Sermon Response to Scripture proclaimed for Year C, Proper 17 Luke 14:1, 7-14 At Zion Episcopal Church By The Reverend Sarah E. Saxe on August 28, 2016 The Game We Play A man told his son, "You will marry the girl I choose." But his son said, "NO!" "She is Bill Gates daughter." "Oh! OK!" The man then called Bill Gates and said, "I want your daughter to marry my son." Bill Gates said, "NO!" My son is the CEO of World Bank." "Oh!OK!" Next the man called the President of World Bank and asked him to make his son the CEO. The President said "NO!" "My son is Bill Gates son in law." "Oh! OK!" Such is the political game we play, whether on Capitol Hill or in business; whether with our family or around a pharisee s dinner table. The goal of this game is wealth and power. And to win, it s about who you know whom you know who can help you achieve the status of being rich and powerful. Back in Jesus time, who sat where at a dinner party conveyed status like we do today by the clothes and jewelry we wear, the cars we drive, the neighborhoods we live in. In today s lesson, Jesus doesn t negate this cultural practice. Rather he gives advice about how to work within the system - how to be a good dinner guest.
Noticing how the guests chose places of honor he instructed them to sit down at the lowest place so that the host might elevate you. But the host will or won t elevate you depending on his agenda. For example, if he wants you to marry his daughter, you get a higher place. If he thinks you cheated him in business, down you go. So status is relative in the host s mind. Likewise it s relative in our minds, because even if we take Jesus advice and choose the lowest seat, we could still fall into a trap by boasting about it. There are those who humble themselves on the surface but not in their minds and hearts. And even if they don t boast about it out loud, they do so to themselves. Or they take the lowest place even though they feel entitled to a higher place. So they feel disappointed, slighted, even resentful when they aren t raised to the stature they think they deserve. Jesus doesn t seem to be concerned with this trap of our mindset versus our actions. He s teaching us about what to do to be a good guest; not what to think about it. Then he moves on to giving advice on how to be a good host. Again working within the system he says, not to invite those whom you know or your rich neighbors (whom you might want to know) but rather invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you So for Jesus it s not about whom you know but about whom you don t know or perhaps whom you don t admit to knowing: all people we might consider inferior to us in status, wealth or power. It might be a long list depending on who you think you are. But even though it seems Jesus isn t removing the system in place, he is removing the host s hidden agenda. There can be no political games with a guest list of the
marginalized. Those people society leaves on the edges, like the destitute, the disabled, the diseased. They are not part of the inner circle and are not usually invited to the table. But again we could fall into a trap because, if we do invite such people, might we feel entitled to receive their gratitude for what we have done for them? Might we then elevate ourselves for reaching out to them? So again, even if our actions are appropriate is our heart and mindset appropriate? Does Jesus stay on the surface by focusing on what we do rather than what we think or feel? And that brings me back to why Jesus was invited to the Pharisee s house in the first place. Now a Pharisee s invitation is a little different from any old invitation of ancient times because, for a Pharisee, it wasn t just about status, it was also about the opportunity to discuss who is acceptable in God s kingdom. So regardless of where you seat your guests, if you re a Pharisee, you invited them because you re curious about their opinion. You invite people who matter in order to have conversation with them, because their opinion matters. And Jesus was invited because he mattered. And Jesus does give his opinion. He teaches them by saying that they should invite the people who don t matter. The people who can t repay you with a reciprocal dinner invitation. But by inviting them you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. You don t get a reward now but later.
Yet I wonder If you choose to invite the marginalized rather than those who matter, might you be blessed right now as well as later? Might they be able to repay you after all? Jesus says that they need to be invited. They need to be brought into the inner circle. And according to the custom of the Pharisees, that means they must be included in the conversation. So reaching out to the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind is not just about feeding them, for which we will be blessed later. It s also about getting to know them hearing their stories. Taking the lowest seat so that they may be elevated. Asking them who they think is acceptable in God s kingdom. And if we listen, perhaps we can be blessed right now by learning something from their answer. But let s back up a minute. Luke says right at the start of today s reading that Jesus told them a parable. So this whole lesson about guests and hosts is a parable a story told by Jesus that conveys meaning about the reign of God; not the reign of humans. Parables are based on life experiences, like a dinner party, and Jesus uses them to teach us about what God s kingdom is like. And so I wonder perhaps it s not at all about who you know but rather about who knows you. Who really knows you what s in your heart and mind.
Someone who knows the traps you can fall into even when it appears that you re doing the right thing; even when you think you re doing the right thing; even when you can t bring yourself to do the right thing. It s about someone who really knows you - when you ve been crippled by suffering; when you ve been poor in spirit; when you ve been blind to what s going on, or lame with inaction. Perhaps it s not at all about a dinner party here on earth, but about a table in heaven; and a host who loves us all equally and unconditionally. Where there are no places of honor and yet they are all places of honor. A host who sees us as beautifully made, regardless of the scarring or disfigurement or mutations that occur during our time on earth; regardless of our quest for status or power or wealth; regardless of our mindset or our actions. Perhaps this story is about another guest who humbled himself by taking the lowest place. About another host who invites everyone to his table and listens to the needs of the world. We can t repay this generous invitation. Noone can. All that is asked of us is that we sincerely try, by doing the work we are given to do. And today that work is to take the lowest place and listen with a humble heart. To invite the poor, crippled, lame and blind to do the talking. Because it very well may be that, through them, Jesus is talking. Jesus is sharing his vision of who is acceptable in God s kingdom.