Luke 14:1-24

Jesus challenged the Pharisees by healing a man on the Sabbath. The Pharisee's interpretation of God's law was flawed and Jesus took every opportunity to challenge them. The reasoning Jesus applied to this situation was that if one of their sons or oxen fell into a well on the Sabbath, they would help him. Helping someone is always the right thing to do regardless of the day.


Jesus talked about being invited to celebrations and how we should not presume upon the host to take the honored place, but rather take the lowest place and allow the host to offer the honored place if he chooses. He also said when hosting a dinner party, not to invite only friends and family, but also the less fortunate who do not have a way to repay the favor. This thinking is contrary to what we naturally tend to do. We tend to believe we are more important than we are and look for repayment for our actions. What Jesus modeled and what He wants to see in us is humility and kindness. By thinking of others first, we gain more than we could ever get by grabbing attention for ourselves.


Jesus told a story of a man who put together a large dinner and invited many, but when they were called to come, they had excuses for why they couldn't. This angered the man, but he sent his servant out again to call any people he could find in the streets who were crippled or poor to come. After this was done, there was still more room, so the man sent his servant out further to the highways to invite more people to come. This pattern can also be used for how we should preach the gospel - first to our friends and family, then to the people locally, and finally going out to the rest of the world to spread the good news. This has been going on for around 2000 years now and there is still room at the table! God wants us to invite people to come. If they reject the offer, go to someone else. There is still room at the table!