Luke 14:1, 7-14
Jesus is really interested in mealtimes. In Luke, these meals Jesus attends are often marked by some social faux pas, or breach of etiquette, out of which he draws a truth about the Kingdom of God.
In Luke especially, Jesus causes much to happen and has much happen to him over meals. From defending eating with sinners (5:30), to encouraging a woman who gate-crashed a men-only dinner for Pharisees and had the audacity to pour oil on his head (7:36-50).
Being invited to a festive occasion, all of which had an official dinner, and where you were seated, were important in the honour and shame culture of Jesus’ Day. Last week, we looked at how a shame-filled woman had her head lifted high by Jesus in the synagogue.
In a parallel vein, this week we return to a topic we have looked at frequently, the most beautiful of all character traits - humility. It is to the humble and lowly, that the best seats at the heavenly banquet have been reserved.
All through the gospels, Jesus shows how differently he views the Sabbath to the way the Pharisees, Priests and Scribes do. Just like his strong differences with the synagogue leader in last week’s gospel.
So it’s not surprising today’s passage opens with Jesus in the house of a Pharisee for the Sabbath meal, and the phrase “they were watching him closely” (14:1)!
They do so not simply out of curiosity, they are trying to trap Jesus, either in some activity like healing on the Sabbath (e.g., 6:7) or something inappropriate he might say (e.g., 20:20).
In today’s reading, Jesus is interested in the composition of the banquet and tells a story about meals and honour, emphasising two things about the occasion; the selection of “seats” (i.e., who is honoured over others invited), and the invitation list – who even gets an invitation.
Now in an honour and shame culture, avoiding shame is of the utmost importance. One of the great criticisms levelled against Jesus was that he ate with sinners; and people publicly labelled as sinners were the most shame filled of all.
In today’s reading, the very people who Jesus said to the leader of the Pharisees to invite were filled with shame and therefore sinners: the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.
Due to no fault of their own, all these had been shamed and humbled by their culture – the opposite of being honoured. In the kingdom of God, these humbled ones are the ones honoured by sharing a meal with the King of Kings.
Now we might like to think that we live in an egalitarian culture where people aren’t shamed any more for the vicissitudes of life. I would ask you to think again! In almost every area of our lives, we cast the humbled out and honour the unworthy.
Just one random example; the couple with a For Sale sign in their yard with Mortgagee in Possession in big red writing on it (in other words the bank has taken possession). They are publicly shamed for failing in life by being unable to afford their mortgage repayments.
We honour anyone who us rich – we don’t even particularly care how they made their money – they are rich!
We seem to love status and prestige, yet without looking in the mirror, perversely resent it when we see it in others who we don’t think have earned it.
What’s the solution when we are pressed on every side to not be humble? Well, the answer is the same as every time we speak on this subject, we look to Christ Jesus.
Then, as now, to be invited to a better position at the table, or to the home of a well known person in the goings-on of a community, was not just an honour. It could mean a tangible benefit to your business as well.
This is the way of our world too, we call it something like networking (the word and concept does not sit at all well with me). It’s doing something expecting something in return.
Jesus is saying, be involved with people who won’t ever be able to return to you what you give to them. Ever. It will cost you a lot, but in the Kingdom of Heaven you will be honoured!
Nothing less than a spiritual law is at play here. When we do something really good for someone else that costs us something, and no one else ever knows about it, we are incredible close to God, and we know it and feel it.
That feeling is the feeling of a citizen of the Kingdom of God and all of a sudden, we love that person we helped – we just can’t help it.
We become aware that Jesus is active in the very home he and the Father have made in us.
This is how God causes his Kingdom to come, so Jesus is therefore touching upon matters of great importance here.
First, he gives good advice. Don’t think too highly of yourself. Be modest. Better to situate yourself in a lower position and be invited higher, than to place yourself ahead of others and be asked to go to the back.
Secondly, don’t try and honour people solely because they may be able to give you something in return. In Jesus time and in our time that is a radical thing to do. Invite them for any other reason but not that one.
It’s a heart matter. We shouldn’t even brush up against things like this because it will taint us. We will start to think it is normal to do things so people will feel indebted to us, and we can legitimately then claim some repayment for it somewhere down the road.
It is God’s way to do the opposite; I am to treat those shamed and dishonoured by this world with honour and respect.
Now here is the heart of it - give them the very best seats because this is how God has treated us and seated us.
He has so honoured us that he adopted us and made us co-heirs of the whole Kingdom of God with Jesus. Talk about best seats!
It’s the way God has always treated us even when we hated him. He never stops giving what we need to flourish, caring for us, forgiving us, saving us.
Even though we are unworthy and really can’t do anything in return except to share what we have been given with others.
And that is what God wants. This is the life of God’s kingdom, and it stands in stark contrast to the honour and shame system of our world. It is in acknowledging God’s great love to us in Jesus Christ that creates in us a humble heart.
Humility means to know that God has given us all good things for no good reason. It is to know that God invites us to do the same for others.
Jesus invites all of us to be children of the light and live differently – to nurture a new sort of community founded not on status but grace, filled with thanksgiving to God for all he has done.
Any table where Jesus is present is a table where all are welcome. It is a foretaste of the heavenly banquet where God cares for all and all we can do is give thanks.
We are all fully dependant on God and fully interdependent upon each other. This is the way God has ordained it to be, and perhaps the acknowledgement of that is the beginning of humility. Let me pray ...