Dinner with Jesus in the Kingdom - Luke 14
Luke: The Story of Jesus • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 28:34
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· 101 viewsJesus has an awkward dinner at a Pharisee's house where he teaches them and us that if we want to be part of the great banquet of the kingdom we need to respond positively to Jesus. However, Jesus also warns them and us, that this response will be costly!
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Awkward Dinners
Awkward Dinners
https://www.youtube.com/embed/bbhPYwC-1SQ?autoplay=1
I wonder if Jesus was like that poor bloke with the hat in our story today?
Dinner at a Pharisee’s House (Lk 14:1-6)
Dinner at a Pharisee’s House (Lk 14:1-6)
Jesus is being watched.
1 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched.
Like a spy carefully observes. The Pharisee and his guests had invited Jesus to a less than friendly dinner party. It was one where they wanted to continue to test Jesus and catch him out.
And it’s a dinner where Jesus has the opportunity to confront their hypocrisy once again.
In front of him (v2) is a man suffering with some sort of swelling condition.
And so Jesus asks a question of his carefully watching guests:
3 Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?”
Deathly silence and so Jesus heals the man (v4).
Then as if to pre-empt their disgust like we saw last week in Lk 13:14 Jesus asks them:
5 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?”
And again… Deathly silence (v6).
6 And they had nothing to say.
Which is pathetic really isn’t it?
Because Jesus has been demonstrating and teaching so clearly to these people that he is the Messiah. And despite this they remain stubbornly opposed to Jesus.
The IVP New Testament Commentary Series: Luke Another Sabbath Healing Controversy (14:1–6)
The passage confirms how strong sin’s stubbornness can be. It also shows how even after warnings about judgment and its consequences, God graciously still gives evidence of his presence. His grace still reveals itself, but closed eyes can never see the evidence of God’s power.
Plenty of people today with eyes closed to the grace of God revealed in Jesus Christ.
Pray for God to open blind eyes.
Are there 3-5 people to pray for?
Dinner Parable 1 (Lk 14:7-14)
Dinner Parable 1 (Lk 14:7-14)
So these hypocritical, stubborn, religious folk bear the fruit of their hearts which are far from God in their behaviour.
7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable:
Basically Jesus notices that they have become proud. They are succesful religious people and so in 1st century Jewish culture that makes them pretty important.
And so in their pride and arrogance, Jesus confronts them with a parable in verse 8-11.
A parable basically about the problem with having tickets on yourself. With thinking you’re super awesome.
The Pharisees see themselves as super spiritual. God must love them. Other people should want to be them. But with this kind of pride, they are asking for a fall.
Jesus says, much better to sit in lowly places and let the host promote you to a seat of honour.
eg. I imagine this like when Ellisa and I sometimes go to Army dinners and the Govenor is there. The embarrasment if you sat in her chair and had to get moved to the chair down the end where you belong.
Much better to sit at the wrong end and get promoted to the head table!
Jesus says, followers of God ought not to be proud but humble.
Then in vv12-14 he speaks about how a humble heart not only changes how we interact as a guest, but it also overflows in how we host and be hospitable.
12 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. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
When life is lived in humilty, instead of taking the best seats and using dinner parties as a way to get a head and enjoy the company of friends. You seek to bless those who may never be able to repay you.
When was the last time you had someone like Jesus describes in v13
13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,
over for dinner?
Outcasts.
Dinner Parable 2 (Lk 14:15-24)
Dinner Parable 2 (Lk 14:15-24)
Well so far dinner is going super well. Jesus has rebuked them for being proud and for lacking true hospitality.
Now someone perhaps tries to change the subject. This is awkward...
15 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.”
And Jesus tells another parable.
This time about a bunch of people who get invited to a big dinner party but who when the time comes to attend make excuses to not come.
Understandably the guy putting the banquet on is pretty annoyed about this.
21 “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.’
He’s angry so he basically says go and invite the outcasts!
After doing this there is still room and so even more outcats are invited in.
23 “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.
The master will have a great celebration full of outcasts from near and far. But one group will not be there.
24 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’ ”
Those who were invited.
Here Jesus is rebuking strongly in parable form, those whom he is dining with.
They are the the religious elite of the nation of Israel. The ones who’ve been longing for the coming Messiah. And now he’s here and he’s not conforming to their hypocritical, arrogant religion, they are refusing to come to the party. The Jesus party. They are refusing to enter the Kingdom of God by responding with faith to Jesus. Entering through the narrow door as we talked about in Ch 13 last week.
And so Jesus is forshadowing what will happen.
Instead of God’s kingdom filling up with Israel. The Kingdom will be filled with anyone who responds to Jesus, first the outcast Jews, then even in the roads and country lanes, that is those furtherst away according to tradtional Jewish thinking. That is even the Gentiles will enter the kingdom because they will respond to Jesus.
What it takes to follow Jesus (Lk 14:25-34)
What it takes to follow Jesus (Lk 14:25-34)
Our reading then turns to remind us of the cost of following Jesus.
In the parable things got in the way of attending the banquet.
One bought some property and wanted to go check it out (v18)
One wanted to try out his new farm gear (v19)
Another wanted to focus on his marraige (v20).
They put these things before Jesus and missed out on the Kingdom.
So Jesus reminds all those following him that they need to keep him front and centre. To follow Jesus is to put him first above all else.
26 “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.
This is about primacy. Jesus comes first.
It has to because following Jesus is going to be costly.
27 And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
It’s not a crusiy life following Jesus. Putting Jesus first, when the world wants to ingore him costs.
Are you prepared for that? Ready to count the cost? To lose everything in order to gain the only thing that matters?
Jesus says we must seriously consider this.
Builders (v28-30) count the cost before they build.
Kings (v31-32) count the cost before they go to war.
33 In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.
True disciples count the cost.
If you’re not willing to count the cost then you’re not a true disciple and you won’t make it into the Kingdom of God.
You’ll be thrown up like unsalty salt (v34-35).
v35 - “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear”.
Here’s what we need to hear today...
There’s only one way we’re going to be the kind of disciple that Jesus wants us to be.
It’s by getting our hearts right. The Pharisees let their hearts be full of pride. They loved their status. They ended up loving this more than God.
And so when God came and walked around in front of them, they missed him and missed out.
Let’s heed the warning of the Pharisees. And make Jesus number one in our hearts. Above ourselves and our status. Above our families. Above even our own lives.
If we ask Jesus to be number one in our heart, we will have no trouble counting the cost of following Jesus. And we’ll be able to live the kind of humble cross carrying life he lived as he lives through us by His Spirit.
Whoever has ears to hear let them hear.