Talk:Luke 14:1-19:48

Luke 14:6-10

"How might one "sit down in the lowest room" and yet still exalt oneself? What might such a situation imply about the questions of economy that can be raised in relation to this verse?"

I think the most obvious message of the parable is that you can't exalt yourself. The guest who tries to exalt himself can and probably will be moved lower by the master. And yet, the guest who sits lower does not assure exaltation by doing so. The master of the feast may choose to leave him lower. Therefore, for everyone in attendance at the feast, exaltation is determined completely by the mercy of the master. It doesn't matter where you sit.

But how does that work with the logic (not un-logic after all) of verse 11 which says that if you exalt yourself, you can be assured of abasement and if you humble yourself, you can be sure of exaltation?

Luke 14:11-15

I think sometimes in life we forget what the ultimate goal is in this life and we get caught up in petty vain things of the world. To me it sounds alot like Jesus is saying serve and think beyond yourself, help the poor and those that need help. He then explains the reward which is resurrection of the just. Jesus is the master teacher and I think that it is always a brilliant move to explain the reward to any action thus giving motivation to do the certain action. He does this fairly often in the new testament. --Bhardle 1 Sep 2005