"Table Manners"

Luke 14:7-24

“Seating Arrangements” - Luke 14:7-11
In the New Mexico Conference, I was responsible for the annual Pastor’s Retreat at Sacramento Methodist Assembly near Cloudcroft (actually nearer to Weed, if you know where that is!). The office manager at the camp said to me one day in frustration: “These preachers sure are a demanding lot, needing special this and special that. Each one of them seems to think he or she is baby Jesus!” From then on, when I called her, I would tell the secretary to tell the office manager that baby Jesus was on the line. She would get on the phone and laughingly say,“Hey, baby Jesus. How are ya?” I enjoyed working with her.

It is human for all of us to desire status,to think we have earned a special place, or that we deserve to be the exception to the rule. But the guideline for ministry from Luke 14 is that we humble ourselves and take the lesser position. At biblical banquets, the person seated closest to the host (especially on the host’s right side) was considered the guest of honor and the further away from the host you sat, the lesser your status was. Jesus tells his disciples to choose seats farthest from the host, and quite possibly, they would be invited forward (a whole lot better than being embarrassed at having to give up a seat for a lesser one). In Philippians 2, in one of the church’s earliest hymns, Paul talks about how Jesus “emptied himself and took the form of a slave.” We follow his example, and even if our humility is not honored by others, God is pleased. There is a little chorus that sings, “Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord. And he will lift you up, higher and higher, yes, he will lift you up.”

“The Invitation List” – Luke 14:12-14
Lately, my wife Tina and Kristen Gilmore have been talking about the invitation list for Tyler and Kristen’s wedding. As we all know, the number of guests invited will determine a great deal of how much the rehearsal dinner, wedding and reception cost. Yet, figuring out who to invite or not to invite is difficult, especially when it involves relatives or long-time but distant friends. And do we only invite those we think will send gifts? Luke makes a radical suggestion - that we might want to open up our dinner gatherings to people that would never be able to reciprocate. When I served Trinity-First UMC in El Paso, we were constantly surrounded by the homeless. It was our regular practice to have extra food at every church meal that we would serve. The homeless were invited to sit with us and enjoy the food.

As children, we learned the old adage, “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.” Mutual care is important. Last week, in class, we talked about how important it was to see mission as something we do with people, not for or to people. From a position of humility (as discussed above), we don’t see ourselves as above those with whom we share. But even though we assume that a relationship will be mutual (in which have something to offer and so do they), we don’t require a mutual response. We don’t scratch another’s back so that our back will be scratched. It would be nice, of course, but we don’t expect it. We offer our love and service, asking nothing in return. There is something freeing and joyful about serving those who cannot pay you back. You can do it “just because…” How long has it been since you did that? It will make your day.

“R.S.V.P.” – Luke 14:15-27
The Parable of the Great Banquet is a powerful picture of ministry. The banquet is lavish and it is a high privilege to be invited to it. Yet, many of the people the host invites do not choose to come. They are people of privilege, busy people like you and me. One by one they offer their excuses for not responding to the invitation: one has to work, another has to get married, etc, etc. The truth is, despite their words, those invited don’t care for the master as much as they say they do.

As we follow Christ in ministry, we, too, will be surprised and at times disappointed with the responses of people. Those you think would be the most responsive and had the most potential to serve Christ will be distracted, preoccupied or simply not want to join in. But the gospel has always done well with those who are down and out. The Methodist revival in England and the United States with John and Charles Wesley was mainly a movement of poor factory workers and families. The Wesleys feared the day when the income and privileges of the people called Methodists would increase and they would end up with “a form of godliness, but lack the power.” Our walk with Christ can follow a predictable pattern. We experience the amazing grace of God and receive him into our lives. Then we get better at what we do and get paid better, we buy things to which we become attached and indebted, and we get busy keeping up with our accumulating obligations. Soon our availability and passion has been all but drained out of us and very little is left for God.

The host then calls for the invitation to go out to the very people that Jesus said to invite to our dinner parties: the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame. For his desire is that his house be full of people enjoying his banquet. Here we have a picture of God’s passion for us and for those with whom we do ministry. God lives to share with us the joy and the greatness of life. The question is whether we or the people with whom we share are really open to receive that joy and greatness.

Writing all this has made my hungry. I think I’ll go eat a late lunch. Have a good day.