Luke 14:1, 7-14 1 One Sabbath, when he went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees, they were watching him carefully. ... 7 Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they chose the places of honor, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him, 9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. 10 But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”--
"If we make presumptions about who is allowed into the banquet, like those who can pay, then we automatically exclude others who might not be able to pay. Humble yourself - invite the poor, the lame, and the crippled. Invite those who are wondering if there is a seat for them. Ask those who don’t expect to be invited. Who isn’t here to hear the Good News of God’s love?--
Don’t take the higher seat. Don’t presume you understand. We all are the lame, the crippled and the homeless. Those who humble themselves will be exalted. That’s the law. Here is the Gospel. This altar is not our altar. The table soon to be set with meal is not our table. It is Jesus’ table and Jesus is the host inviting all of us to the meal. We each have a place to sit - a place to eat!
--
And that is Good News. When we remember all the gifts of God why would we want to keep this treasure to ourselves? None of us, not one of us is worthy to receive God’s grace. And it is God’s grace we receive. We all are part of God’s Kingdom. Please be seated and let’s eat. Amen."
Day 60. Dollar 60. O God, you resist those who are proud and give grace to those who are humble. Give us the humility of your Son, that we may embody the generosity of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment