”
He was calling the Pharisees out once again. God had prepared this massive banquet and it was good. But people were not coming. They had other things to do. There was always an excuse.
The LORD will fill his table. And since the invited people would not come, he called anyone and everyone off the streets and back alleyways.
Jesus was indirectly talking about the Pharisees. They had received the invitation and refused to come. They were refusing Jesus. So they made excuses instead. Always excuses.
It’s the same today. People still may excuses. They still find a way to get offended at God or God’s people and not come to him.
Too busy.
Maybe later.
Maybe I’ll think about those things when I’m old.
Jesus said the invitation is out and the time to respond to him is now. Not some later day.
Overall, it was a most awkward dinner conversation. Jesus spoke truth. Some would respond to that truth and some would harden their hearts and try to kill him.
It’s why the next section is going to talk about the cost of being a disciple.
Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
To be a disciple of Jesus one must be willing to face total rejection from friends and family. It is to not receive even an ounce of respect and to perhaps be completely be cut off by them. It can even mean death.
But that’s the cost of being a disciple. When you sign up to follow Jesus, that’s what you agree to. Not a comfortable life. Not a life of ease. But a life where you follow in the footsteps of Jesus all the way to the cross. That’s the only way we can be a disciple.
So we must count the cost. We must consider before we commit.
But there’s also a price to pay if we don’t move forward.
“He who has ears to ear, let him hear.”