Parables of Jesus - Lesson 16

The Parables of Jesus

Lesson 16

·         Smaller and Shorter Parables of Jesus

o   The Lowest Seat at the Banquet.    (Luke 14: 7 - 14)

§  A prominent Pharisee had invited Jesus to his home.  The intent of the Pharisee was to catch Jesus into breaking one of the Pharisee’s Laws on the Sabbath or trapping him in discussion.  We find it is the Sabbath and Jesus has just healed a man with dropsy.  If you remember from previous lessons, Luke was a doctor.

§  At a banquet meal during Jewish times the places of honor would have been closest to the host.  Couches for a meal were usually set in a ‘U’ shape with 2 to 4 guests reclining on each couch.   The host sat at the base of the ‘U’ with the honored guests to his left and right.  After the guests were seated they would wash there hands.

§  Jesus taught 2 lessons with this parable.  First he spoke to the guests instructing them not to seek the places of honor to be seated at a banquet.  Second he talked to the hosts telling them not to exclude guests who are needy as the Kingdom of God is open to everyone who is invited.

§  Jesus’s point is not that we should connive to receive greater honor, instead Jesus is telling us that honor cannot be seized.  Honor is awarded.   Jesus was not against giving honor to someone who deserves it, but he was against using power and prestige for recognition.  God honors the humble, as the humble person recognizes how strong his need for God is, and not his need for a blessing from God.

§   Jesus’s instructions to the host were to open their dinner table to the needy that are unable to repay the host for his kindness.   Typically a person who hosted a festive meal would be placed on the invitation lists for future meals at the guest’s home.   Hospitality should be open to all.   ‘Payback’ should not be the motive for our hospitality.

§  To be moved from an honor chair to a lower seat would bring shame and dishonor to this person.   Jesus was using this point to illustrate the inward appearance of a person, not his outer appearance or status.   Humbleness and modesty are more important to God than arrogance.

§  Related Readings

·         Luke 11:37-53, Philippians 2:1-11, James 2:1-5, James 4:6, James 5:1-6, Mark 7:1-4, Ezekiel 17:24, Luke 6:20-26, Luke 18:9-14

o   The Great banquet   (Luke 14: 16 - 24)

§  This parable was told right after our last parable, ‘The Lowest Seat at the Banquet’.

§  During biblical times, as we had mentioned in an earlier parable, it was customary to send out 2 invitations to a party.   The first invitation was to announce the event.   The second invitation was then sent to tell the guests that everything was ready.   To accept the first invitation and then reject the second invitation was considered an insult to the host.

§  The guests in the parable insulted the owner by making excuses as to why they could not attend the banquet at the second invitation.  Jesus uses the excuses to show the foolishness of them.

·         Only a fool buys a piece of land and then goes to inspect it.

·         Only a fool buys 10 oxen and then tests them after his purchase.

·         A man who put his family before everything as he had just married a wife.

·         By saying ‘I cannot come’ suggests that someone had made up his mind and was no longer open to any argument.

§  In Israel’s history, God’s first invitation to the Jewish people came from Moses and the Prophets.  The second invitation to the Jews came from Jesus, God’s only begotten son.   The religious leaders had accepted the first invitation, as they believed God had chosen them as his people.  These same religious leaders rejected the invitation, of God’s son, Jesus Christ.  Just as the Master sent his servant out into the streets to invite the needy to the banquet, God sent his son, Jesus, into this world to the needy to tell them that God’s Kingdom had come and it was ready and open to them.

§  Jesus also stresses against seeking status in this parable as well.  Jesus extends his favor to hard work and suffering instead.  God never asks us to suffer for the sake of suffering.   God is calling us to use humility and self-sacrifice so that we too can join in the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.

§  Related Readings

·         Isaiah 25:6 (Feast for All), Revelation 19:9, Acts 13:46-47.

·         Questions to Ponder/Life Lessons.

o   In today’s culture, people are eager to raise their social status.  This can be done through being with the right people, how we dress, or driving the right car.

o   Do we look for a place to serve instead of a place of prestige?

o   How can we humble ourselves?   Truly humble people compare themselves to Jesus and realize their sinfulness and they understand their limitations.

o   What do we perceive as heavenly rewards in comparison to earthly rewards?

o   If Christianity is so true and so good, why don’t more embrace it?   Why don’t more accept the invitation?

o   ‘Excuses are fashioned for convenience and clung to in desperation’.