Preaching the Lectionary, Proper 17

        Wisdom literature of the Bible belongs to a small group of scriptures. These scriptures are found in narrative form like the book of Job, or in poetic form like the books of Ecclesiastes and Proverbs. There also is "wisdom literature" scattered throughout the New Testament. We will look at one set of wisdom scriptures in the NT later on.  The wisdom scriptures are beautiful to read, and they make interesting stories, but their deeper meaning is often difficult to understand.  Many times we regard these scriptures as historical rather than seeing them as relevant to our lives.  Take for example our first scripture reading from Proverbs 25:6-7.

Proverbs 25:6-7
25:6 Do not put yourself forward in the king's presence or stand in the place of the great;
25:7 for it is better to be told, "Come up here," than to be put lower in the presence of a noble. 

        Most commentaries label this section of scriptures "Royal Etiquette" or "rules regarding court conduct". These two scriptures and others in the pericope are said to be written by Solomon concerning the behavior in his court. The commentaries usually have a short curt comment on how nobles were to act in the presence of the king. There is little or no application to the reader's life unless he or she was a noble. Some commentaries could be good history books. However, others are pastoral and relate the scriptures to life circumstances.
       Jesus related scriptures to his life and the lives of those around him. He was a walking scriptural commentary. The scriptures to him, were not just historical records or rules for court behavior, they were living applications to life’s situations.
      In the second scripture reading we see Jesus doing just that, taking Proverb 25:6, 7 and applying it to a religious/social setting. He is a dinner guest at a Shabbat. A Shabbat is a religious dinner given after sun down on Friday to signal the beginning of the Sabbath and the separation of the workweek from the day of rest. Jesus sees a situation happening where the Pharisees are maneuvering for the best seat at the dinner table. The story is found in Luke 14: 1, 7-14.

Luke 14:1, 7-14
14:1 On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the Sabbath, they were watching him closely.
14:7 When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable.
14:8 "When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited by your host;
14:9 and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you, 'Give this person your place,' and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place.
14:10 But when you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, 'Friend, move up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you.
14:11 For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."
14:12 He said also to the one who had invited him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid.
14:13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.
14:14 And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous." 

      Seeing the Pharisees problem at the dinner did not make Jesus critical. He did not put these Pharisees down. Jesus took God’s word and related it to their needs at that moment. In our moments of need God's word is the best answer. Using God's word Jesus offered them a way to be successful. We can succeed in human relations too, if we can move in the same way. When we see people’s shortcomings instead of being sharp and critical we can give them another way of behaving. On the other hand, if we say or do things that make others feel insignificant, we will not succeed. "Then people will respond by becoming angry and resentful, because everybody wants to be noticed and made to feel important."(Wiersbe,).
         It was the same in Jesus' day too. Like today, they had “status symbols” that helped people enhance and protect their high standing in society. If you were invited to the “right homes” and if you were seated in the “right places,” then people would know how important you really were.  The emphasis was on reputation, not character. It was more important to sit in the right places than to live the right kind of life. (Does this happen in your community of believers?)

      In New Testament times, the closer you sat to the person throwing the banquet, or as in this case giving a dinner, the further up you stood on the social ladder or "spiritual ladder"  and the more attention you would receive from others. Naturally, many people rushed to the “head table” when the doors were opened because they wanted to be important, sort of like a sale day at Macy's. : )
      This behavior gives a wrong view of success. “Try not to become a man of success,” said Albert Einstein, “but try to become a man of value.”(Moncur). There are exceptions to the rule, of course, but the cream usually rises to the top. Those that are valuable people are eventually recognized and appropriately honored. Success that comes only from self-promotion is temporary, and you may be embarrassed as you are asked to move down.(Wiersbe)
      Moving down was not a problem with Jesus. He was not impressed with the pushing and shoving for the special seat. God knows who really belongs where. A lot of our struggle to be successful and get ahead is done from self-promotion and we find it hard to accomplish the things we want in life. It could be that God is resisting our work because of our attitude. James tells us that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. The success gotten without the Lord is short lived.

To be Continued --