##### 14 "And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just."

Having spoken to the guests, Jesus then addressed the host. He encouraged him not to invite merely his friends and relatives to share meals with him but to invite the poor and lame, those who could not repay him. Inviting the outcasts of society would indicate that he had an eternal perspective, since repayment for such would come at the resurrection. Here is a lesson these self-righteous men did not want to hear. They also was very selfish. Like many people of our day, they invited people to a dinner party at their home, expecting to be invited to the next dinner party the other person had. He is saying don't give dinners to prove your importance to your rich neighbors, relatives, and friends. Jesus, in a sense, here, is saying again lay up treasures in heaven. Jesus explains, if you feed those who cannot feed you in return, you will be rewarded of God in heaven. You will not only be in the first resurrection but will be rewarded of God. Remember, Jesus said, "In as much as ye done it to the least of these, you have done it also unto me".

Luke 14:15 "And when one of them that sat at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed [is] he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God." One of the guests with him at the meal declared, Blessed is the one who will eat bread in the kingdom of God! He got the message and received it into Himself. Perhaps this whole thing was set up for this one man to receive the Lord. He had been there when the man with dropsy was healed. This undoubtedly got his attention because the physicians and all these learned men in the law had not been able to help the poor sick man and Jesus had healed him. He had heard Jesus use a parable to make these self-centered Pharisees realize that it wasn't the thing to do to try to get the uppermost seats at the banquet. He possibly was touched by the boldness, the sincerity, and the power of the Jesus. Perhaps, his eyes were opening, and he was looking at Jesus for the very first time as the Messiah. In verse 15, the man at the table is speaking to Jesus. He has realized that the best thing a person can receive is the kingdom of God. This does not tell us who this man is, but that this day he came in contact with the Saviour of the world and received Jesus into his heart. This statement he made ("Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God") was a spontaneous statement from a heart filled to overflowing.

#### QUESTIONS

- 1. What was the Pharisees' purpose inviting Jesus to eat with them?
- 2. What illness did the man have that was before Jesus?
- 3. Who did Jesus ask, "Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath"?
- 4. What did Jesus do for the sick man?
- 5. What example did Jesus give them to show that it was right to heal on the Sabbath?
- 6. What did Jesus notice about their seating arrangement?
- 7. In the example Jesus gave, how was the proud man embarrassed at the wedding?
- 8. The truly great in this world are the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_.
- 9. How will the lowly be elevated in the end?
- 10. Whosoever shall exalt himself shall be \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_.
- 11. Who did Jesus tell them not to invite to dinner?
- 12. What were 3 kinds of people that Jesus said to invite to dinner?
- 13. Who received this message of Jesus?
- 14. Who did he say was blessed?
- 15. He possibly was touched by the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_, the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_, and the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ of Jesus.

Page 4 of 4