City Life Starter

Written by Nate Warren

The Word

A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, “Come, for all things are now ready.” But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, “I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.” And another said, “I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.” Still another said, “I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.” So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, “Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.” And the servant said, “Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.” Then the master said to the servant, “Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.”

Luke 14 (NKJV)

Reflection

Jesus has come to the house of what seems to be a prominent Pharisee, one of the religious and political ruling parties of the Jews, and they, along with several other Pharisees, are enjoying a sabbath brunch. Jesus opens his lecture by questioning their ideas on healing on the sabbath by healing a man right in front of them, a violation of their legalistic rules. Jesus continues, pointing out their greed for status among each other, when one of them has had enough, and blurts out, “Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!” This guy and his friends were incensed that Jesus, a guest in the house, would openly embarrass the host and his guests like this. The man’s implication is clear–the Pharisees are the elite–they will be eating bread in their messiah’s kingdom, but Jesus better straighten up fast, or He might not be. Jesus responds with this incisive parable. 

There are two stories playing out as Jesus is speaking these words. As Jesus tells of a certain man throwing a banquet who sends a servant to deliver the dinner invitations, Jesus is a servant of God that has been sent to establish a Kingdom.

As Jesus tells of the invited offering lame excuses for not coming, He is being openly rejected at that very moment among the elite of Israel.

As he explains about the banquet host requesting instead to bring the poor and destitute, Jesus is healing the sick and promoting the meekest of society.

Then, as the host orders those hiding on the roads and “in the hedges” (surely, a reference to the gangs of robbers waiting in ambush) to be brought into the banquet, Jesus will go to the cross so that the very worst of society can be freed from the oppression of evil.

As Jesus completed the story, I imagine He looked squarely at the previous speaker saying, “None of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.”

Application

While Jesus’ rhetoric is most impressive, it’s very dangerous for us to think, “Nice! Jesus got them Pharisees good! I’m glad I’m not like them!” That thought is of the same mindset as the Pharisees. They were determining who was in and out, good and bad, according to their own ideology. As a disciple of Jesus, we must root out all entitlement when it comes to having the upper hand on defining what is or is not correct, blessed, right, holy, worthy, and good. Jesus and His Word do all of this, and we testify of Him and His Word, but we do not hold it over anyone, or it will be held over us (Matt 7:1) We speak the truth in love (Eph 4:15), not in condemnation.

I think Jesus wants us to know this: The person that sets himself as better than another person will ultimately consider himself as better than Jesus. 

Prayer

Father,
May Your Spirit search our hearts and destroy any sense of entitlement. May we each understand our desperate need of Your saving love, so that we could never imagine another who needs You more than each of us. 

In Jesus’ name,
Amen