Invited guests

"Invited guests"   Luke14:7-14

　

Let us pray.

 

God the Father of Jesus Christ, you speak through the words of the Bible. I trust that you speak to us.

I ask your guidance and help to those who hear the sermon and who preach the sermon.  I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen

　

Last week, we had our "Memorial Service" and I preached from Psalm 23.  Today, I will go back to Luke and continue from the week before last.  Two weeks ago we talked about how the Pharisees invited Jesus to dinner.  The story was as follows.

 

One Sabbath day, Jesus was invited to a meal at the house of a Pharisee. When Jesus went to the house, there was a man suffering from a disease called edema.  Jesus asked the experts in the law and those who had been invited to the Pharisee's meal, "Is it permissible by the law to heal on the Sabbath day or not?"  According to the teaching, healing the sick on the Sabbath was considered a form of labor and was forbidden. They couldn't say anything.

 

That is because Jesus had refuted the error of the teaching at the time that it was not lawful to heal the sick on the Sabbath. "Therefore, they had no choice but to remain silent."  Jesus healed a man who had edema. It is said that he went home (Luke 14:1-6).

 

This morning's story is about what happened after the person who had been cured returned home.

Jesus was watching those who had been invited (guests) sitting at the table.  What Jesus saw the guests who had chosen the upper seats and sat.  It was customary to sit in order from the highest rank to the highest rank.

 

So Jesus told two stories (14:7-11, 14:12-14).

1) Choosing an honor seat.   2) Who to invite.

 

1) Choosing an honor seat.

All the guests who were invited thought that they were in a position of the honor seat.

They believed in their abilities and achievements.  Seeing the guests who wanted to sit in the honor seats, Jesus told a parable.  It is the story when invited to a wedding feast.

 

The same is also true in Japan, seating is decided by the organizer.  The seating order is determined by family members, relatives, company bosses, colleagues, friends, etc.

 

Following is the parable.

 

When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited.  If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests.

 

The point from this parable is the following. “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”  Jesus wanted to teach everyone, "Everyone who is proud will be humbled, but whoever is humble will be exalted."

 

The power harassment by company bosses is the appearance of "an arrogant person."

Politicians, having long careers in parliament, and among those who frequently hold important posts such as ministers, tend to be arrogant, being "a proud person".  As your status rise so will your pride. And that can lead to "power harassment".

 

Ayako Miura's last novel "Muzzle" is a work that depicts the end of the Taisho era to the end of the Showa era.  This novel is based on the actual incident in Hokkaido (northern part of Japan).  A large number of teachers who taught children how to write essays were accused of violating the Peace Preservation Law and were imprisoned.

 

The main character is Ryuta Kitamori, a young man who was a teacher. Ryuta was arrested on suspicion of violating the Peace Preservation Law and was deprived of his job as a teacher.  He is conscripted and is sent to the battlefield. He was sent to Manchuria, China.

 

Military has a strict hierarchical relationship.  Recruits (first-year soldiers) are accompanied by a senior soldiers as an instructors.  Ryuta's mentor was private Hiroshi Kondo.

 

It was normal for senior soldiers to bully their juniors. Senior soldiers were also bullied when they were recruits.  However, this Hiroshi Kondo (senior soldier) was different. Far from being arrogant, he was a kind soldier.  One day, Ryuta asked Hiroshi Kondo why he was so kind. 

 

I would like to read that section.

 

Three months after enlisting, Ryuta was promoted to private. Kondo was very happy as if the promotion was his promotion.  Ryuta said, "This is all due to private Kondo."  There were very few promotions in three months and asked a question.  "Private Kondo, why have you been so kind to me?”  Kondo smiled, a little embarrassed and said, "I see. Was I that kind?"

 

"Yes, private Kondo, you have been very kind to me every day. I have never seen such a kind person before. Thank you very much,” said Ryuta.  Kondo said, "I didn't do as much as you said, but I'm grateful that you're happy."  Kondo still laughed, but after he paused for a moment, he said, "You know, Private Kitamori. You said your house was a pawn shop. You once told a story about a poor housewife who brought in a baby's diaper when she had nothing to pawn.”  This was a story which Ryuta mentioned during his grandfather's generation.

 

Kondo continued, “My family was so poor that I didn’t even know if I could bring those diapers. I never wore boots even when it rained. I did not have lunch, just drank from the well.  The house had no doors, just a straw mat was hung at the entrance. When I went to school, my friends made fun of me.

I didn’t have a friend, I played alone.  I played alone all the time, like catching fish in the stream in front of my house and climbing trees in the mountains behind my house.”

 

Kondo’s story continued….  After graduating from elementary school, he began working in the fields in the summer and lumbering in the winter. One day, he met a head laborer at a lumber yard and for some reason he liked Kondo.  He often bought dried sweet potatoes and sweet bean buns, and he was the first to share them with him.  The head laborer gave his rabbit-skin waistcoat to Kondo.  Kondo, who had never been treated kindly by anyone, was so happy, started to cry.  He learned how kindness empower people.  His first friend, was a head laborer who was as old as his father.

 

Kondo grew up, and eventually entered the army after passing the first class. The military was a tough place, as rumored. He also experienced slaps from his seniors.  He was yelled at and made to stand in the corridor during the night.  Kondo felt that if he had a subordinate of his own, he will be kind as much as possible.

 

And this year, Kondo became a private first class, and a subordinate was given to him, private Ryuta Kitamori.  For the first time in his life, he had the experience of standing above people… never boast or hit the person, just wanted to do things that makes a person happy.  For many years, I had no one I could trust other than the head laborer, and now he had a comrade.  Kondo was very happy, he now had a person to talk everyday. 

 

That was the story….  "Whoever is proud will be humbled, and the humble will be exalted."  These are the words of the Bible that we should remember.

 

Now let us see the second point.

 

2) Who will you invite?

 

A man having edema who came to the house of the Pharisees “was cured of his illness” (verse 4).

As mentioned, he was not invited to dinner.  Most probably this man heard the rumors about Jesus.

 

Jesus may have taken issue with the fact that the man with the edema was not invited to the meal.

Let us read the Bible passage, verses 12-14)

 

Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid.  But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind. And you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

 

The first parable was about a wedding reception.  Having a wedding reception doesn't happen that many times in a lifetime.  On the other hand, lunch and dinner are frequent occurrences.  It is common to invite close friends and neighbors to house parties.  Instead, Jesus said to invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.

 

It might not be easy to put into practice what Jesus said in Japan, where house parties are not a natural part of the culture, but we can accept what Jesus said.  That is, "Who do you set your heart on?"

The person who invited Jesus didn't care about the man who was suffering from edema, so he sent him away.

 

It was the Pharisees who invited Jesus as a guest. The invited guests were experts of law. They were elites.

To them, the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind belonged to another world.  Inviting someone to lunch or dinner meant getting to know each other.

 

You will be happy because they will not be able to pay you back.  The Bible says that Jesus is the one who came to such a place.

 

Luke 4:16-21 says the following. 

 

He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:  “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me

to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”  Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

 

Let us pray.

 

God the Father of Jesus Christ, with all my heart I praise you.  May the word of the Lord humble us.

 

Through the Lord's Supper after this, may we remember the presence of you and renew our determination to follow you.  Please guide us.  I pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen