Luke Chapter 14

Healing in a Pharisee’s Home on a Sabbath

            ¹ On a Sabbath, when he went into the house of a ruling Pharisee to eat, the leaders were watching him closely. ² In front of him was a man with extreme swelling. ³ Jesus said to the lawyers and Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on a Sabbath?”

            ⁴ They didn’t say anything. He took hold of him and healed him and let him go. ⁵ He said, “If a son or ox falls into a well, wouldn’t you pull^f him out right away on a Sabbath day?” ⁶ They couldn’t answer him.

            ⁷ When he noticed how they were vying for the prominent places at the table, he started telling the guests an example.

⁸ “When somebody invites you to a wedding banquet, don’t recline at table in a place of honor. Someone more distinguished than you may have been invited. ⁹ The one that invited you both will say to you^sg, ‘Let this gentleman have your place.’ Then you’ll head for the last place embarrassed. ¹⁰ Instead, when you’re invited, go recline in the last place so when the one that invited you comes, he’ll say, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then the others reclining at table will respect you. ¹¹ Everybody that exalts himself will be humbled, and the one that humbles himself will be exalted.”

            ¹² He went on to say to his host,

“When you^sg have a luncheon or dinner, don’t call your friends, brothers, relatives, and wealthy neighbors. They can invite you in return. ¹³ Invite poor, disabled, lame, and blind people. You’ll be blessed; they can’t repay you. ¹⁴ You’ll get repaid when the righteous resurrect.”

            ¹⁵ When one of those reclining at the table heard that, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one that eats bread in God’s kingdom.”

            ¹⁶ Jesus said to him,

“A man prepared a banquet and invited a lot of people. ¹⁷ When the time for the banquet came, he sent a servant to tell them to come; everything was ready. ¹⁸ But they started making excuses. ‘I need to go see a field I bought. Please excuse me.’

            ¹⁹ “‘I’m on my way to try out five yokes of oxen I bought. Please excuse me.’

            ²⁰ “‘I just got married; I can’t come.’

            ²¹ “When the servant came back, he told his master. The homeowner was mad, ‘Hurry out into the streets and alleys in town and bring in the poor, disabled, blind, and lame.’

            ²² “‘Master, I did what you said, and there’s still room.’

²³ “‘Go out into the country lanes and paths and urge them to come in so my house will be full. ²⁴ None of the people I invited will taste my banquet.”                                                                                                       

Lk 14:1-24

The Cost of Discipleship

            ²⁵ Large crowds were traveling with him. He turned and told them,

²⁶ “Nobody that comes to me can be my disciple unless he loves me more than his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters—even his own life. ²⁷ Whoever doesn’t carry his own cross and follow me, can’t be my disciple. ²⁸ Which of you that wants to build a tower, doesn’t sit down first and figure out what it’ll cost, to see if you have enough money to finish it? ²⁹ Otherwise, when you’ve laid the foundation and can’t finish it, people will make fun of you, ³⁰ ‘This fellow started to build and couldn’t finish.’

³¹ “What king engages another king in battle without sitting down first to figure out if with 10,000 he can meet one with 20,000? ³² If he can’t, while the other is still a long way off, he’ll send ambassadors to ask for terms of peace. ³³ In the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless you give up everything you own.

³⁴ “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, what can make it salty? ³⁵ It’s useless for the ground or manure pile. People throw it out. Whoever has ears, listen!”

Lk 14:25-35