Jesus begins today’s passage with a parable based on his observations of how people were jockeying for position and recognition of their perceived status with God. These are the people Jesus just confronted when they objected to his healing of a man on the Sabbath. These people took great pride in their knowledge of the law and their disciplined manner of keeping the law. You might think they would have taken great joy in the healing the man experienced, but they did not. If Jesus could heal on the Sabbath then it brought into question whether all of their other rules and regulations were appropriate. If they were not, then all they had been doing to promote themselves as being better than others was for naught.
This parable had particular meaning to Luke’s church. The Jewish Christians struggled with the notion that the Gentiles were as welcome at the table of their God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, as they were. It is very difficult for some people to fully embrace that each and every one of us stands in need of God’s grace. There is nothing, absolutely nothing, we can offer God that makes us any better than any other person. When we lose sight of this truth we will experience pride and arrogance creeping into our lives.
To emphasize his point Jesus gives a parable about the Great Banquet. God had invited his people to come into his Kingdom and they had refused. God sent Jesus to go throughout the land and invite any and all to come and feast at the Lord’s Table.
An inherit characteristic of our humanity is that we are tribal. We gravitate toward people who are just like us. People with the same color skin, similar backgrounds and tastes and similar financial standing. It is pretty easy to welcome people just like we are; it is more difficult to welcome people who are different. But, the man in Jesus parable was doing more than just welcoming all people to his table, he was going into the streets and alleys of the town and bringing in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.
Welcoming all people is just ½ of what Jesus expects of each of us; inviting all people is the other ½.
What word or phrase in these verses
attracts your attention?
Reflect on that word or phrase.
What insights come to you?
How does this passage touch your life today?
25-Jan-12 Luke 14:25-5:10
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