Luke
Chapter 14
LUKE 14:1-6
1 And it came to pass, as he
went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him.
2 And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had
the dropsy.
3 And Jesus answering spake unto
the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal
on the sabbath day?
4 And they held their peace. And he took him, and
healed him, and let him go;
5 And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit,
and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath
day?
6 And they could not answer him again to these things.
One
day Jesus went to the home of one of the leaders of the Pharisees to dine on
the Sabbath. Jesus was not intimidated by the very wealthy or the very poor! He
went to all strata of Jewish society, appearing at the time of need. As Christians we should follow His example!
Salvation is needed by all!
Romans
3:23 For all have sinned, and
come short of the glory of God;
None of us lives a socially perfect life! Some may pretend,
but it is just pretense!
As
Jesus and the others ate the Sabbath meal a man suffering from dropsy came to
Him. Dropsy is a disease caused by excess accumulation of fluids in the body.
Jesus was not disgusted by the man’s approach, although it probably was not a
thing most would desire at suppertime.
The
man was obviously seeking a healing! However it was the Sabbath and such
healings of people were against the man-made rules of Jewish law!
Jesus
spoke directly to those who knew the Law! He asked them. “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”
The
Pharisees present kept silent!
It
was not until Jesus healed that man that the Jewish leaders began to feel that
what was done was wrong!
Knowing
how they felt Jesus asked, “Which of you having a
donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit will you not immediately pull that
animal to safety on the Sabbath?”
The
Pharisees had no response! Many times human beings make up rules and
regulations that make no sense! Such was the case with this healing!
God
had given 10 commandments!
Deut 5:22 These words the LORD spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst
of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice: and
he added no more. And he wrote them in
two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me.
Rabbis in their ignorance and
arrogance added over 600 to the list! The vast majority of Jewish Rabbis have
little or no concern or understanding of the Word of God! They live in a dark
world as the blind leading the blind of Israel!
Luke
14:7-14
7 And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden,
when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them,
8 When thou art bidden of any man
to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable
man than thou be bidden of him;
9 And he that bade thee and him come
and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the
lowest room.
10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit
down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto
thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of
them that sit at meat with thee.
11 For whosoever exalteth
himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself
shall be exalted.
12 Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a
supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy
rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a
recompence be made thee.
13 But when thou makest
a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the
blind:
14 And thou shalt be blessed; for
they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection
of the just.
Then,
Christ told another parable to those which were called to be with Him. This
included the Apostles and perhaps a few other disciples.
Jesus
referred to their custom of taking front row seats, seats of prominence, in His
gatherings and the Synagogues.
Jesus
told them, “When anybody invites you to a wedding,
don’t immediately sit in places of great honor! There may be another for whom
those places were designated and you may be asked to move! Instead, take a
place of least honor so that perhaps you may be asked to move to a place of
greater honor!
“Whoever attempts self-exaltation shall be brought down,
whoever humbles himself shall be exalted?”
Christ
Jesus told them, “When you prepare a meal, don’t invite
just your friends, family members and wealthy neighbors! Because, they may
invite you to a meal as just a payback! But,
when you prepare a feast, call the poor, maimed, crippled, and the blind. In
that you shall be blessed! Because, they cannot
repay you, instead you shall receive repayment in the resurrection of the just.”
If
we only seek to do things expecting repayment that repayment may not happen in
the manner we desire! The marriage supper of the Lamb shall be a great
gathering of those who were social outcasts on earth!
Luke 14:15-24
15 And when one of them that sat
at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed is he
that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.
16 Then said he unto him, A certain man made a
great supper, and bade many:
17 And sent his servant at supper
time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.
18 And they all
with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I
have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have
me excused.
19 And another said,
I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me
excused.
20 And another said, I have married a
wife, and therefore I cannot come.
21 So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house
being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of
the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the
blind.
22 And the servant said, Lord, it is
done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.
23 And the lord said unto the
servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come
in, that my house may be filled.
24 For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my
supper.
One
of them at the meal heard what Jesus said and that man said to Him, “Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the
kingdom of God.”
So,
Jesus told him this parable, “A certain man prepared a
great supper, and invited many to come. When all was
ready he sent his servant to tell them that it
was time to come!
“They all began making excuses! The first guest said, ‘I bought some land, and must go to inspect see it! Please
excuse me?’
“Another of the invited guests said, ‘I bought five yoke of oxen, and must to prove them. Please
excuse me?’
“Still another told the messenger, ‘I have recently taken a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’
“So, that servant returned to tell His Master all that they
said! Upon hearing their excuses, the Master of the house being angry and told
his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the various
streets of the city, and bring in the poor, maimed, crippled, and the blind!’
After
doing as he was told, the servant returned and told his Master, ‘Lord, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’
“At that the Lord, told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel (Gr. anankazō-ἀναγκάζω/i.e.
force) them to come in, that my house may be
filled. Because, I tell you, that none of those men who were first invited
shall taste of my supper.
Israel
was the first invited to the great banquet of God! While a few acknowledged
God’s Messiah, the vast majority rejected Him!
This
teaching requires much more study and God-given understanding! Israel shall be
represented, but most of Israel is now counted among the heathen of the world!
Through
the acceptance or rejection of Christ Jesus all humanity has been divided into
the lost and the saved! Some are being kept by the Holy Spirit! Others suffer
the spiritual torment of self-imposed alienation from the Savior!
Most
suffer from a desire for free will, and so any alienation from the Savior is self-imposed!
“Freewill”
(Heb. nedab-נְדַב) is an Old Testament concept predominately referring to
offerings! The word “voluntary” is found in the KJV New Testament only once,
Colossians 2:18 and in the NKJV only once, Philemon verse 14!
God
is omnipotent! He chooses! His will shall be done!
Luke 14:25-35
25 And there went great multitudes with him: and he
turned, and said unto them,
26 If any man come to me, and
hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and
sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
27 And whosoever doth not bear his
cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
28 For which of you, intending to
build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have
sufficient to finish it?
29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the
foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it
begin to mock him, 30 Saying,
This man began to build, and was not able to finish.
31 Or what king, going to make war
against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with
ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
32 Or else, while the other is yet a
great way off, he sendeth an ambassage,
and desireth conditions of peace.
33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all
that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
34 Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour,
wherewith shall it be seasoned?
35 It is neither fit for the land,
nor yet for the dunghill; but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Large crowds followed Christ Jesus!
He fed them, he healed them, and still even though experiencing those wonders
they had little understanding and amost no
appreciation!
Christ told those who followed, “If anyone comes to Me, and does not
hate not his earthly father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren,
and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
“And whoever
does not carry his cross, and come after Me, cannot be
My disciple.
“Who among
you intends to build a building without first knowing how much it will cost and
deciding if the funds to complete that project are available and are
sufficient?
“In case,
after he hath laid the foundation, and is not have the funds to finish it, and those seeing his inability to finish
the building would all mock him, Saying, ‘This man began to build, and was not able to finish.’
“Or, what
king would initiate a war against another king without first considering
whether or not he would be able win!”
In America today, winning has become
unimportant to far too many! Today, most Americans want a stalemate so as to
not offend losers! Christ did not die on the cross to gain a stalemate with
Satan! And, "compromise” is neither a biblical concept not is it a
biblical word!
A weak king who has no way to win
will capitulate before the enemy gets close! Those with no desire to be on the
winning side in the spiritual war with Satan cannot and are not Jesus’
disciples.
Then Jesus told them, “Salt is good:
but if it has lost its saltiness how will it season?
“In that
case, it is neither fit for use on the land, nor even for the dunghill! And, it is simply cast away!
“He that has
ears to hear, let him hear!”
Men who have not been given the
ability to hear the word of God cannot understand what He is saying!
You will read that last sentence (“He that has ears to hear, let him hear!”)
throughout the book of Revelation. Hearing is essential to Christianity!
Without hearing from God the Holy Spirit you cannot acknowledge God the Son,
and in turn, you cannot truly worship God the Father!