14 1On a Sabbatha day, Jesus went to the home of a leading Phariseeb to eat with him. The people there were all watching him very closely. 2A man with a bad diseasec was there in front of him. 3Jesus said to the Pharisees and experts in the law, "Is it right or wrong to heal on the Sabbath day?" 4But they would not answer his question. So he took the man and healed him. Then he sent the man away. 5Jesus said to the Pharisees and teachers of the law, "If your son or work animal falls into a well on the Sabbath day, you know you would pull him out immediately." 6The Pharisees and teachers of the law could say nothing against what he said.10"So when someone invites you, go sit in the seat that is not important. Then they will come to you and say, 'Friend, move up here to this better place!' What an honor this will be for you in front of all the other guests. 11Everyone who makes themselves important will be made humble. But everyone who makes themselves humble will be made important." 16Jesus said to him, "A man gave a big dinner. He invited many people. 17When it was time to eat, he sent his servant to tell the guests, 'Come. The food is ready.' 18But all the guests said they could not come. Each one made an excuse. The first one said, 'I have just bought a field, so I must go look at it. Please excuse me.' 19Another man said, 'I have just bought five pairs of work animals; I must go and try them out. Please excuse me.' 20A third man said, 'I just got married; I can't come.' 21"So the servant returned and told his master what happened. The master was angry. He said, 'Hurry! Go into the streets and alleys of the town. Bring me the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.' 22"Later, the servant said to him, 'Master, I did what you told me to do, but we still have places for more people.' 23The master said to the servant, 'Go out to the highways and country roads. Tell the people there to come. I want my house to be full! 24None of those people I invited first will get to eat any of this food.'" 28"If you wanted to build a building, you would first sit down and decide how much it would cost. You must see if you have enough money to finish the job. 29If you don't do that, you might begin the work, but you would not be able to finish. And if you could not finish it, everyone would laugh at you. 30They would say, 'This man began to build, but he was not able to finish.' 31"If a king is going to fight against another king, first he will sit down and plan. If he has only 10,000 men, he will try to decide if he is able to defeat the other king who has 20,000 men. 32If he thinks he cannot defeat the other king, he will send some men to ask for peace while that king's army is still far away. 33"It is the same for each of you. You must leave everything you have to follow me. If not, you cannot be my follower. "You people who hear me, listen!" aSabbath Saturday, the seventh day of the week and a special day for Israelites or Jews. By God¡¯s command it was set aside as a time for the people to rest and honor God. bPharisee A person who belonged to a Jewish religious group that claimed to follow carefully all Jewish laws and customs. c14:2 disease The man had dropsy, a sickness that causes the body to swell larger and larger. dGod¡¯s kingdom The ¡°reign¡± or ¡°rule¡± of God over all people who submit to him by accepting Jesus as the Messiah (the appointed king), who represents God¡¯s kingdom on earth. Jesus was the perfect example of submission to the will of God. When people give control of their lives to Jesus, they become part of God¡¯s kingdom and begin to enjoy the blessings he has promised his people from the beginning. (Note that in Matthew this term also translates the Greek word ¡°kingdom¡± by itself or the phrase, ¡°the kingdom of the heavens,¡± which was used by Jews as a way to avoid saying the divine name.) ecross The wooden post that Romans used to execute criminals. It is a symbol of shame, suffering and death. Just as Jesus was willing to suffer death on a cross for all people, so he asks his followers to be willing to give up their lives for him. |