Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost (C) 2019

+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.

Text: Luke 14:7-14
Theme: Humility: Gifted and Gift

Dear friends in Christ Jesus,

Humility can be the result of the Spirit’s work of convicting us of our sins. It can also be one of His gifts. As such, it is a gift to be practiced and nurtured. Similarly, faith is a gift of the Spirit, but it is also to be practiced and nurtured. Of course, when we are humbled against our will it means that God’s law is doing its work in us. When we are humble as an expression of our faith, it means the gospel is at work. Jesus Christ is the only perfect example of humility. Though His uniqueness may be familiar to us, it doesn’t make it any less important.

Today we find Jesus at a banquet in the home of a prominent Pharisee. The custom of the day was to be in a reclining position at the table with the seating order dictated by the importance of the guests. Scholars believe that couches or cushions were set up in groups of threes. The spot in the centre was the place of honour. Jesus observed the guests choosing places of honour for themselves. They were putting themselves in the centre. These were acts of arrogance. The guests ran the risk of being asked by the host to move to a ‘lower’ seat when a more distinguished guest arrived.

Were these calculated decisions? Probably. Some thought the reward was worth the risk. Many of the unethical decisions we make are no different. They are not brazenly immoral. They are calculated risks in which we seek to elevate ourselves at the expense of others but with the hope of not getting caught or reprimanded. Often our tactics are subtle and deceptive. Children learn them from an early age.

Jesus uses the opportunity to teach true humility. Choosing the lower seat allows the opportunity for the host to move one up to a higher seat. But guests cannot take it upon themselves to do so. Practicing true humility involves honouring others above ourselves according to the Scripture, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”1

The pursuit of self-glorification is an endless narcissistic struggle. Even if we were to gain all the praise and adulation of the world (which will always be a powerful motivator for many people), how would we ever know if our efforts were enough to please God? In fact, we do know that they’re not. The prophet says, “All of us has become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.”2 Our best efforts are still imperfect. Spiritual humility involves recognizing God’s perspective even if the world gives us a glowing review. But the marvellous thing is: Everything we do in faith is perfected through Christ in God’s eyes. So, on the one hand, an act of assistance can be very helpful to someone even though it’s done out of sinful motives, think here, false humility. Yes, God is clever enough to use sinful intentions to benefit others. On the other hand, frail and flawed efforts, when done in humble faith, are holy works in God’s sight.

Dear friends, it’s not only works done in faith that God deems to be holy. He declares that we- convicted sinners- are truly holy in His sight. We are viewed through the cross. We are washed in the blood of Jesus. The Bible says we are being renewed in God’s image through Christ. The renewal is initiated in baptism. The image of God was lost in the Fall, but in Christ it is being restored. The Scripture says, “You have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.”3 So in our pursuit of God’s image we are taught to guard against the sin of false humility. It occurs when people outwardly refuse any kind of recognition or praise for what has been done but then inwardly pride themselves on their humility. People falsely think God is pleased with them for being so humble when actually the sin of arrogance has filled the heart.

Now, Jesus says today, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends, or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbours, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just."4 What are we to make of this? Is Jesus saying we shouldn’t invite our relatives or friends for dinner? The question being asked is: What’s the motivation for our generosity? If we only ever show hospitality to those who are capable of returning the favour, are we not just looking after ourselves in the end? Sure, the possibility exists that they won’t return the favour. And if they don’t, are we then put out? We shouldn’t be so naïve as to think that we’re immune to self-interested generosity.

Thankfully, the gospel does not operate under schemes of compensation. How is Christ compensated for bearing our sins? He sacrificed Himself freely, of His own will. He wasn’t seeking reward. Do parents get compensated for raising their children? They might hope to in their later years but that shouldn’t be the motivation for loving their children. How was Christ repaid for suffering for our iniquities? A place in heaven was not a reward for Him, He already had that. Majesty and glory equal to that of the Father were already His too.

The gospel is the most counter-intuitive, counter-philosophical truth that has been ever, will be ever, and can be ever revealed. None of the religions of the world have it. All require some measure of human contribution to gain access to God’s presence and blessings. Christians have the crucified and risen Jesus. You cannot buy your way into heaven. You cannot earn God’s favour. You cannot haggle, barter or negotiate. Nothing that you possess, or have done, or can do will gain right of entry, or permission to access. Christ is the price. He is the door. He is the custodian. Truly, this fact is not a burden to us but a relief. We are liberated from the task. We are freed from the obligation. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”5

His grace to us is not a philosophical concept or pious-sounding theory. His word and presence are effectual and dynamic. The Spirit washes us with baptismal water and calls us again and again to take comfort in that covenant. He offers us His sacred body and precious blood assuring us this is the food of immortality. He declares that our sins have been forgiven and that this truth is valid in heaven. He attends to us until our dying breath and promises to resurrect us to a vibrant eternal life. He surrounds us with people- yes, frail and fallible people- but people who nevertheless journey with us and support us on our pilgrimage.

We live in a culture that struggles with humility. It was apparently no different in Jesus’ day. The struggle is a real one for believers too. But it’s a struggle that cannot be lost in the end because Jesus has already won the final victory. Christ has gifted us with humility. That gift is Himself. Therefore, we can say with the apostle Paul, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”6 Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +

Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost
1 September 2019
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt

1 Philippians 2:3-4 2 Isaiah 64:6
3 Colossians 3:9-10 4 Luke 14:12-14
5 Ephesians 2:8-9 6 Galatians 6:14