Luke 14
14
The Healing of the Man With Edema
1#Mk 3:2; Lk 11:37On the Sabbath they watched Him as He went into the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees to eat bread. 2There before Him was a man who had edema.#Gk. 2 lepta. A lepton, meaning “small” or “thin,” is a fraction of a penny and about 1/128 of a denarius, which was a day’s wage. A Jewish bronze or copper coin, it was the smallest coin circulated. 3#Mt 12:10Jesus said to the lawyers and Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” 4But they remained silent. So He took him and healed him, and let him go.
5#Lk 13:15Then He said, “Which of you having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 6#Lk 20:40And they could not answer Him regarding these things.
A Lesson to Guests and a Host
7#Lk 11:43; Mt 23:6When He marked how they chose the seats of honor, He told a parable to those who were invited, saying to them, 8#Pr 25:6–7“When you are invited by any man to a wedding banquet, do not sit down in a seat of honor, lest a more honorable man than you be invited by him; 9and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give this man the seat,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest seat. 10#Pr 25:6–7But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest seat, so that when he who invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have respect in the presence of those who sit at dinner with you. 11#Lk 18:14; Pr 29:23For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12Then He said also to the one who invited Him, “When you prepare a dinner or a supper, do not call your friends or your brothers or your kinsmen or your rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return, and you be repaid. 13#Lk 14:21; Ne 8:10But when you prepare a banquet, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, 14#Ac 24:15; Jn 5:29and you will be blessed, for they cannot repay you. You shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”
The Parable of the Great Banquet
Mt 22:1–10
15#Rev 19:9; Lk 13:29When one of those who sat at dinner with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
16#Mt 22:2–14Then He said to him, “A man prepared a banquet and invited many, 17and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now prepared.’
18“But they all with one mind began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land, and I must go and see it. I ask you to excuse me.’
19“Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to prove them. I ask you to excuse me.’
20#1Co 7:33“Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’
21#Lk 14:13“The servant came and reported this to his master. Then the master of the house in anger 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.’
22“The servant said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and yet there is room.’
23“Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled. 24#Mt 21:43; Ac 13:46For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’ ”
The Cost of Discipleship
Mt 10:37–38
25Large crowds went with Him. And He turned and said to them, 26#Mt 10:37; Jn 12:25“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. 27#Mt 10:38; Jn 19:17And whoever does not bear his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple.
28#Pr 24:27“For who among you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost to see whether he has resources to complete it? 29Otherwise, perhaps, after he has laid the foundation and is not able to complete it, all who see it will begin to mock him, 30saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to complete it.’
31#Pr 20:18“Or what king, going to wage war against another king, does not sit down first and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32Otherwise, while the other is yet at a distance, he sends a delegation and requests conditions of peace. 33#Lk 14:26; Php 3:7–8So likewise, any of you who does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.
Tasteless Salt
Mt 5:13; Mk 9:50
34#Mt 5:13“Salt is good. But if the salt has lost its saltiness, how shall it be made salty? 35#Mt 11:15It is fit neither for the land nor for the manure pile. So men throw it out.
“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
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Military Bible Association
Luke 14
14
1-3One time when Jesus went for a Sabbath meal with one of the top leaders of the Pharisees, all the guests had their eyes on him, watching his every move. Right before him there was a man hugely swollen in his joints. So Jesus asked the religion scholars and Pharisees present, “Is it permitted to heal on the Sabbath? Yes or no?”
4-6They were silent. So he took the man, healed him, and sent him on his way. Then he said, “Is there anyone here who, if a child or animal fell down a well, wouldn’t rush to pull him out immediately, not asking whether or not it was the Sabbath?” They were stumped. There was nothing they could say to that.
Invite the Misfits
7-9He went on to tell a story to the guests around the table. Noticing how each had tried to elbow into the place of honor, he said, “When someone invites you to dinner, don’t take the place of honor. Somebody more important than you might have been invited by the host. Then he’ll come and call out in front of everybody, ‘You’re in the wrong place. The place of honor belongs to this man.’ Embarrassed, you’ll have to make your way to the very last table, the only place left.
10-11“When you’re invited to dinner, go and sit at the last place. Then when the host comes he may very well say, ‘Friend, come up to the front.’ That will give the dinner guests something to talk about! What I’m saying is, If you walk around all high and mighty, you’re going to end up flat on your face. But if you’re content to be simply yourself, you will become more than yourself.”
12-14Then he turned to the host. “The next time you put on a dinner, don’t just invite your friends and family and rich neighbors, the kind of people who will return the favor. Invite some people who never get invited out, the misfits from the wrong side of the tracks. You’ll be—and experience—a blessing. They won’t be able to return the favor, but the favor will be returned—oh, how it will be returned!—at the resurrection of God’s people.”
The Story of the Dinner Party
15That triggered a response from one of the guests: “How fortunate the one who gets to eat dinner in God’s kingdom!”
16-17Jesus followed up. “Yes. For there was once a man who threw a great dinner party and invited many. When it was time for dinner, he sent out his servant to the invited guests, saying, ‘Come on in; the food’s on the table.’
18“Then they all began to beg off, one after another making excuses. The first said, ‘I bought a piece of property and need to look it over. Send my regrets.’
19“Another said, ‘I just bought five teams of oxen, and I really need to check them out. Send my regrets.’
20“And yet another said, ‘I just got married and need to get home to my wife.’
21“The servant went back and told the master what had happened. He was outraged and told the servant, ‘Quickly, get out into the city streets and alleys. Collect all who look like they need a square meal, all the misfits and homeless and down-and-out you can lay your hands on, and bring them here.’
22“The servant reported back, ‘Master, I did what you commanded—and there’s still room.’
23-24“The master said, ‘Then go to the country roads. Whoever you find, drag them in. I want my house full! Let me tell you, not one of those originally invited is going to get so much as a bite at my dinner party.’”
Figure the Cost
25-27One day when large groups of people were walking along with him, Jesus turned and told them, “Anyone who comes to me but refuses to let go of father, mother, spouse, children, brothers, sisters—yes, even one’s own self!—can’t be my disciple. Anyone who won’t shoulder his own cross and follow behind me can’t be my disciple.
28-30“Is there anyone here who, planning to build a new house, doesn’t first sit down and figure the cost so you’ll know if you can complete it? If you only get the foundation laid and then run out of money, you’re going to look pretty foolish. Everyone passing by will poke fun at you: ‘He started something he couldn’t finish.’
31-32“Or can you imagine a king going into battle against another king without first deciding whether it is possible with his ten thousand troops to face the twenty thousand troops of the other? And if he decides he can’t, won’t he send an emissary and work out a truce?
33“Simply put, if you’re not willing to take what is dearest to you, whether plans or people, and kiss it good-bye, you can’t be my disciple.
34-35“Salt is excellent. But if the salt goes flat, it’s useless, good for nothing.
“Are you listening to this? Really listening?”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.