Today’s Reading: Luke 14:7-35
How much does this seat cost?
When we buy tickets for a concert or baseball game, we have a decision to make about what seats we are willing to pay for. We can decide to purchase the premium seats or save money by choosing seats further back or higher up. When we buy plane tickets, the same decision needs to be made. Are we willing to pay more for a seat at the front of the plane with extra room for our legs and elbows? We consider the price of each ticket and the quantity needed. We count the cost and make our decision.
Where are you going to sit?
Jesus noticed that all who had come to dinner were trying to sit in the seats of honor near the head of the table, he gave them this advice: “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? 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! 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. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” – Luke 14:7-11
Maybe this is where we developed the customary question, “Is this seat taken?” It has become a common courtesy to ask this question before sitting down in a seat. But our human nature is to provide for our own needs, then care for others out of our excess. Jesus preaches a different kind of lifestyle – a commitment to Him in which we think of God and how He would want us to care for others before our concern for ourselves. Jesus is not encouraging us to pretend humility but to sincerely think of others first.
Who are you going to sit with?
Jesus also addressed the question of who we are choosing to sit with. Do we gravitate towards those who make us look good or who will make us feel better about ourselves? Or do we ask the question, “Who would you like for me to love on today, Jesus?”
Then he turned to the 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 reward. Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.” – Luke 14:12-14
Again, we should not be focused on what we can gain from someone else but on what someone else can gain from God through us. God wants us responding to His Spirit and ministering to whoever He sends us to, seeing ourselves as tools God may want to use in any and every situation. But how often do we make excuses for our own selfishness? How often is our commitment to our own plans stronger than our commitment to God’s plans for us?
Will you accept the invitation to be seated?
Jesus told another story of a man who sent out invitations to a great feast he was preparing. But the guests made excuses for why they could not attend. The man was furious, so he told his servant to go out and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame. When there was still room at the table, he sent the servant to the country lanes to invite anyone he could find so that the house would be full.
“For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’” – Luke 14:24
Are you willing to pay the price for this seat?
Commitment to God – fully devoted to Him. God calls us to COUNT THE COST before making the decision of whether or not to accept His invitation. It will require humility; it will require us to be more committed to Him than we are to our own plans. Today is a great day to renew our commitment. God, how would you like to use me today?
A large crowd was following Jesus. He turned around and said to them, “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. And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple. But don’t begin until you COUNT THE COST…you cannot become my disciple without GIVING UP EVERYTHING you own.” – Luke 14:25-28a,33