Rejecting What Is False, Embracing What Is True (preaching resource for 9/7/25, 13th Sunday after Pentecost)

This post exegetes Luke chapter 14 providing context for the Gospel reading on 9/7/25, the 13th Sunday after Pentecost. Insights are drawn from Warren Wiersbe ("The Bible Expository Commentary") and Howard Marshall ("New Bible Commentary").

"The Meal in the House of the Pharisee" by James Tissot
(public domain via Wikimedia Commons)

Introduction

In keeping with Jewish custom, Jesus was often invited into someone’s home for a meal following Sabbath synagogue services. Sometimes Jesus was invited by a host seeking to honor Jesus and learn more of God’s truth. But often, Jesus was invited home by a host wanting to find a way to criticize and condemn him. In Luke chapter 14, a leading Pharisee invites Jesus to dinner with the intent of entrapping Jesus. But Jesus turns the table and exposes the falsity of the thinking and living of the host, of other Jewish religious leaders at the meal, and of the crowd that follows Jesus afterward. Let’s join Jesus in rejecting what is false, and embracing what is true.

False piety 

Luke 14:1–6

1 One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. 2 There in front of him was a man suffering from dropsy. 3 Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?" 4 But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him away. 5 Then he asked them, "If one of you has a son or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull him out?" 6 And they had nothing to say.

Earlier, Jesus denounced the Pharisees as hypocrites (Luke 11:39–52). Now this prominent Pharisee retaliates, setting a trap for Jesus by inviting him home for dinner. Present at the meal is a man with dropsy (a painful disease where body tissues fill with water). This sick man is given a seat right in front of Jesus—the trap is set. If Jesus ignores the sick man, he will be seen as heartless; but if Jesus heals him (as the Pharisee expects that he will), he will be exposed as a law breaker. Seeing the trap, Jesus turns the table and asks the Pharisee and his religious associates, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” (v3b). If they answer that a Sabbath healing is unlawful, they will be seen as heartless; but if they answer that a Sabbath healing is OK, they will be seen as the law breakers. Their only option, is to say nothing. The result? Their religious piety is exposed as utterly false! As for Jesus, in mercy and compassion, he heals the sick man and sends him on his way. The Pharisee’s home is a not a safe place in which to remain.

False popularity 

Luke 14:7–11

7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: 8 "When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, 'Give this man your seat.' Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, 'Friend, move up to a better place.' Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

In first century Judaism (as in our world today) there are many “status symbols,” including being invited to the “right homes” and being seated in the “right places.” Here, the closer you are seated to the host, the higher you are on the social ladder and the more attention (and invitations) you will receive. So, naturally, many want to sit at the “place of honor.” Unfortunately, their concern is for reputation, not character. It’s more important in their eyes to sit in the right place than to live the right life. Such hypocritical self-promotion is rampant among these Pharisees. So Jesus tells them a parable (where the “wedding feast” is representative of the kingdom), in order to show them that the way of his Father’s kingdom is not the way of popularity and position but of humility and servant-leadership. Their reliance on a false popularity is exposed for what it is—utterly empty! 

False hospitality 

Luke 14:12–14

12 Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

Jesus knows that his host has invited his guests to either pay them back for inviting him to past banquets, or to put them in his debt so that they will invite him to future banquets. This false hospitality is not an expression of love and grace, but of pride and selfishness. Jesus’ point is not to prohibit entertaining family and friends, but to warn against entertaining only those who can pay us back. Our motive for hospitality must be to embrace and extend God’s love for all people. In that culture, it was common to exclude the poor and handicapped from public banquets (and women too!). But Jesus commands his followers to put the needy at the top of our guest list, precisely because they cannot pay us back. When we share in Jesus’ heart of hospitality, we receive great reward (though to be rewarded is not our motive). When we serve others from an unselfish heart, we lay up treasures in heaven (Mat. 6:20) and thus become “rich toward God” (Luke 12:21).  Our world is very competitive, and it is easy to become more concerned about profit and loss. But Jesus’ way is the way of true (which is selfless) hospitality. 

False confidence 

Luke 14:15–24

15 When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God." 16 Jesus replied: "A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.' 18 "But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, 'I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.' 19 "Another said, 'I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I'm on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.' 20 "Still another said, 'I just got married, so I can't come.' 21 "The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, 'Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.' 22 "'Sir,' the servant said, 'what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.' 23 "Then the master told his servant, 'Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.'"

When Jesus mentions “the resurrection of the righteous” (v.14b), a guest excitedly replies, “Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God!” (v15).  The Jewish people pictured the future kingdom as a great feast with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the prophets as honored guests (Luke 13:28; see Isa. 25:6). This anonymous guest is confident that he will one day be a guest at this “kingdom feast.” Jesus responds by telling him a parable that reveals the sad consequences of a false confidence. 

In Jesus’ day invited guests were told the day but not the exact hour of the meal. A host had to know how many guests were coming so he could butcher the right amount of animals and prepare sufficient food. Just before the banquet was to begin, the host sent his servants to each of the guests to tell them the banquet was ready and they should come. In other words, each of the guests in this parable had already agreed to attend. But instead of eagerly coming when the hour arrived, these guests insulted the host by refusing to attend, and they all gave feeble excuses to defend their change in plans. Not wanting the food to go to waste, the host sent his servant out to gather a crowd and bring them to the banquet hall. What kind of men would be found in the streets and alleys of the town? The poor, crippled, blind and lame—the kind of undesirables that Jesus came to save (Luke 15:1–2; 19:10). There might even be some Gentiles among them!  These undesirables would have no excuses—they were too poor to buy oxen; too blind to examine real estate; and such people rarely married. This crowd would be hungry and lonely and only too happy to accept the host’s invitation to a free banquet. 

This parable has a special message for the falsely confident Jewish religious leaders who were so sure they would be at this feast. But the reality is that they were refusing God’s invitation, through Jesus to the actual banquet. Eventually the invitation would go instead to the Samaritans (Acts 8) and then the Gentiles (Acts 10:13ff). The parable also applies to all people—the point being that God includes all in his redemptive love and has, in Jesus, invited all to the banquet. But he forces no one to come in. All must beware false confidence that stands in the way of accepting God’s invitation. This parable also reminds us as followers of Jesus of our responsibility. Jesus exhorts us to go into our homes (Mark 5:19), our communities (Luke 14:21, 23) and, indeed, all the world (Mark 16:15) sharing the good news of God’s invitation to the free banquet. Jesus’ way is not the way of a false confidence in myself which excludes others, but the way of confidence in Jesus, who includes all.

False expectancy 

Luke 14:25–35

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters-- yes, even his own life-- he cannot be my disciple. 27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. 28 "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? 29 For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, 30 saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' 31 "Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? 32 If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. 33 In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple. 34 "Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? 35 It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."

When Jesus leaves the Pharisee’s home, great crowds follow. But Jesus is not impressed—he knows that most of them are interested only in the miracles, the food, and the hope that he’d overthrow the Romans and set up the kingdom. So Jesus turns to them and preaches a sermon that thins out the crowd. He makes it clear that what he is seeking are men and women willing to follow him as devoted disciples. First and foremost, this means loving Jesus above all others—above one’s own family, and ultimately, above our own life. To “carry the cross” is to share willingly in Jesus’ shame and suffering. It means death to self—to one’s own plans and ambitions. It is a willingness to follow Jesus wherever he may lead.  

Thus Jesus is making it clear that following him comes with a high cost. Jesus explains with three illustrations: a man building a tower, a king fighting a war, and salt losing its flavor. The man and the king in the first two illustrations seem to speak of Jesus—he is the one who “counts the cost” of obeying his Father’s call to mission and calls to join with him those who are willing to follow him unreservedly. The third illustration points out that such devoted disciples are rare and thus highly valuable. They are the “salt of the earth.” 

Salt preserves, purifies and adds flavor. Jesus’ disciples provide all these things as they join Jesus in his ministry to the world that he loves and saves. Most salt in Jesus’ day was impure and could easily lose its flavor. And once the saltiness was gone, there was no way to restore it—it was thrown into the street to be walked on. When a disciple loses devotion to Jesus, they cease to be “salty” (productive). So Jesus is calling these people (and us too!) to careful consideration and deep commitment. 

With devoted disciples, Jesus will build a great tower and achieve great victory (in fulfillment of the Father’s mission). Jesus’ call to this commitment is not coercive, however, it is clear and compelling—Jesus wants us to step up, knowing what we’re getting into. He wants us to be rid of any false expectancy so that we are free to trust him and thus follow him wherever he leads. 

Conclusion

In this world there are many sources of false piety, false popularity, false hospitality, false confidence and false expectancy. Any one of these can side-track us from following Jesus with a sincere and open heart. So let’s learn from Jesus and follow him—let’s reject what is false and embrace instead what is true—Jesus and his way.