"The God Pause Daily Devotional" from The Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States for Thursday, 25 August 2016 with Scripture: Luke 14:1, 7-14

"The God Pause Daily Devotional" from The Luther Seminary in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States for Thursday, 25 August 2016
with Scripture: Luke 14:1, 7-14

Luke 14:1 One Shabbat Yeshua went to eat in the home of one of the leading P’rushim, and they were watching him closely.
7 When Yeshua noticed how the guests were choosing for themselves the best seats at the table, he told them this parable: 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, don’t sit down in the best seat; because if there is someone more important than you who has been invited, 9 the person who invited both of you might come and say to you, ‘Give this man your place.’ Then you will be humiliated as you go to take the least important place. 10 Instead, when you are invited, go and sit in the least important place; so that when the one who invited you comes, he will say to you, ‘Go on up to a better seat.’ Then you will be honored in front of everyone sitting with you. 11 Because everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but everyone who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 Yeshua also said to the one who had invited him, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives or rich neighbors; for they may well invite you in return, and that will be your repayment. 13 Instead, when you have a party, invite poor people, disfigured people, the crippled, the blind! 14 How blessed you will be that they have nothing with which to repay you! For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”[Complete Jewish Bible]
-------
Can the Bible remind us too many times or in too many ways of the expansiveness of God's love? The first parable turns our imagination and vision to any places or people we might consider beneath us. God loves us all. The second parable gives us a wide angle lens to see the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind. Jesus makes clear that we are all loved. Because we are loved together we can come to know that we all depend on God for everything. We all fail to see completely all that God does for us.
The gospel is not merely about seeing this love. The parables ask us to plunge in--take a seat at the low end of the table. Invite those who can never repay the invitation. Stretch. Trust. Be opened to God's presence in astonishing places. When we live toward these neighbors we learn to know the breadth and depth of God's love for all God's people--and we know our complete dependence on God more vividly for ourselves.
Open our eyes, Lord. We want to see Jesus.  Amen.
Paul Rohde, '82
Campus Pastor, Augustana University, Sioux Falls, S.D.
Luke 14:1 On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely...
7 When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable.
8 "When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited by your host;
9 and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you, "Give this person your place,' and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place.
10 But when you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, "Friend, move up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you.
11 For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."
12 He said also to the one who had invited him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid.
13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.
14 And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."[New Revised Standard Version
-------