Luke 14

Chapter 14

Jesus Heals on the Sabbath

1 One Sabbath day Jesus went to eat dinner in the home of a leader of the Pharisees, and the people were watching him closely.2 There was a man there whose arms and legs were swollen.t3 Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in religious law, “Is it permitted in the law to heal people on the Sabbath day, or not?”4 When they refused to answer, Jesus touched the sick man and healed him and sent him away.5 Then he turned to them and said, “Which of you doesn’t work on the Sabbath? If your sont or your cow falls into a pit, don’t you rush to get him out?”

6 Again they could not answer.

Jesus Teaches about Humility

7 When Jesus noticed that all who had come to the dinner were trying to sit in the seats of honor near the head of the table, he gave them this advice:8 “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited?

9 The host will come and say, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table!
10 “Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place for you!’ Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests.

11 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
12 Then he turned to his host. “When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,” he said, “don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward.13 Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.

14 Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.”

Parable of the Great Feast

15 Hearing this, a man sitting at the table with Jesus exclaimed, “What a blessing it will be to attend a banquett in the Kingdom of God!”
16 Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations.17 When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’18 But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’19 Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’

20 Another said, ‘I now have a wife, so I can’t come.’
21 “The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’22 After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’23 So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full.

24 For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’”

The Cost of Being a Disciple

25 A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them,26 “If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.
28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it?29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, and then everyone would laugh at you.

30 They would say, ‘There’s the person who started that building and couldn’t afford to finish it!’
31 “Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him?32 And if he can’t, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away.

33 So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.
34 “Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again?

35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown away. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!”

LUKE 14

Jesus Heals a Sick Man

1 One Sabbath, Jesus was having dinner in the home of an important Pharisee, and everyone was carefully watching Jesus. 2 All of a sudden a man with swollen legs stood up in front of him. 3 Jesus turned and asked the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law of Moses, “Is it right to heal on the Sabbath?”

4 But they did not say a word.
Jesus took hold of the man. Then he healed him and sent him away. 5 t Afterwards, Jesus asked the people, “If your son or ox falls into a well, wouldn't you pull him out at once, even on the Sabbath?”

6 There was nothing they could say.

How To Be a Guest

7 Jesus saw how the guests had tried to take the best seats. So he told them:
8  t When you are invited to a wedding feast, don't sit in the best place. Someone more important may have been invited.

9 Then the one who invited you will come and say, “Give your place to this other guest!” You will be embarrassed and will have to sit in the worst place.
10 When you are invited to be a guest, go and sit in the worst place. Then the one who invited you may come and say, “My friend, take a better seat!” You will then be honored in front of all the other guests.

11 t If you put yourself above others, you will be put down. But if you humble yourself, you will be honored.

12 Then Jesus said to the man who had invited him:
When you give a dinner or a banquet, don't invite your friends and family and relatives and rich neighbors. If you do, they will invite you in return, and you will be paid back. 13 When you give a feast, invite the poor, the paralyzed, the lame, and the blind.

14 They cannot pay you back. But God will bless you and reward you when his people rise from death.

The Great Banquet

(Matthew 22.1-10)

15 After Jesus had finished speaking, one of the guests said, “The greatest blessing of all is to be at the banquet in God's kingdom!”

16 Jesus told him:
A man once gave a great banquet and invited a lot of guests.

17 When the banquet was ready, he sent a servant to tell the guests, “Everything is ready! Please come.”

18 One guest after another started making excuses. The first one said, “I bought some land, and I've got to look it over. Please excuse me.”

19 Another guest said, “I bought five teams of oxen, and I need to try them out. Please excuse me.”

20 Still another guest said, “I've just now married, and I can't be there.”

21 The servant told his master what happened, and the master became so angry he said, “Go as fast as you can to every street and alley in town! Bring in everyone who is poor or paralyzed or blind or lame.”

22 When the servant returned, he said, “Master, I've done what you told me, and there is still plenty of room for more people.”
23 His master then told him, “Go out along the back roads and make people come in, so my house will be full.

24 Not one of the guests I first invited will get even a bite of my food!”

Being a Disciple

(Matthew 10.37,38)

25 Large crowds were walking along with Jesus, when he turned and said:

26  t You cannot be my disciple, unless you love me more than you love your father and mother, your wife and children, and your brothers and sisters. You cannot follow me unless you love me more than you love your own life.

27  t You cannot be my disciple unless you carry your own cross and follow me.
28 Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. What is the first thing you will do? Won't you sit down and figure out how much it will cost and if you have enough money to pay for it? 29 Otherwise, you will start building the tower, but not be able to finish. Then everyone who sees what is happening will laugh at you.

30 They will say, “You started building, but could not finish the job.”
31 What will a king do if he has only 10,000 soldiers to defend himself against a king who is about to attack him with 20,000 soldiers? Before he goes out to battle, won't he first sit down and decide if he can win? 32 If he thinks he won't be able to defend himself, he will send messengers and ask for peace while the other king is still a long way off.

33 So then, you cannot be my disciple unless you give away everything you own.

Salt and Light

(Matthew 5.13; Mark 9.50)