Clothesline 263 "More than a meal"

Let’s talk about eating. We eat for nourishment, but there is much more to it than that. When we eat together, we learn about human nature. Eating together reveals deeper understandings of our relationships.

Do you remember your first dinner date? In between small talk and nervous laughter, you might have noticed table manners, for example. Did she put her napkin on her lap? Where are his elbows? If you walked into a high school cafeteria, you see other examples of a meal and relationships. Who sits together? What groups seem to keep their distance from other groups? And does anybody notice the shy girl who’s sitting by herself? In just a few minutes, you see who fits in and who doesn’t. And all of this happens…over eating together!

Jesus was once at a banquet and he used that meal to teach us about relationships. First, Jesus speaks to those who had been invited to this dinner. He says, “When you’re invited to a big party, don’t seek out the choice seats, but choose the seats lower down on the honor chart. It could save you embarrassment if you are asked to give up your seat to someone with more prestige than you. And on the other hand, if you sit far away from the guest of honor, you might very well be asked to come up closer. No embarrassment here!”

Then Jesus switches his remarks to those who did the inviting. He says, “Don’t issue invitations to the well-to-do, the beautiful people, the most popular, the ones who will probably reciprocate. Invite those who need a meal, who will never have the chance to feed you back. Invite those who never receive invitations, who always feel left out.”

Some might see this parable as Jesus suggesting a way to “back in” to honor prestige. Nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus is teaching us about a life of servanthood, a life of discipleship. Jesus is also teaching us about humility. There’s a story about a pastor who visited his mother one Sunday after a worship service. He was still thinking about the sermon he had just preached, and he was quite pleased with himself. In fact his ego was so inflated that he said to his mother, “Mom, how many truly great preachers do you think there are in the world?” Without hesitation his mother said, “I don’t know, dear, but I think there is one less than you think there are!” That response—thanks to mom— would be a lesson in humility.

A true Christian knows his worth. There is no place for an ego. More importantly, you indeed know that you have a seat at that table, and the hospitality of God will be more than you ever imagine!