1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:08,160 Hello and thank you for joining us for this week's sermon from Trinity Church, Streetsville 2 00:00:08,160 --> 00:00:09,860 in Mississauga. 3 00:00:09,860 --> 00:00:14,860 This week we are continuing our sermon series Around the Table where we look at the hospitality 4 00:00:14,860 --> 00:00:15,860 of Jesus. 5 00:00:15,860 --> 00:00:21,820 And this week Rob is going to dive into Luke chapter 14 with us as we look at Who is on 6 00:00:21,820 --> 00:00:23,820 God's Guest List. 7 00:00:23,820 --> 00:00:35,320 Today's reading is from the Gospel of Luke chapter 14 verses 7 to 24. 8 00:00:35,320 --> 00:00:41,640 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them 9 00:00:41,640 --> 00:00:43,720 this parable. 10 00:00:43,720 --> 00:00:50,000 When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor for a person 11 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:54,200 more distinguished than you may have been invited. 12 00:00:54,200 --> 00:01:01,600 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, give this person your 13 00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:02,600 seat. 14 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:08,680 Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 15 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:14,860 But when you are invited, take the lowest place so that when your host comes, he will 16 00:01:14,860 --> 00:01:21,680 say to you, friend, move up to a better place, then you will be honored in the presence of 17 00:01:21,680 --> 00:01:24,000 all the other guests. 18 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:30,360 For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled and those who humble themselves will 19 00:01:30,360 --> 00:01:31,840 be exalted. 20 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:39,960 Then Jesus said to the hosts, when you give luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, 21 00:01:39,960 --> 00:01:45,760 your brothers or sisters, your relatives or your rich neighbors. 22 00:01:45,760 --> 00:01:51,520 If you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 23 00:01:51,520 --> 00:01:58,200 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you 24 00:01:58,200 --> 00:01:59,200 will be blessed. 25 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:06,200 Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. 26 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:13,440 When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, blessed is the one 27 00:02:13,440 --> 00:02:18,360 who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God. 28 00:02:18,360 --> 00:02:26,120 Jesus replied, a certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 29 00:02:26,120 --> 00:02:32,760 At the time of the banquet, he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, come for 30 00:02:32,760 --> 00:02:35,680 everything is now ready. 31 00:02:35,680 --> 00:02:39,760 But they all alike began to make excuses. 32 00:02:39,760 --> 00:02:46,520 The first said, I have just bought a field and I must go and see it. 33 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:48,480 Please excuse me. 34 00:02:48,480 --> 00:02:55,720 Another said, I have just bought five yoke of oxen and I'm on my way to try them out. 35 00:02:55,720 --> 00:02:57,280 Please excuse me. 36 00:02:57,280 --> 00:03:03,200 Still another said, I just got married so I can't come. 37 00:03:03,200 --> 00:03:07,560 The servant came back and reported this to his master. 38 00:03:07,560 --> 00:03:13,600 Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, go out quickly into the 39 00:03:13,600 --> 00:03:19,080 streets and the lies of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and 40 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:20,080 the lame. 41 00:03:20,080 --> 00:03:27,680 Sir, the servant said, what you ordered has been done, but there is still room. 42 00:03:27,680 --> 00:03:33,800 Then the master told the servant, go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them 43 00:03:33,800 --> 00:03:37,840 to come in so that my house will be full. 44 00:03:37,840 --> 00:03:45,360 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet. 45 00:03:45,360 --> 00:03:48,120 The word of the Lord. 46 00:03:48,120 --> 00:03:53,720 Because I'm a minister, my wife Sally and I get invited to perhaps more than our fair 47 00:03:53,720 --> 00:03:56,100 share of weddings. 48 00:03:56,100 --> 00:03:59,960 And it's not that we know a lot of the people at the wedding. 49 00:03:59,960 --> 00:04:04,920 In fact, what makes it awkward is we usually only know like one or two people and that's 50 00:04:04,920 --> 00:04:07,120 the bride and the groom. 51 00:04:07,120 --> 00:04:11,840 So anyways, we love going to the weddings, but there's always this, I don't know how 52 00:04:11,840 --> 00:04:17,280 to explain it, it's kind of a painful moment at weddings when you come to see where you're 53 00:04:17,280 --> 00:04:20,260 going to be seated at the wedding reception. 54 00:04:20,260 --> 00:04:26,400 And again, because nobody really knows us, we don't really go up to that poster with 55 00:04:26,400 --> 00:04:27,980 very high hopes. 56 00:04:27,980 --> 00:04:32,200 You know the poster I'm talking about, the poster that looks like it's from Pinterest 57 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:38,040 and it tells you where all the people are sitting and invariably we look down, down, 58 00:04:38,040 --> 00:04:44,440 down the list until we come right to the very end and we realize, yes, once again, we have 59 00:04:44,440 --> 00:04:49,600 been seated at the reject table. 60 00:04:49,600 --> 00:04:52,840 You guys know what I'm talking about when I talk about the reject table. 61 00:04:52,840 --> 00:04:56,440 It's when the bride and the groom, it's where they put all the odds in the ends. 62 00:04:56,440 --> 00:04:59,480 It's where they put all the people they don't know what to do with. 63 00:04:59,480 --> 00:05:03,540 At the reject table, that's where you find the girlfriend of the photographer. 64 00:05:03,540 --> 00:05:08,480 And that's where you find the piano teacher of the groom from 10 years ago. 65 00:05:08,480 --> 00:05:10,120 Where are you going to put these people? 66 00:05:10,120 --> 00:05:13,680 And that's also where you're going to find Sally and me. 67 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:18,400 And so we take the walk through the banquet hall by the head table. 68 00:05:18,400 --> 00:05:21,240 Hello, hi there, and here's all the family and the friends. 69 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:25,000 Oh, they're all having a good time laughing, taking selfies of each other. 70 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:30,760 When you get to the reject table, you know you've arrived because nobody is talking to 71 00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:31,760 each other. 72 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:37,920 They don't know each other and they're all kind of just staring at their phones. 73 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:43,200 So I just want to say a little word to you that if you ever find yourself at a wedding 74 00:05:43,200 --> 00:05:50,760 and Sally and I start walking toward your table, if we pull out our chairs and we sit 75 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:57,240 down at your table, I don't know how to break it to you, but you're at the reject table. 76 00:05:57,240 --> 00:05:59,440 Sorry. 77 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:04,760 I think we can all point to moments in our life when we have wondered, are we the rejects 78 00:06:04,760 --> 00:06:05,900 or not? 79 00:06:05,900 --> 00:06:07,480 Are we included or not? 80 00:06:07,480 --> 00:06:08,800 Are we the friends or not? 81 00:06:08,800 --> 00:06:10,680 Are we popular or not? 82 00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:13,440 Are we on the in crowd or are we on the out crowd? 83 00:06:13,440 --> 00:06:18,520 I think it probably begins very young actually when we're still in school, when we're at 84 00:06:18,520 --> 00:06:22,480 recess and they're picking teams for soccer and you're like, please, I don't want to be 85 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:23,480 picked last. 86 00:06:23,480 --> 00:06:24,480 I don't want to be picked last. 87 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:27,480 I don't want to be kind of rejected until the very end. 88 00:06:27,480 --> 00:06:28,960 Maybe it's in the cafeteria at lunch. 89 00:06:28,960 --> 00:06:33,160 You remember that time that your friend, your best friend turned their back on you and then 90 00:06:33,160 --> 00:06:39,120 went to sit at the cool table with all the cool kids, which apparently you were not one 91 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:40,520 of, right? 92 00:06:40,520 --> 00:06:45,240 But most of us know this feeling of being rejected, whether it happened to the classroom, 93 00:06:45,240 --> 00:06:48,480 the lunch room or even the board room. 94 00:06:48,480 --> 00:06:54,960 Well, we are in the middle of a teaching series right now, which is called around the table. 95 00:06:54,960 --> 00:06:59,040 And we're looking at all the meals that Jesus ate with people throughout the gospels. 96 00:06:59,040 --> 00:07:04,160 And one thing we are learning for sure is that when Jesus ate a meal, it was about way 97 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:05,160 more than food. 98 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:06,160 No, no, no. 99 00:07:06,160 --> 00:07:13,880 Jesus' meals were about how barriers between people were broken down and how people's thinking 100 00:07:13,880 --> 00:07:17,000 was challenged in major, major ways. 101 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:25,600 And what we learned in today's story is that in Jesus' time, reject tables were a reality. 102 00:07:25,600 --> 00:07:28,360 Jesus finds himself at the home of a prominent Pharisee. 103 00:07:28,360 --> 00:07:34,640 There's a great big party going on and nobody wants to be at the reject table. 104 00:07:34,640 --> 00:07:39,240 And so Jesus said, uses this opportunity to teach people three things. 105 00:07:39,240 --> 00:07:42,160 He's using this opportunity to teach us three things this morning too. 106 00:07:42,160 --> 00:07:45,280 And so there's three words that Jesus has for us. 107 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:49,540 One is a word for guests, for any of us who will be guests. 108 00:07:49,540 --> 00:07:50,960 Jesus has a word for us. 109 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:54,560 Another is a word for our hosts. 110 00:07:54,560 --> 00:07:59,520 Anyone who's ever going to host someone, that Jesus has a word for you. 111 00:07:59,520 --> 00:08:04,220 And the third is a word for all of us, a word for all of us. 112 00:08:04,220 --> 00:08:07,160 So let's start with Jesus' word for guests. 113 00:08:07,160 --> 00:08:11,200 And by the way, we've given all of you a sermon notes, so you should be able to follow along. 114 00:08:11,200 --> 00:08:14,720 This is kind of important stuff, so I'd encourage you to do that. 115 00:08:14,720 --> 00:08:19,320 First of all, Jesus has got a word for all of us who are guests. 116 00:08:19,320 --> 00:08:24,360 And his word is simply this, choose the lower seat. 117 00:08:24,360 --> 00:08:27,220 You see, at this party, Jesus notices something. 118 00:08:27,220 --> 00:08:34,200 He notices how people are jockeying for position around the table. 119 00:08:34,200 --> 00:08:38,240 And he takes advantage of this opportunity to teach them a little something. 120 00:08:38,240 --> 00:08:40,720 And I want to teach that to you now as well. 121 00:08:40,720 --> 00:08:45,280 In fact, one thing you should know is I just said around the table, but actually in those 122 00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:47,360 days the tables weren't round. 123 00:08:47,360 --> 00:08:51,000 If you had a banquet like the one Jesus was at, you weren't sitting at a table. 124 00:08:51,000 --> 00:08:58,400 You were sitting at a three-sided table that was called a triclinium, trie because it had 125 00:08:58,400 --> 00:09:00,280 three sides to it. 126 00:09:00,280 --> 00:09:05,680 And clinium comes from the same word that recline because you didn't sit at this table. 127 00:09:05,680 --> 00:09:06,880 It was a solid table. 128 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:09,280 You couldn't get your feet under it. 129 00:09:09,280 --> 00:09:11,320 You reclined at the table. 130 00:09:11,320 --> 00:09:15,420 So at risk of hurting myself, I'm going to demonstrate. 131 00:09:15,420 --> 00:09:19,800 This is how you would sit at a table in Jesus' day. 132 00:09:19,800 --> 00:09:20,800 You would recline. 133 00:09:20,800 --> 00:09:22,520 Here's the table here. 134 00:09:22,520 --> 00:09:23,720 You kind of sit on your cushion. 135 00:09:23,720 --> 00:09:26,720 You put your weight on your left hand. 136 00:09:26,720 --> 00:09:28,080 The food is all here. 137 00:09:28,080 --> 00:09:30,880 You've got guests to your right and to your left. 138 00:09:30,880 --> 00:09:33,000 And this is how you would recline at the table. 139 00:09:33,000 --> 00:09:38,400 Now, of course, you wouldn't wear your shoes because that was considered very bad form 140 00:09:38,400 --> 00:09:39,400 to wear your shoes. 141 00:09:39,400 --> 00:09:43,320 So you would be barefoot at the table. 142 00:09:43,320 --> 00:09:46,080 And actually, this might help you understand a few things. 143 00:09:46,080 --> 00:09:51,280 Do you remember that story that happens in Luke chapter 7 where Jesus is having a dinner 144 00:09:51,280 --> 00:09:57,600 with another prominent Pharisee and we're told that a woman, a prostitute, comes to 145 00:09:57,600 --> 00:10:01,160 the meal and starts weeping at Jesus' feet? 146 00:10:01,160 --> 00:10:04,800 And you may have wondered, well, how does someone weep at the feet of someone who's 147 00:10:04,800 --> 00:10:05,800 sitting at a table? 148 00:10:05,800 --> 00:10:10,200 But when you see how these tables were arranged, now you understand that really the feet of 149 00:10:10,200 --> 00:10:14,320 Jesus were the only thing that the woman could really reach. 150 00:10:14,320 --> 00:10:16,680 It also helps us understand something else. 151 00:10:16,680 --> 00:10:20,680 In John chapter 13, we get a picture of Jesus at the Last Supper. 152 00:10:20,680 --> 00:10:23,320 You guys will remember that. 153 00:10:23,320 --> 00:10:28,400 And at the Last Supper, we are told the disciples started talking about, hey, Jesus, who is 154 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:29,400 going to betray you? 155 00:10:29,400 --> 00:10:34,760 In fact, the scriptures say that John, Jesus' beloved disciple, who was sitting in one of 156 00:10:34,760 --> 00:10:40,800 the places of honor next to Jesus, it says he leaned back against Jesus' breast and asked 157 00:10:40,800 --> 00:10:43,040 Jesus who is going to betray you? 158 00:10:43,040 --> 00:10:47,080 And now you can kind of understand why he would lean back against his breast because 159 00:10:47,080 --> 00:10:49,320 this is kind of the arrangement. 160 00:10:49,320 --> 00:10:54,540 That's how you would say something to someone if you were seated at a triclinium. 161 00:10:54,540 --> 00:11:01,160 And then what's even more, I think, amazing is that Jesus tells John, he says, the person 162 00:11:01,160 --> 00:11:06,320 with whom I dip the sop, which is another way of saying you would dip bread and stuff 163 00:11:06,320 --> 00:11:08,360 into sauces. 164 00:11:08,360 --> 00:11:12,560 And he says, the person that I dip my bread into the sop with, that's the person who's 165 00:11:12,560 --> 00:11:13,840 going to betray me. 166 00:11:13,840 --> 00:11:19,680 So if we already know that John is on one side of him, then who must be the only person 167 00:11:19,680 --> 00:11:23,760 on the other side of Jesus in the other position of honor? 168 00:11:23,760 --> 00:11:25,480 Who must it be? 169 00:11:25,480 --> 00:11:26,480 Judas. 170 00:11:26,480 --> 00:11:33,560 Isn't that amazing that at Jesus' Last Supper, the two places of honor were occupied by John, 171 00:11:33,560 --> 00:11:37,840 the beloved disciple, and Judas, the one who would betray him? 172 00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:41,880 Now you might think, oh, isn't the place of honor up here? 173 00:11:41,880 --> 00:11:43,280 And the answer is no. 174 00:11:43,280 --> 00:11:47,920 I tried to do a lot of reading on this this week, but at tricliniums, this was thought 175 00:11:47,920 --> 00:11:49,880 to be the place of honor. 176 00:11:49,880 --> 00:11:52,240 This was the place that was most accessible. 177 00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:54,160 And this is where the host would sit. 178 00:11:54,160 --> 00:11:57,760 And their most valued guest, the most honored guest would sit to their right. 179 00:11:57,760 --> 00:11:59,160 That was position number one. 180 00:11:59,160 --> 00:12:01,820 And to their left, that was position number two. 181 00:12:01,820 --> 00:12:07,000 And then basically what happens is you just kept going down the line, down the line, until 182 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:11,320 you got to this end of the table, which you could call the reject end of the table. 183 00:12:11,320 --> 00:12:15,440 This is where the people who weren't so close to the host would sit. 184 00:12:15,440 --> 00:12:17,640 And so what you really have is this connection. 185 00:12:17,640 --> 00:12:24,400 The closer you were in proximity to the host meant that you were closer in relationship 186 00:12:24,400 --> 00:12:26,320 to the host. 187 00:12:26,320 --> 00:12:32,040 And I also read this, that there was actually a pretty big disparity with the food at these 188 00:12:32,040 --> 00:12:33,040 tables. 189 00:12:33,040 --> 00:12:37,040 That if you were seated here in the honored section, you got the best food. 190 00:12:37,040 --> 00:12:41,560 You got the filet mignon and the lobster thermidor. 191 00:12:41,560 --> 00:12:47,440 But if you were sitting over here in the reject section, you were like, oh, Mr. Noodle, thank 192 00:12:47,440 --> 00:12:49,720 you. 193 00:12:49,720 --> 00:12:54,440 And maybe not even the real Mr. Noodle, maybe the fake stuff they sell at the dollar store. 194 00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:58,840 So within this situation, in this triclinium, what happens here? 195 00:12:58,840 --> 00:12:59,840 What happens here? 196 00:12:59,840 --> 00:13:06,720 Well, Jesus comes along and he speaks a word to any one of us or anyone listening who will 197 00:13:06,720 --> 00:13:09,120 ever be a guest at a party like this. 198 00:13:09,120 --> 00:13:13,960 He says, listen, when someone invites you to a wedding feast, don't go and take the place 199 00:13:13,960 --> 00:13:16,480 of honor, right? 200 00:13:16,480 --> 00:13:20,600 Because this is what he says, if someone who's more distinguished than you comes, the host 201 00:13:20,600 --> 00:13:23,040 will say, well, give this person your seat. 202 00:13:23,040 --> 00:13:28,680 And then humiliated, you're going to have to walk all the way over to the place of rejection, 203 00:13:28,680 --> 00:13:30,400 to the lowest place. 204 00:13:30,400 --> 00:13:32,660 He says, rather do this. 205 00:13:32,660 --> 00:13:35,800 Go and first choose the lower seat. 206 00:13:35,800 --> 00:13:38,200 Choose to sit at the reject table. 207 00:13:38,200 --> 00:13:41,480 And then what might happen is the host might come in and say, friend, friend, what are 208 00:13:41,480 --> 00:13:42,480 you doing here? 209 00:13:42,480 --> 00:13:44,360 Come on, get up here. 210 00:13:44,360 --> 00:13:46,880 You deserve to be in the place of honor. 211 00:13:46,880 --> 00:13:51,160 And you're going to be honored in the presence of all those guests. 212 00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:54,720 Now you need to understand something about Jesus' day. 213 00:13:54,720 --> 00:14:02,520 In Jesus' day, he lived in what was called an honor shame culture, where gaining honor 214 00:14:02,520 --> 00:14:07,840 was everything, and losing your honor was absolutely devastating. 215 00:14:07,840 --> 00:14:17,120 To be asked to move from the honored seat to the reject table was humiliating and represented 216 00:14:17,120 --> 00:14:20,940 a huge loss of honor for you and your family. 217 00:14:20,940 --> 00:14:25,020 But on the other hand, to be invited from the reject table to a higher seat, to a place 218 00:14:25,020 --> 00:14:27,360 of honor, that was a way of gaining honor. 219 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:30,760 I just hope you understand that most people went through their days and went through their 220 00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:36,880 weeks just trying to figure out how to gain more honor for themselves and not lose honor 221 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:39,600 in the sight of others. 222 00:14:39,600 --> 00:14:45,800 There's a New Testament theologian who said in the world of Jesus, honor was the core 223 00:14:45,800 --> 00:14:46,800 value. 224 00:14:46,800 --> 00:14:47,800 Right? 225 00:14:47,800 --> 00:14:52,420 And he said it was a zero sum game, which means that one person's gain in honor always 226 00:14:52,420 --> 00:14:55,420 resulted in another person's loss of honor. 227 00:14:55,420 --> 00:14:59,660 So let's say, for example, if this person was going to be elevated from the reject table 228 00:14:59,660 --> 00:15:05,000 to a place of higher honor, it necessarily means mathematically somebody is losing out 229 00:15:05,000 --> 00:15:06,000 now. 230 00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:10,000 Somebody is dropping down from higher honor to lower honor. 231 00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:17,640 This social currency of honor, he writes, was the foundation of social life. 232 00:15:17,640 --> 00:15:21,240 So now I want you to imagine that here you are and you've been invited to this party, 233 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:24,000 and maybe it's the first time you've been invited by this host and you're trying to 234 00:15:24,000 --> 00:15:25,680 figure out where to sit. 235 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:30,000 You're pretty eager, so you arrive early, the guests aren't all there yet, and you think, 236 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:31,440 oh, geez, well, where should I sit? 237 00:15:31,440 --> 00:15:33,520 I do know the host pretty well. 238 00:15:33,520 --> 00:15:34,520 We're pretty close. 239 00:15:34,520 --> 00:15:39,420 So maybe I should sit kind of here because I'm pretty tight with him. 240 00:15:39,420 --> 00:15:44,320 But what if somebody comes in fashionably late and they know the host even better than 241 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:45,320 me? 242 00:15:45,320 --> 00:15:46,320 Whoa, what do I do? 243 00:15:46,320 --> 00:15:47,320 What do I do? 244 00:15:47,320 --> 00:15:48,320 What do I do? 245 00:15:48,320 --> 00:15:49,320 Well, Jesus says, this is what you do. 246 00:15:49,320 --> 00:15:50,320 Here's what you do. 247 00:15:50,320 --> 00:15:54,400 It's always best to guess down. 248 00:15:54,400 --> 00:15:59,280 You don't know who else is coming and you certainly don't want to be sent down and humiliated 249 00:15:59,280 --> 00:16:00,280 and lose honor. 250 00:16:00,280 --> 00:16:06,600 So guess down because you might actually be sent up. 251 00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:09,920 And then Jesus concludes with this great and famous piece of scripture. 252 00:16:09,920 --> 00:16:14,840 He says, everyone who exalts themselves will be humbled and everyone who humbles themselves 253 00:16:14,840 --> 00:16:17,360 will be exalted. 254 00:16:17,360 --> 00:16:22,800 Now this flies in the face of our culture and our culture, we say everyone who exalts 255 00:16:22,800 --> 00:16:28,880 themselves will be popular and well liked and everyone who humbles themselves will be 256 00:16:28,880 --> 00:16:36,360 forgotten and 257 00:16:36,360 --> 00:16:41,760 God in the kingdom of God, everyone who exalts themselves will be humbled and everyone who 258 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:46,240 humbles themselves will be exalted. 259 00:16:46,240 --> 00:16:49,840 C.S. Lewis kind of talked about this once in one of the essays that he wrote. 260 00:16:49,840 --> 00:16:54,000 He said, isn't it interesting that the people who want friends the most are the ones who 261 00:16:54,000 --> 00:16:56,880 can never seem to get them. 262 00:16:56,880 --> 00:16:58,320 And I think I know what he was talking about. 263 00:16:58,320 --> 00:17:02,280 He was saying that some people, if they're so concerned about, I want to sit with this 264 00:17:02,280 --> 00:17:06,320 person, I want to be with this person, I want to be at the cool table, I want to be friends 265 00:17:06,320 --> 00:17:10,880 with them, then actually people don't want to be around someone like that. 266 00:17:10,880 --> 00:17:14,000 They can see that a mile away and they're like, ick, you know, get away from me. 267 00:17:14,000 --> 00:17:16,700 I don't want to to sit with you. 268 00:17:16,700 --> 00:17:20,920 People see that desperation and they move away from you. 269 00:17:20,920 --> 00:17:27,880 But then C.S. Lewis goes on to say that until you conquer the fear of being an outsider, 270 00:17:27,880 --> 00:17:32,340 an outsider, you will remain. 271 00:17:32,340 --> 00:17:39,020 So if you don't care whether or not you're liked, you're more likely to be liked. 272 00:17:39,020 --> 00:17:45,160 But if you let the fear of being excluded consume you, then ironically you end up feeling 273 00:17:45,160 --> 00:17:47,000 excluded. 274 00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:53,880 So this morning Jesus begins with a wonderful word for all of us who will ever be guests 275 00:17:53,880 --> 00:17:54,880 at a party. 276 00:17:54,880 --> 00:17:58,560 A word for anybody really who's on the outside and wants in. 277 00:17:58,560 --> 00:18:02,480 A word for anybody who's desperate to have a seat at the table, whatever the table is, 278 00:18:02,480 --> 00:18:07,440 the table of power, the table of influence, the table of friends, the table of the cool 279 00:18:07,440 --> 00:18:08,440 people, whatever. 280 00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:10,680 He says, just remember, guests down. 281 00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:11,680 Guests down. 282 00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:17,800 Choose the reject table because those who humble themselves will be exalted. 283 00:18:17,800 --> 00:18:22,360 But those who exalt themselves will be humbled. 284 00:18:22,360 --> 00:18:25,080 That is a word for the guests. 285 00:18:25,080 --> 00:18:31,080 But Jesus also has a word for all the hosts. 286 00:18:31,080 --> 00:18:34,360 Any of us who will ever host people in our home. 287 00:18:34,360 --> 00:18:36,720 Jesus wants to tell you something as well. 288 00:18:36,720 --> 00:18:37,720 And here's what it is. 289 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:39,840 He says, check your motives. 290 00:18:39,840 --> 00:18:40,840 That's right. 291 00:18:40,840 --> 00:18:45,720 Check your motives and figure out why are you inviting the people that you're inviting 292 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:49,720 into your home and around your table. 293 00:18:49,720 --> 00:18:50,720 Jesus says it this way. 294 00:18:50,720 --> 00:18:54,520 When you give a luncheon to all you hosts, don't invite your friends, your brothers and 295 00:18:54,520 --> 00:18:58,040 sisters, your relatives and your rich neighbors. 296 00:18:58,040 --> 00:19:01,200 If you do, then they may invite you back and so you'll be repaid. 297 00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:06,040 Instead, when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind 298 00:19:06,040 --> 00:19:08,560 and you will be blessed. 299 00:19:08,560 --> 00:19:14,960 Now this was actually more controversial than you might think because you see Jesus lived 300 00:19:14,960 --> 00:19:20,080 in what was called a patronage society or the system you might say. 301 00:19:20,080 --> 00:19:24,200 The system that everybody operated in Jesus' day was the patronage system. 302 00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:26,400 And this is what the patronage system meant. 303 00:19:26,400 --> 00:19:29,800 It meant that if you want to get ahead in life, if you want to get ahead in business, 304 00:19:29,800 --> 00:19:34,960 if you want to get ahead in your own status or in society, it all came down to who you 305 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:36,040 know. 306 00:19:36,040 --> 00:19:38,600 You needed people who were above you. 307 00:19:38,600 --> 00:19:40,940 You needed to make friends with the higher ups. 308 00:19:40,940 --> 00:19:43,120 You needed people who could open doors for you. 309 00:19:43,120 --> 00:19:45,760 You needed people who could offer favors to you. 310 00:19:45,760 --> 00:19:50,840 You had to be connected and well connected with people who could take you places that 311 00:19:50,840 --> 00:19:52,080 you couldn't get on your own. 312 00:19:52,080 --> 00:19:55,100 That was called the patronage system. 313 00:19:55,100 --> 00:19:57,840 And so when you had a party, of course, who did you invite? 314 00:19:57,840 --> 00:19:59,980 You invited the movers and the shakers. 315 00:19:59,980 --> 00:20:02,360 You invited them to impress them. 316 00:20:02,360 --> 00:20:06,360 Yes, to maybe increase the chance of doing business deals with them. 317 00:20:06,360 --> 00:20:07,880 Yes, hey, can I be your supplier? 318 00:20:07,880 --> 00:20:08,880 Sure. 319 00:20:08,880 --> 00:20:09,880 Can I be your... 320 00:20:09,880 --> 00:20:10,880 Yeah, sure, sure. 321 00:20:10,880 --> 00:20:11,880 Making deals around the table. 322 00:20:11,880 --> 00:20:13,640 Maybe they can do a favor for you. 323 00:20:13,640 --> 00:20:16,760 Or maybe at the very least, they're going to invite you back to their place where you 324 00:20:16,760 --> 00:20:20,520 can continue to network and get ahead in life. 325 00:20:20,520 --> 00:20:23,920 In other words, if you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. 326 00:20:23,920 --> 00:20:26,800 If you do business with me, I'll do business with you. 327 00:20:26,800 --> 00:20:31,120 If you come to my party, I'll come to your party and so on. 328 00:20:31,120 --> 00:20:34,360 And so that's why they were constantly, they were constantly having dinners and having 329 00:20:34,360 --> 00:20:36,960 events because this is how business was done. 330 00:20:36,960 --> 00:20:38,640 This is how life was done. 331 00:20:38,640 --> 00:20:43,640 You were building your network and you were inviting people because you wanted something 332 00:20:43,640 --> 00:20:44,760 for yourself. 333 00:20:44,760 --> 00:20:47,640 You wanted something from them. 334 00:20:47,640 --> 00:20:49,000 That's just how it works. 335 00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:51,680 That's the patronage system. 336 00:20:51,680 --> 00:20:54,640 But Jesus smashes the whole thing to pieces. 337 00:20:54,640 --> 00:21:02,320 He says, if you want to be my disciples, you have got to reject this system. 338 00:21:02,320 --> 00:21:07,760 Do not, he says, do not invite people into your home just so they can repay you or just 339 00:21:07,760 --> 00:21:09,640 so you can get something from them. 340 00:21:09,640 --> 00:21:11,960 Do not invite your friends. 341 00:21:11,960 --> 00:21:16,560 Do not invite your brothers and your sisters and your relatives and all your rich neighbors. 342 00:21:16,560 --> 00:21:19,520 Now, I just time out here, time out. 343 00:21:19,520 --> 00:21:22,640 I think Jesus is exaggerating a bit. 344 00:21:22,640 --> 00:21:27,880 This does not mean you can say to your mother-in-law, oh, sorry, I can't invite you over. 345 00:21:27,880 --> 00:21:31,000 Sorry, Jesus said, no, I'm not allowed, not allowed. 346 00:21:31,000 --> 00:21:32,000 No, no, no, no, no. 347 00:21:32,000 --> 00:21:33,400 He's exaggerating. 348 00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:35,440 He's exaggerating because his point is this. 349 00:21:35,440 --> 00:21:40,240 Instead, when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind 350 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:44,360 and you will be blessed. 351 00:21:44,360 --> 00:21:46,520 Why invite this crowd? 352 00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:50,360 It didn't make any sense in the patronage system because these people can't pay you 353 00:21:50,360 --> 00:21:51,360 back. 354 00:21:51,360 --> 00:21:53,800 These people can't open any doors for you. 355 00:21:53,800 --> 00:21:55,760 They can't scratch your back. 356 00:21:55,760 --> 00:21:57,680 They can't do you any favors. 357 00:21:57,680 --> 00:22:01,920 But Jesus is saying the patronage system is out. 358 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:07,000 And instead, what he puts forward is this radical idea of Christian hospitality as an 359 00:22:07,000 --> 00:22:09,840 alternative to that whole patronage system. 360 00:22:09,840 --> 00:22:16,400 You know, in the Bible, hospitality, it comes from this Greek word phylozenia, which basically 361 00:22:16,400 --> 00:22:20,320 means the love of a stranger. 362 00:22:20,320 --> 00:22:23,480 The love of a stranger, not the love of someone who can open a door for you, not the love 363 00:22:23,480 --> 00:22:26,140 of someone who can do you a favor and get you ahead. 364 00:22:26,140 --> 00:22:30,320 It's loving the strangers and not even just tolerating the strangers or putting up with 365 00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:35,760 the strangers, but actually loving them, actually inviting them into your home. 366 00:22:35,760 --> 00:22:36,760 Now I know what you're thinking. 367 00:22:36,760 --> 00:22:38,640 It's the same thing I was thinking when I read this. 368 00:22:38,640 --> 00:22:42,120 You know, I got a family, we got four kids, we got, are we really supposed to open up 369 00:22:42,120 --> 00:22:45,180 our doors and invite strangers into our house? 370 00:22:45,180 --> 00:22:47,420 What does Jesus mean by this? 371 00:22:47,420 --> 00:22:53,600 It's really important to ask, what does the Bible mean when the Bible uses the word stranger? 372 00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:59,940 And when you do that, what you discover is that stranger can mean one of three things, 373 00:22:59,940 --> 00:23:01,520 one of three different groups of people. 374 00:23:01,520 --> 00:23:05,560 The first one is going to surprise you because the first way that the Bible uses the word 375 00:23:05,560 --> 00:23:09,560 stranger is to refer in fact to other Christians. 376 00:23:09,560 --> 00:23:18,400 If you read Romans 12, it says, share with the Lord's people who are in need, practice 377 00:23:18,400 --> 00:23:19,740 hospitality. 378 00:23:19,740 --> 00:23:24,600 In that sense, hospitality, love of the stranger is being connected with the Lord's people, 379 00:23:24,600 --> 00:23:26,360 the church. 380 00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:32,840 So look around you this morning and you will see not just a bunch of strange people, but 381 00:23:32,840 --> 00:23:34,960 you will see a bunch of strangers. 382 00:23:34,960 --> 00:23:39,240 Even though we're all here in this church, it does not mean that we are not strangers 383 00:23:39,240 --> 00:23:40,240 from each other. 384 00:23:40,240 --> 00:23:45,240 In fact, that is one of the reasons why it's so great to attend a bigger church in a diverse 385 00:23:45,240 --> 00:23:47,160 city like Mississauga. 386 00:23:47,160 --> 00:23:49,220 You don't know everybody here. 387 00:23:49,220 --> 00:23:54,420 And so church and Christian community becomes a place for you to extend hospitality, becomes 388 00:23:54,420 --> 00:23:58,000 a place where you can practice the love of the stranger. 389 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:02,440 And especially here in Mississauga, we can practice loving people who are very different 390 00:24:02,440 --> 00:24:05,800 than ourselves, people from different races and backgrounds, people who have come to Mississauga 391 00:24:05,800 --> 00:24:08,120 from different countries. 392 00:24:08,120 --> 00:24:11,820 Having a big church is a great place to practice hospitality. 393 00:24:11,820 --> 00:24:16,660 So that's the first meaning of the word stranger is actually love each other in the church, 394 00:24:16,660 --> 00:24:18,840 practice hospitality with each other in the church. 395 00:24:18,840 --> 00:24:22,260 But the Bible also uses the word stranger to refer to neighbors. 396 00:24:22,260 --> 00:24:25,200 Those are the people that live around you in your neighborhood. 397 00:24:25,200 --> 00:24:30,160 Those are the people that interact with you in your workplace, in your school and so on. 398 00:24:30,160 --> 00:24:33,960 And yes, these people are not going to share your Christian faith. 399 00:24:33,960 --> 00:24:39,760 They're not going to share all of those convictions, but that is okay because Jesus ate with people 400 00:24:39,760 --> 00:24:48,520 all the time who did not believe in who he was because Jesus knew that people are loved 401 00:24:48,520 --> 00:24:53,000 into a relationship with God, not argued into a relationship with God. 402 00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:57,080 Jesus knew that when we practice hospitality and we develop an actual relationship with 403 00:24:57,080 --> 00:25:03,200 our neighbors, then they come to know who God is far more so than if we're just trying 404 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:06,020 to argue a point with them. 405 00:25:06,020 --> 00:25:07,920 It's actually loving your neighbor. 406 00:25:07,920 --> 00:25:10,080 It's actually loving your neighbor. 407 00:25:10,080 --> 00:25:13,880 And the third thing that the word stranger can mean is the poor. 408 00:25:13,880 --> 00:25:18,320 The Bible uses it to refer to, again, the poor, the blind, the lame, and those who are 409 00:25:18,320 --> 00:25:26,680 crippled and those are also people that we should be seeking to invite into our homes. 410 00:25:26,680 --> 00:25:32,520 If you're thinking of throwing a party and your mind always goes back to, ooh, I would 411 00:25:32,520 --> 00:25:33,960 love to be friends with those people. 412 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:36,040 I would love to make a connection with those people. 413 00:25:36,040 --> 00:25:39,360 Or wouldn't it be cool if we were kind of on their level? 414 00:25:39,360 --> 00:25:45,240 Then you're still working from the patronage system and you're not grasping the full depth 415 00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:47,600 of Christian hospitality. 416 00:25:47,600 --> 00:25:49,840 You want something from them. 417 00:25:49,840 --> 00:25:52,040 You want to be seen with them. 418 00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:54,160 It's about getting something from them. 419 00:25:54,160 --> 00:25:58,240 It's not about loving those who cannot repay us. 420 00:25:58,240 --> 00:26:03,840 And the amazing thing is that when you start inviting strangers and all these meanings 421 00:26:03,840 --> 00:26:08,680 into your home, then pretty soon some of them stop being strangers. 422 00:26:08,680 --> 00:26:11,600 And they start becoming friends. 423 00:26:11,600 --> 00:26:15,240 So let's just get practical here before we move on to the last part. 424 00:26:15,240 --> 00:26:20,160 What are some ways that we could practice hospitality in this kind of way and love strangers? 425 00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:21,160 Here's five ways. 426 00:26:21,160 --> 00:26:22,840 One first is connect with your neighbors. 427 00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:24,680 Invite them on over, right? 428 00:26:24,680 --> 00:26:28,080 Or take them out to dinner or something like that, right? 429 00:26:28,080 --> 00:26:32,760 And if you sense they might be open to it, why not invite them to church? 430 00:26:32,760 --> 00:26:34,800 But that's not what it's about initially. 431 00:26:34,800 --> 00:26:37,560 Secondly, like we said, invite Trinity members. 432 00:26:37,560 --> 00:26:40,280 If you've been at Trinity for a long time, invite somebody who hasn't been here very 433 00:26:40,280 --> 00:26:41,280 long. 434 00:26:41,280 --> 00:26:44,440 If you've been in Mississauga for a long time, invite somebody who hasn't been here very 435 00:26:44,440 --> 00:26:45,440 long. 436 00:26:45,440 --> 00:26:49,080 If you've got a great big old house, I would encourage you to invite somebody who doesn't 437 00:26:49,080 --> 00:26:50,260 have a lot of space. 438 00:26:50,260 --> 00:26:51,860 Maybe they're living in a basement apartment. 439 00:26:51,860 --> 00:26:55,600 Maybe they have a futon and that's their bed at night, right? 440 00:26:55,600 --> 00:26:57,480 Just yeah, invite each other. 441 00:26:57,480 --> 00:27:00,720 Thirdly, you could offer to host a life group in your home. 442 00:27:00,720 --> 00:27:04,360 You're going to hear more about life groups at the end of the service, but that's a way 443 00:27:04,360 --> 00:27:05,840 to extend hospitality. 444 00:27:05,840 --> 00:27:07,600 You could serve at the community dinner. 445 00:27:07,600 --> 00:27:11,840 Our community dinner coming up this week, all the volunteer spots are full, but we're 446 00:27:11,840 --> 00:27:12,840 going to have more. 447 00:27:12,840 --> 00:27:17,040 You could volunteer there or you could volunteer as a greeter or a host or whatever, help at 448 00:27:17,040 --> 00:27:18,600 coffee hour on a Sunday morning. 449 00:27:18,600 --> 00:27:24,040 These are all ways that you can love strangers, that you can practice hospitality and push 450 00:27:24,040 --> 00:27:30,640 back against that culture of, what do we call it? 451 00:27:30,640 --> 00:27:32,400 Patronage, the patronage system, right? 452 00:27:32,400 --> 00:27:36,040 Push back against that because it still exists today. 453 00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:37,040 So there you have it. 454 00:27:37,040 --> 00:27:38,880 Jesus got a word for guests. 455 00:27:38,880 --> 00:27:39,880 Choose a lower seat. 456 00:27:39,880 --> 00:27:42,240 Jesus has got a word for hosts, right? 457 00:27:42,240 --> 00:27:45,120 Check your motives, rethink who you're inviting and why. 458 00:27:45,120 --> 00:27:46,120 And now we're going to end. 459 00:27:46,120 --> 00:27:52,920 Jesus has a word for all of us, a word for everyone, and that is to change your priorities 460 00:27:52,920 --> 00:27:54,120 around all of this. 461 00:27:54,120 --> 00:27:55,120 Here's what I mean. 462 00:27:55,120 --> 00:27:59,480 After Jesus has finished this radical teaching on Christian hospitality, somebody tries to 463 00:27:59,480 --> 00:28:05,080 lighten the mood and they're like, oh, blessed be all those who eat and drink at the feast 464 00:28:05,080 --> 00:28:07,840 of the kingdom of God. 465 00:28:07,840 --> 00:28:09,720 Jesus isn't going to let them off the hook that easy. 466 00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:16,800 And so Jesus, he instead tells a parable about a man who was God in the parable, about a 467 00:28:16,800 --> 00:28:18,880 man who was preparing a great banquet. 468 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:20,760 He invites a whole lot of guests. 469 00:28:20,760 --> 00:28:24,600 But guess what, all those guests start to make excuses and say that they can't make 470 00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:25,600 it in the end. 471 00:28:25,600 --> 00:28:27,400 One says, I just bought a whole bunch of oxen. 472 00:28:27,400 --> 00:28:28,400 I can't make it. 473 00:28:28,400 --> 00:28:30,120 Another says, I just bought a new field. 474 00:28:30,120 --> 00:28:31,720 I got to go check it out. 475 00:28:31,720 --> 00:28:32,960 Somebody else says, I'm getting married. 476 00:28:32,960 --> 00:28:33,960 I can't be there. 477 00:28:33,960 --> 00:28:34,960 Right? 478 00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:35,960 They've all got their excuses. 479 00:28:35,960 --> 00:28:38,720 By the way, all these people seem to be doing pretty good, don't they? 480 00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:39,720 They've got fields. 481 00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:40,720 You're doing pretty good. 482 00:28:40,720 --> 00:28:41,720 Oxen, you're doing pretty good. 483 00:28:41,720 --> 00:28:42,720 You're getting married. 484 00:28:42,720 --> 00:28:43,720 You're doing pretty good. 485 00:28:43,720 --> 00:28:44,720 Right? 486 00:28:44,720 --> 00:28:50,080 But the problem is it's because they're doing so good that their priorities are all off. 487 00:28:50,080 --> 00:28:53,460 And the good things that are happening in their life are actually causing them to miss 488 00:28:53,460 --> 00:28:57,160 out on the great feast of the kingdom of God. 489 00:28:57,160 --> 00:29:01,200 And so when his servants get no response, what do they do? 490 00:29:01,200 --> 00:29:04,840 They go out and they go out to the town and they bring in the poor and the blind and the 491 00:29:04,840 --> 00:29:06,380 crippled and the lame. 492 00:29:06,380 --> 00:29:11,240 And they even say, go even to the alleyways and go into the fields, into the side streets 493 00:29:11,240 --> 00:29:14,600 and compel those people to come in. 494 00:29:14,600 --> 00:29:16,640 And why do they need to be compelled to come in? 495 00:29:16,640 --> 00:29:18,880 Because they are so used to sitting in this seat. 496 00:29:18,880 --> 00:29:22,400 Heck, they're not even used to being invited into the room. 497 00:29:22,400 --> 00:29:26,760 They can't possibly believe that they are invited to come to be the guest of someone 498 00:29:26,760 --> 00:29:29,600 like this man in the parable. 499 00:29:29,600 --> 00:29:30,600 Right? 500 00:29:30,600 --> 00:29:31,600 So they have to be compelled. 501 00:29:31,600 --> 00:29:35,880 Plus, in the patronage system, they don't have anything to pay back. 502 00:29:35,880 --> 00:29:39,200 If I accept this invitation, how could I possibly return the favor? 503 00:29:39,200 --> 00:29:44,240 If he's going to scratch my back, I can't do anything to scratch his back. 504 00:29:44,240 --> 00:29:46,420 But anyways, they can't reciprocate. 505 00:29:46,420 --> 00:29:48,180 They can't play the patronage game. 506 00:29:48,180 --> 00:29:54,520 But it's those people, it's those people who end up coming to the feast of salvation. 507 00:29:54,520 --> 00:29:59,520 In this way, the reject table has become the head table. 508 00:29:59,520 --> 00:30:03,640 And how true it is that those people are often struggling the most or hurting the most. 509 00:30:03,640 --> 00:30:08,780 They are the ones who receive the invitation of God with the most joy and they gladly come 510 00:30:08,780 --> 00:30:09,780 to the table. 511 00:30:09,780 --> 00:30:14,580 The rest of us are often so busy and so tied up with all the good things and all the business 512 00:30:14,580 --> 00:30:19,620 and all the events of our lives that we miss the party. 513 00:30:19,620 --> 00:30:24,520 We may even think that, well, goodness gracious, I can't possibly be at the same party as these 514 00:30:24,520 --> 00:30:28,680 lowlifes, as these deadbeats, as these yahoos, as these guys from the side streets. 515 00:30:28,680 --> 00:30:31,000 I don't, I'm higher than them. 516 00:30:31,000 --> 00:30:32,420 They're beneath me. 517 00:30:32,420 --> 00:30:37,680 They didn't earn their way to this meal. 518 00:30:37,680 --> 00:30:42,560 But none of us earn our way to the feast of God's kingdom. 519 00:30:42,560 --> 00:30:47,640 Jesus Christ is the one who paid the way for us all to be there. 520 00:30:47,640 --> 00:30:49,800 And here's what I mean by that. 521 00:30:49,800 --> 00:30:56,300 Jesus was once, Jesus was once at the greatest party in all of eternity. 522 00:30:56,300 --> 00:31:02,160 He was at the head table in heaven surrounded by the Holy Trinity. 523 00:31:02,160 --> 00:31:07,480 And Jesus, by his own choice and out of love, he stepped down from that table and he took 524 00:31:07,480 --> 00:31:14,560 the long walk around to come over to you and to me and to the rejects. 525 00:31:14,560 --> 00:31:21,480 And he said, let me take your seat so that you can come up and you can be given a place 526 00:31:21,480 --> 00:31:23,400 of honor in the kingdom of God. 527 00:31:23,400 --> 00:31:26,400 Yeah, Jesus knows all about the reject table. 528 00:31:26,400 --> 00:31:30,840 Jesus knows what it was like to be despised and rejected. 529 00:31:30,840 --> 00:31:34,920 A man of suffering, familiar with pain. 530 00:31:34,920 --> 00:31:42,560 It cost him so much to take that walk, so much humiliation, so much loss of honor so 531 00:31:42,560 --> 00:31:45,480 that you could be exalted and you could be honored. 532 00:31:45,480 --> 00:31:47,280 It cost him so much. 533 00:31:47,280 --> 00:31:49,660 Hospitality always costs you something. 534 00:31:49,660 --> 00:31:53,820 If you go home today and you invite your neighbors out to lunch, it is going to cost you. 535 00:31:53,820 --> 00:31:56,480 Bring your credit card, bring your wallet. 536 00:31:56,480 --> 00:31:58,360 This cost Jesus everything. 537 00:31:58,360 --> 00:31:59,960 He had to sacrifice everything. 538 00:31:59,960 --> 00:32:06,900 His own life he had to lay down in order that you could be the recipient of his great hospitality 539 00:32:06,900 --> 00:32:11,200 and come into his home. 540 00:32:11,200 --> 00:32:18,400 And because of his sacrifice, that means that now the reject table has in fact become a 541 00:32:18,400 --> 00:32:19,960 round table. 542 00:32:19,960 --> 00:32:21,640 The triclinium is gone. 543 00:32:21,640 --> 00:32:23,680 The special seats of honor are all gone. 544 00:32:23,680 --> 00:32:30,040 There are no seats of honor at Jesus' table because all the seats at Jesus' table are 545 00:32:30,040 --> 00:32:31,880 places of honor. 546 00:32:31,880 --> 00:32:34,960 It's a completely circular table. 547 00:32:34,960 --> 00:32:38,080 It's filled with honored guests. 548 00:32:38,080 --> 00:32:42,480 And this is good news for some of us and it's hard news for others of us. 549 00:32:42,480 --> 00:32:44,520 For most of us this is very good news. 550 00:32:44,520 --> 00:32:49,600 For anyone who's ever felt excluded or overlooked or left out or the fifth wheel or felt that 551 00:32:49,600 --> 00:32:56,880 sting of humiliation, the table is open and there's a spot for you at this table, a place 552 00:32:56,880 --> 00:32:58,800 of honor. 553 00:32:58,800 --> 00:33:05,560 But there's hard news because some of you are making excuses and not accepting God's 554 00:33:05,560 --> 00:33:06,560 invitation. 555 00:33:06,560 --> 00:33:09,880 You're too busy, too many good things going on in your life. 556 00:33:09,880 --> 00:33:15,160 And so this hard news is a challenge to you to get your priorities straightened out. 557 00:33:15,160 --> 00:33:17,060 The kingdom of God is here. 558 00:33:17,060 --> 00:33:18,600 The table of God is prepared. 559 00:33:18,600 --> 00:33:21,960 Why are you not at that table? 560 00:33:21,960 --> 00:33:27,920 And there's also hard news here for those of you who think that certain people shouldn't 561 00:33:27,920 --> 00:33:29,720 be invited to this table. 562 00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:33,340 You might have people in your families or your schools or your offices, people that 563 00:33:33,340 --> 00:33:37,960 you can't stand and people that you are certain have no right to be at this table. 564 00:33:37,960 --> 00:33:39,900 They should be excluded. 565 00:33:39,900 --> 00:33:49,920 Hard news is the table is open for them too and every seat is a seat of honor. 566 00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:54,560 So for all the guests, here's a word for you. 567 00:33:54,560 --> 00:33:57,320 Take the lower seat. 568 00:33:57,320 --> 00:34:01,280 For all the hosts, here's a word for you. 569 00:34:01,280 --> 00:34:03,280 Check your motives. 570 00:34:03,280 --> 00:34:06,640 And for all of us, here's a word for you. 571 00:34:06,640 --> 00:34:08,640 Get your priorities straight. 572 00:34:08,640 --> 00:34:11,480 The kingdom of God is a great banquet. 573 00:34:11,480 --> 00:34:15,920 The seats at the table are not reserved for the proud and the powerful, but for those 574 00:34:15,920 --> 00:34:20,840 who humbly accept God's invitation. 575 00:34:20,840 --> 00:34:26,720 So let's take our place at the table, the place of honor, not because we have earned 576 00:34:26,720 --> 00:34:37,360 it, but because the one who took the lower seat prepared that seat for us. 577 00:34:37,360 --> 00:34:39,360 Thanks be to God. 578 00:34:39,360 --> 00:34:40,360 Amen. 579 00:34:40,360 --> 00:34:44,840 Thank you so much for joining us for this week's episode of Trinity Sermons. 580 00:34:44,840 --> 00:34:50,120 I hope that you enjoyed the sermon and are learning a lot from it. 581 00:34:50,120 --> 00:34:55,760 Today's sermon was recorded at Trinity Church, Streetsville in Mississauga on September 22nd, 582 00:34:55,760 --> 00:35:12,420 2024.