Christ the King and Holy Nativity, Door County, The Rev. Dr. Kathy Monson Lutes
Jeremiah 2:4-13, Psalm 81:1, 10-16, Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16,Luke 14:1, 7-14
When I receive an invitation to a party, or a picnic, or any gathering of friends, relatives, neighbors, I am thrilled - I don’t get out much. Especially to a wedding or a wedding shower, or a baby shower. I feel like someone wants me, what I can add to the conversation, maybe even my humor. And yet, those social situations continue to challenge me - I was what we called a wall flower in my younger days, today just an introvert. But I love getting the invitation by phone, email, hardly ever a card in the mail though, and I anticipate and prepare, what will I bring, what will I wear.
So I was recently at a social event that causes an introvert apoplexy. And to top it off, I volunteered to be the chair of the event. My 50th high school class reunion. I decided to chair the event because I was in a new place in my life, newly moved back to my hometown, newly retired, still fairly newly widowed. I figured I might as well make new friends - all those whom I had attended high school with and never even spoke to - we return again to the wall flower status. I figured after 50 years we could probably drop our pretenses and expectations, and just catch up on life. So, one of my responsibilities was to get all the information on the website and extend the invitations to our classmates, and then to maintain the list of growing classmates who intended to come to the reunion. I found my excitement rising as I watched with anticipation all those who were registering - people I had remained friends with, and people I only knew by name. I’d never had so much fun throwing a party.
What we read about in Luke’s gospel today are parties with all sorts of social and cultural expectations attached to them
Luke, whose main theme is hospitality, tells us a story about Jesus who is going to eat Sunday dinner at the house of a leader of the Pharisees. This is the Sabbath, a day that is held in high esteem, a day set apart from all other days. In the story that Luke is telling us, Jesus observes how the guests take their places, and in response Jesus tells a story about an invitation to a very special meal, a wedding banquet, and another rather ordinary meal, like a luncheon or dinner. So we have before us, a story within a story, and then, another story.
A wedding banquet in 1st century Mediterranean culture would have been nothing like the weddings I’ve been at. It would have gone on for days, and the celebration was always public, everyone in the whole village would have come to the celebration at one time or another. And in fact, there would have been multiple meals all week long. So after Jesus talks about the wedding, he then goes on to describe meals and hospitality sort of generally, giving an accounting for who should be invited. There are many things going on here.
Remember, Jesus tells this parable when he is at a meal in the house of a leader of the Pharisees. You gotta believe the leader of the Pharisees have an agenda in inviting Jesus over, usually, they want to test him, they want to see what he's made of, they want to find out if he is righteous before the law. And so far, in the eyes of the Pharisees, Jesus has failed miserably. He heals on the Sabbath, he eats with sinners and outcasts, and now, he's telling everyone in hearing distance not to invite the important people over for a meal but invite those who cannot return the invitation.
So what is it about?
What does the kingdom look like in this story?
Who do we invite to come eat with us here at this table? In Hebrews we hear “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.”
In Jesus’ culture, of the 1st century, the greatest good was one's honor. Of course, you sat at the head of the table, of course you expected those less than you to sit at the lowest place. Of course, you invited the important people, the people who could do something for you, the people who had something you needed. You would not have considered any other way. That's the way the world works. It's really not so much different today. Jesus came among the first century people, as Jesus comes among us and says there is a new way, a way of God's kingdom. And in that kingdom, everyone has honor, everyone has status, and that is based on God's love, that is based on being created in God's image. It is not about who you are, it is not based on how much you have, it is not based on anything you can do. In God's kingdom, we are all related, and what we do matters. In God's kingdom it is love that wins and love that blesses.
What do you hear in this story? I hear a story of abundance and of enough. Do not be worried about who comes to the party, it is enough, you are enough, there will be enough. In God's kingdom there is enough, share what you have. Jesus is inviting us to stop counting and start giving and blessing. What would it be like to live into the freedom to stop calculating our social prestige and stop worrying about what others think and simply be kind to everyone around us, particularly those who are not often the recipients of kindness? What would it look like at work, at school, and at the places we volunteer or play sports or socialize, to look out for those who seem off on the margin and to invite them into the center by inviting them into our lives, inviting them to the lunch table? Jesus invites us to experience the joy of playing “God’s helper” in handing out the abundant gifts of dignity and worth and value with which we have been blessed. There is joy that comes from blessing others with our regard.
We are called to this hospitality, we are called to this invitation, we are called to build this kingdom, where no one is an outcast, where all of us sinners are welcome. We are called to the table to feed and be fed. As we feed and are fed, we are sent into the world to be the heralds of this kingdom. We are sent into our work, and our school, we are sent into our communities, bearing this new reality. We are sent into the world to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing so we entertain angels. By doing so we are the agents of God's kingdom. By doing so we bring God's healing and reconciliation to all who are broken, which is each and every one of us.
We are followers of Jesus. We are invited to the table where there is no preference of place. We are invited to be builders of the kingdom. We are equipped to meet every person with mercy and compassion, for by doing so, we entertain angels. Amen.
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