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Bro. Otis Fisher
Luke 13 31, the same day there came a certain of the Pharisees saying unto him get thee out and depart hence for Herod will kill you. Now we've already had this but I want to go back for just a minute.
This is certain of the Pharisees. That means he could have put a name to it but he didn't. More than likely this was instigated by Herod to get Jesus to move on. And he said to them go ye and tell that fox behold I cast out devils and I do cures today and tomorrow and the third day I shall be perfected.
The word perfected threw me. And when I got to delving into it it simply means that he says I'll be completed. That's all I'll do and I'll leave but not until then. Nevertheless I must walk today. Notice he says must walk today and tomorrow and the day following for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.
He wasn't going to die until he got to Jerusalem. 34 Old Jerusalem. Jerusalem which kill us the prophets. David pretty well explained that and stoned us them that are sent unto thee. This lets us in on a little bit of the thinking of Jesus.
Remember Jesus preempted himself. He knew only what the Father had told him. He did not bring information with him but he had the Holy Spirit without measure. Debbie we don't know what that is. We've never any of us ever had the Holy Spirit without measure but he did.
I would have gathered at thy children together as a hen doth her gather her brood under her wings and ye would not. It was a heartfelt impression upon Jesus to save all of the Jews but nevertheless the Father's will was done and not the will of the Lord.
He closes with behold your house is left unto you desolate and verily I say unto you you shall not see me until the time come when you shall say blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. So he again tells them that he's going to die.
Now we know that because we've read the rest of the story that was hard for them to visualize. Remember they thought he was going to set up his kingdom but it would be a kingdom here on earth. The word kingdom simply means authority.
When we get to the 14th chapter we find that Luke records the delightful occasion of the Lord Jesus going out to dinner at the home of one of the Pharisees. Believe you me I would not have gone. Jesus is going to dinner again and this time we're going to have some fun with it.
In the first verse 14 1 and it came to pass. I like that. It came to pass. Debbie has anything ever come and didn't pass? As he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees. Now he's going to a Pharisee again to eat bread on the Sabbath day that they watched him.
Now here is a man that you're trying to trap. He is very wise you know. You will not admit that he is from God but you have set up a situation hoping that he falls into the trap. And behold there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy.
Someone tell me what is dropsy? Water collects in the body and it causes ill-formed body and they didn't have cures for it then. And he was there and he had this disease. Well this was a trap to ensnare the Lord.
Deliberately planted and they would hope that he would heal them. Why David? Why? Well what did this this hold for him? No they planted this man with the dropsy hoping that it heals him. Well that's it.
We'll see whether he'll heal on the Sabbath or not. Now if you can imagine they're more interested Virg in keeping the law than the care of the person. Well Jesus turns the table and Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees saying is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?
Now if that was me and I had planned set all of this up to trap him and then he asked me the question before we got started. I wouldn't have liked that. That would have thrown off my timing. Well they held their peace.
They couldn't say anything and he took them and healed he took him and healed him and let him go and answered them saying which of you now he heals the man he lets him go and he turns to them which of you shall have an ass or an ox fall into a pit and will not straightway pull him out on the Sabbath day?
Now see they could do that but they couldn't heal on the Sabbath. Well if their ox or donkey had got into trouble they would have got him out. In other words if they'd have had a flat on the way to church they would have fixed it and they could not answer him again for these things.
He just got them stumped. This incident created a rather tense situation for dinner. Now remember we haven't started the dinner yet and he put forth a parable to those which were bitten when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms saying unto them let me get over here to where when thou art bidden of any man to a wedding set not down in the highest room lest a more honorable man than thou come and be bitten of him.
Now let's see if we can set this scene. It's rich. It was before the day of place cards. You know you have a little place card at your position your plate and you don't look anyplace else you find your name and you can sit there.
This was before that. I imagine the place cards was originated by hostess who wanted to preserve her furniture. Without place cards at the table there was a mad rush to get to the best seats. At the table that day there were four chief places.
When the cook would stick his head in and say soups on everybody would make a bad rush a beeline rush to get to the table because they wanted to sit in the honored place. The honored places were on all four sides.
There was the honored place was in the center. There was only room for eight people on each side and the honored on each side was in the center. So let's follow one of these men around. Remember they they didn't have chairs.
They reclined at the table. There were three places on each side which was made up of of the places to sit. At the head of the table there would be the seat 1, 2, and 3. On one side then a seat number 2 on the center side would be the place of honor around the table would be seat 4 and 5 and 6.
These number 5 was the seat of honor. Around on the other side there was 6, 7, and 8 and 9 with the seat number 8 at the center of that side. So it's understandable that one of these old Pharisees could not move as fast as the others and he'd been edging his way toward the table and when the cook hollered soups on he runs hard as he could but he couldn't run fast enough.
He had ran for seat number 2. One of the younger Pharisees got there before he did and he had to go around the corner and head for number 5. He was too late there again. Someone was already sitting there quickly.
He tried for seat number 8 and he did not make it. He turned to the corner and made a dive for seat number 11 and made it. It was the lowest seat but still a seat of honor. He reclined there out of breath.
Can you imagine what a hilarious picture that was for the Lord to see these men fussing over where they're going to sit. Now our Lord corrects their manners and in 8 he says, when thou art bidden of any man to a wedding sit not down in the highest room lest a more honorable man than thou be bidden to that place.
I have personal experience in this. Years and years and years and years ago I was in college and I was invited to a banquet. Well I got there a little bit early and I went in and I sat down but I noticed others come in and they were sitting not at this table but the others and I began to look around and I was sitting at the head table.
I didn't belong there so I got up and moved. Nobody had to ask me to. And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee give this man place and thou begin with shame to take the lower place. But when thou art bidden go and sit down in the lowest room that when he had he that bade you come he may say unto thee friend go up higher then shalt thou have a worship in the presence of them that said it meet with thee.
The Lord Jesus said when you are invited to dinner don't rush to get the seat of honor. The host may have something else in mind for that seat. He would have come to you and said move over to the lowest seat so my guest of honor can sit down.
To get the lowest seat all you have to do is move up. When you are invited to a dinner always go to that lowest seat. Then when the host comes in and sees where you are sitting he will say you are to be my guest of honor.
Please sit here in a seat of honor. Then someone else will have to move. Our Lord draws a great principle from this incident. In verse 11 for whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Now I want to know why. Verge for whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased. What does abase mean? Be humbled. All right John what does the whole thing mean? That's right. Is there any other thoughts on this verse?
You're right again. That ties in with this morning's message. Anyone else see anything? That's right. All right let's go on. Twelve then said he also to him that bade him when thou makest a dinner or a supper call not the friends nor thy brethren neither thy kinsmen nor thy rich neighbors lest they also bid thee again and a recompense be made to thee.
Now I hope you're all guilty of this but seems like when we invite our relatives down to eat with us then we feel like we have to go expect a bid from them and we'll go to eat with them. Did any of you ever get caught in a trap like that?
Well there's nothing wrong with that but when thou makest a feast call the poor and the maimed the lame the blind and thou shalt be blessed for they cannot recompense thee for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.
Well our Lord is setting forth another example. Most of us as I said we have guests that we invite over and they invite us over and so forth but how many have invited someone that didn't invite you? They couldn't repay.
They cannot pay you back. They'll not be able to invite you for dinner. Yes that's right that's right. Well he looked the guests straight in the eyes and corrected their manners then he corrected the host.
Believe me the atmosphere was tense. Nobody was saying a word by this time and they had set the whole thing up probably even his invitation and when one of them that and when one of them that sat at meet with him heard these things he said unto him blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.
Boy how many of you have in the last several years it's not so much now but several years ago you would hear the word praise the Lord in just any place somebody say praise the Lord praise the Lord. I fear most of them didn't know what it meant.
This man this I guess it was a man is a pious platitude. I wish I could have been there. I'd ask him what do you mean? Explain what you said. What he really meant. I've never found anybody yet that could.
His statement was nothing more than a pious cliche. You hear a lot of pious platitudes in our conversation conservative circles today. I guess the tired of hearing them. One of the most present one of the common cliches is praise the Lord.
It's a wonderful thing to praise the Lord but sometimes it becomes a little boring when a person uses that phrase constantly but doesn't know what it means to praise the Lord. The Lord did not let this rascal get by with his cliche.
He turns to him and he says then said he unto him a certain man made a great supper and bade many and sent his servant at suppertime to say to them that were bidden come for all things are now ready. It was a custom to send out invitations well in advance a long time ahead of time so you could plan and they all with one consent began to make excuse.
The first said unto him I have bought a piece of ground and I must needs go and see it I pray they have me excused. Now what do you think of his business practices? Here he's bought land unseen. Well it's not an excuse it's an alibi.
By the way what's the difference in excuse and reason? Anybody from this section? I can't see your faces so you'll just have to stick up a hand. What's the difference in excuse and a reason? Oh that's pretty good now I explained that.
Excuses come from within a reason comes on the outside. An excuse is just an excuse you don't want to go or you don't want to do it so you give an excuse. A reason is legitimate. Learn the difference.
Well none of these that were invited says I will not come to the dinner. They were simply making excuses to cover up the fact. The first man to give an excuse was either a liar or a fool. Can you imagine buying property without first looking at it?
And another said I have bought five yokes of oxen and I go to prove them. I pray they have me excused. Now the first man let possessions keep him away. The second man let business keep him away. In those days they didn't have floodlights on the tractor.
He was making excuses. I must make a living is a phrase I've often heard people say. One day you're going to die and you will discover that business will go on the same without you. If you thought that it was going to die with you.
Twenty and another said I have married a wife and therefore I cannot come. Lots of opportunities here. Well first of all there was a law that excused man from going to war if he'd taken a new wife. Maybe he was in basic training.
This man had the weakest of all. Why didn't he bring his wife with him and come to the dinner? His natural affection kept him from dinner. How many times I've heard a man say I don't come to church because it's Sunday is the only day I have with my family.
These things keep more people from God than anything else. Possessions, business, natural affections. How many people today are kept from God because of these things and we'll stop right there. Start with 21 David unless you want to back up.
Is there anything now that you want to say to give you opportunity? Nothing. You all want to go home? Well since there are no excuses, Russell will you dismiss us please?