The Life of the Christ - ForMinistry

Luke 14
invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.
14 They cannot pay you back. But God will bless you
and reward you when his people rise from death.
THE POOR
In the Bible, the “poor” refers to people whose lives are difficult
(widows and orphans), people who have been displaced by war,
and people who have nothing (Deut 15.11; Ps 82.3,4). “Poor” is
also used to describe those who were considered to have little
value, even to Israel’s enemies (Jer 40.7,8; 52.15). The Law of
Moses made it clear that God’s people were to care for the needs
of poor people, providing them with money, food, and clothing
(Exod 22.22-27; Deut 16.9-15; 24.12-15).
The Lord God of Israel has special concern for the poor
and homeless and changes their condition, as the story of Hannah
and her prayer shows (1 Sam 2.7,8). The prophet Amos reminded
the people of Israel that they had abused the poor and robbed
them of justice (Amos 5.11-13). He told the people that being just
and fair was as important a part of their worship as their religious
celebrations (Amos 5.21-24). He also warned that God would
punish those who took advantage of the poor (Amos 8.4-12). It was
believed that God brought judgment on Israel’s leaders and their
people (Ezek 22.29), because the leaders failed to care for the
poor, and because they did not forgive the debts of the poor (Deut
15.1-11). Israel’s wisdom writings proclaim that it is better to live
right and be poor than to be rich and sinful (Ps 37.16), and that the
Lord will repay those who care for the poor (Prov 19.17).
The prophet Isaiah said that in the future God would choose
(“anoint”) someone to bring good news to the poor (Isa 61.1-4).
Jesus claimed that God had sent him to make this very promise
come true (Luke 4.16-21). Jesus was friendly to people who were
turned away by the religious leaders, and he invited them to be
part of God’s new people. He told the poor that God would bless
them (Luke 6.20,21), and that they would share in the new kingdom
of God.
The one demand that the Jerusalem apostles made of Paul
before he went out to bring the good news to the Gentiles is that he
should “remember the poor” (Gal 2.10). Similarly, the Christians in
Jerusalem put everything they had in one common fund so that the
needs of the poor and needy among them could be taken care of
(Acts 2.44,45; 4.32).
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The Great Banquet
15 After Jesus had finished speaking, one of the guests said,
“The greatest blessing of all is to be at the banquet in God’s
kingdom!”
16 Jesus told him:
A man once gave a great banquet and invited a
lot of guests. 17 When the banquet was ready, he sent
a servant to tell the guests, “Everything is ready!
Please come.”
18 One guest after another started making
excuses. The first one said, “I bought some land, and
I’ve got to look it over. Please excuse me.”
19 Another guest said, “I bought five teams of
oxen, and I need to try them out. Please excuse me.”
20 Still another guest said, “I have just gotten
married, and I can’t be there.”
21 The servant told his master what happened,
and the master became so angry that he said, “Go
as fast as you can to every street and alley in town!
Bring in everyone who is poor or crippled or blind
or lame.”
22 When the servant returned, he said, “Master,
I’ve done what you told me, and there is still plenty of
room for more people.”
23 His master then told him, “Go out along the
back roads and fence rows and make people come in,
so that my house will be full. 24 Not one of the guests
I first invited will get even a bite of my food!”
Being a Disciple
25 Large crowds were walking along with Jesus, when he
turned and said:
26 You cannot be my disciple, unless you love
me more than you love your father and mother, your
wife and children, and your brothers and sisters. You
cannot come with me unless you love me more than
you love your own life.
27 You cannot be my disciple unless you carry
your own cross and come with me.
28 Suppose one of you wants to build a tower.
What is the first thing you will do? Won’t you sit
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Jesus Goes to Jerusalem