“Come Lord Jesus, be our guest and let these gifts to us be blessed. Amen.”
Heads bowed, hands folded, eyes closed…dinner on the table…the family gathered all around. The smells of mom’s cooking on the table…I can smell it even now….
“If only,” I knew then, what I know now…
According to Luke, inviting Jesus to share a meal with you – could be an “unpleasant experience.” (Especially if you happened to be a Pharisee…)
Sometimes…these “social gatherings” turned out badly…very badly…especially as told by Luke!
Jesus is being watched with a great amount of scrutiny. He is not being watched closely to see what people might learn from him….
Instead, he is being watched closely to assess just “how much” of a “threat or a danger” – he might really be. They wanted to “judge him.” They hoped to catch him in some kind of religious error. They wanted to be able to call him out. ‘Catch him at something…
It was actually a “good tactic.” Separate and conquer.
The ploy of inviting Jesus to a dinner would draw him out of the “public viewing” and into the “private sector” of a Pharisee’s home and allow “them” to “test and watch” him.
He was being “spied upon.” He was being closely “scrutinized.” It was a little bit creepy!
Our Gospel text opens with Jesus at the home of a Pharisee to eat a meal “on the Sabbath day.” Immediately “red flags” are supposed to go up!
“Uh-oh” – another Sabbath day story!
Jesus…a Pharisee…or Pharisees…a meal…the Sabbath Day it is all a formula for “a controversy” and “friction” right off the bat. There is going to be – a tension and an uneasiness…trust me. This is not a good combination!
One thing for certain, the local Walgreens or CVS Pharmacy is going to have a run on Maalox or Pepto Bismol when it’s all over!
What we know from history is that…first century middle-eastern dinner parties were political, social and class affairs.
One would “only invite” those considered to be one’s “social equals” or possibly “superiors.”
Accepting an invitation to such a dinner carried with it the built-in-expectation that the one invited – would indeed “return the favor in kind.”
Poorer people “could not accept” such invitations since they would not be able to return the favor.
So, it is interesting to note once more that the seer who is being watched so scrupulously – was also capable of noticing the “things” that the “watchers” were blind to…
They are watching him – while all the while – he is watching them!
So what is it – that we are blind to? What is it that we are not seeing? What is it – that we are missing “out on?”
So the one being watched – watches…this is going to be good!
The “other guests” seem to be taking their places, but Jesus stands apart “watching them,” then, condescendingly shaking his head he says, “See that is the problem with you people, choosing the best spots.” Who do you think you are?
He is actually paraphrasing Proverbs 25. 6-7 … “Don’t you know or realize that you are actually going to humiliate yourselves? You are setting yourselves up – unnecessarily!
And when he finishes insulting his “fellow guests” – he turns on to his host.
“And you, you know – what your problem is? You invite people just so you will be honored and paid back. What’s up with that? Why do you do that?
Just what were you thinking…inviting your friends and your relatives and your superiors to eat with you…silly man…
You should invite the poor, the crippled and people that cannot pay you back!
Again, what were you thinking?
The guests and the host “remain silent.”
Tension fills the air.
Can someone tell me again, why HE WAS INVITED? Emily Post he is NOT!
And why is he – a guest – coming to dinner and giving the host – as well as – the invited guests advice?
Just who does he think he is?
Inviting Jesus to share in the family meal is not necessarily a good thing…because…you never know just what you will get!
And, as Luke tells it, this same scenario is repeated again and again…
Guess who’s coming to dinner – RUNNNNNN!