So we're going to look at chapter 14 and we're going to read from verse 12 and as I say, just a few verses. So it's the Lord Jesus Christ that is speaking and he says this, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen nor thy rich neighbours, lest they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind, thou shalt be blessed, for they cannot recompense thee, for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just. Amen. May the Lord bless to us this little reading. Our Lord has been speaking to guests, attending a meal on a Sabbath day.

So the Lord had been to the synagogue, and it appears that after he had been at the synagogue, he was invited, presumably with his disciples, back to this man's house. And there we remember he had healed a man who was inflicted with what's called the dropsy, and he had also spoken some parables. In our previous passage we read how he cautioned against coveting the chief seats, the places of prominence in the gathering. It appears that he was watching the people coming into the house and they were jockeying for position, trying to get close to the place of prominence, the head of the table, where they might be noticed, where they might be credited with some status and perhaps some distinction.

The Lord hates a proud heart. He says in Psalm 101, Him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer. Pride and self-promotion is something that the Lord does not endure. And pride and self-promotion could be the only motive for seeking such preeminence amongst men. that the Lord was witnessing here at this feast, this Sabbath day feast.

And the Lord warns us that those who would act in this way are in danger of greater humiliation and embarrassment. How ashamed a man would be if In time, the owner of the house noticed someone more honourable at the table but lower down and asked the pretender to give up his seat for the honourable man and to be seated in turn at the lower end of the table. Better, says the Lord, voluntarily to assume the lowest place and perchance be called to go up higher than be shamed by being ejected from a place above our rank. And just so, the spiritual humble will be called to go up higher when the Lord will gather his jewels and the prepared mansions are allocated to Christ's people at their entrance into glory. But today, the Lord had a message too, as well as for those in attendance, for the host of the meal. And that's what these verses are directing us to.

Perhaps he noted, as he looked around this room, the elite social status and the obvious wealth of the people that were crowding into the feast, into the room. It was clear that this was not a cross-section of the community or a random selection of those attending the synagogue that morning. This was a select gathering of the great and the good, chosen not out of compassion for the poor or because they were in need of a meal, but for mutual self-benefit. That the generosity shown to the guests and the benefits shared at the table on this occasion would in time be reciprocated and therefore repaid. See, the Lord knew the heart of men, and he knew the heart even of this host on this occasion.

This meal, this feast, these invitees were not here simply because of the largesse and the kindness of this man, but he was hoping to get something out of it. He was looking for a quid pro quo. And I don't think that the Lord was prohibiting family or rich friends from being invited to one's home to participate in a meal. But he was pointing out that a fine opportunity to show kindness to the poor and the needy was being ignored because selfish motives were dictating which individuals should be present and who was to benefit from this feast. The guest list comprised of people capable of returning the favour in a kind of circulating rota of dinner dates.

Now, we're not told this, but it may be that there was a Sabbath practice at work here where the wealthy in the synagogue used the occasion of the gathered congregation to perform a good work for the local community by hosting a meal on their behalf. And if so, it seems that there was, at least in this host's approach, partiality in play as regards who was invited and who was left outside.

I'm quite certain there is a general lesson here regarding caring for the poor and supporting those in need. We all ought to be ready to assist those who are in need, simply upon the basis of that need. Remember the Lord's teaching about the Good Samaritan. Remember his teaching about who is my neighbour? Your neighbour is the person who needs your help. And this principle was being abused here.

And the Lord drew attention to the hypocrisy of charity that gives only when it hopes to be repaid. Kindness that expects something in return. Kindness that is coldly transactional. It's not motivated by the need of the person involved. It's not done out of charity to that person. It's not done for the genuine love of the Lord.

And as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we have been blessed in our poverty. 1 Corinthians 4, verse 7 says, For whom maketh thee to differ from another? What hast thou that thou didst not receive? Now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory as if thou hast not received it? That old principle, there but for the grace of God go I, is legitimate. We only have what the Lord gives us. We are indebted to the Lord for all that we possess.

And we ought to be aware and sensitive and ready and willing to help those who are in need for no other reason than their need. But I think there's a useful spiritual lesson here as well. The Lord's reminding us that spiritually speaking, we are the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind. and gospel invitations come to the poor in spirit, to those who are maimed who can no longer work to please God, or the lame who cannot walk and the blind who cannot see and must be led by the Holy Spirit. God's grace and goodness meets us in our need and feeds our souls with blessings that we could not procure or obtain by ourselves.

He blesses us in our poverty. He does not bless us in our wealth. Grace only comes to the humble poor because the Lord makes us so. He first empties us of our own self-worth that he might fill us with divine worthiness. It's always the effect of the Gospel. to make a person meek and modest before the Lord, to humble us before the Lord. And if we overstep, if we get proud, we can be sure of this, that the Lord will find a way of humbling us to bring us back to the people that we ought to be in the first place. The Gospel reveals us to be the true needy creature in this world, the truly impoverished soul, even if, relatively speaking, we possess a goodly portion of the wealth and benefits of the natural world. It seems to me that the Lord Though speaking this parable to the owner of the house is really speaking to his church and reminding us of our privileges and our responsibilities to one another.

You might have noticed that little phrase, the recompense is spoken or the recognition and honour for caring for the poor. especially care and support for our brothers and sisters in the Lord, the little phrase is that it will be recognised at the resurrection of the just. Now that means that it's a heavenly reward. It's an eternal blessing that will be given to the Lord's people in the resurrection.

Now, let me be clear. I don't believe that this means that there will be degrees of reward in heaven for works done here on earth. That's not how I understand this phrase at all. On the contrary, our reward in heaven will be all of grace, just as every heavenly spiritual blessing that we receive is of God's free grace.

But what that means or what this means that we will receive our recompense in the resurrection of the just, what it means is that our worship of the Lord, our gratitude towards Him, our praise for Him will be heightened, will be intensified, will be enlarged as we see the goodness that He has showered upon us and his church by committing to us the high honour of being a blessing and an encouragement to our brothers and sisters here in the world. The Lord has promised to help and support his little ones here on earth. Now let's just take an example. Suppose a brother in the Lord loses his job and he and his family are financially strapped.

Now the Lord could provide for that man's need as he provided to pay the temple tax for himself and his disciples. Do you remember how that happened? A coin in the mouth of a fish. And the Lord could simply make money appear for that man and his family. Or he could send food like manna and quails. Or enlarge the little that the man had as he did the five loaves and the two fishies. He could do all of those things. He could supply food and clothes by angels like he did for Elijah and Joshua. or he could use his servants like you and like me.

And if instead of all these other ways of doing it, all these wonderful, miraculous ways, if he chooses to use us, wouldn't that be a great honour for us? And if we care for one another now in time, and yet don't see the effects and outcomes of that charitableness until the resurrection of the just, would we in any way be losers for that? Shall we not be happier, more thankful in that day to have been a giver rather than a receiver? A profitable servant, in the service of Christ and useful to our brethren. We will be thrilled to hear, well done, good and faithful servant.

It is more blessed to give than to receive. and it's more comfortable. It's more comfortable for us to be givers than to be receivers. It's more honourable to be a giver than a receiver. It is more pleasant to be a giver and a receiver. It is more profitable to our souls because it means that the giver is in a comfortable situation having the wherewithal to give, having a little extra, having a sufficiency within themselves and something to spare.

It's a privilege from the Lord to be able to give and honour is reflected upon the giver or rather it is reflected both by the giver and the receiver upon the Lord. and by others who may observe the kindness and know the reason for it. The Lord gives to his people out, the Lord gives to his people not out of merit, but out of love and grace. And these principles of love and grace ought to motivate and energise our care for our fellow man and especially those of the household of faith.

But let me not pass without mentioning once again that beautiful little phrase from the lips of our Saviour. These are little gems, these are precious little gems that we ought to take note of and register when we discover them falling from the Lord in his ministry.

The phrase is, the resurrection of the just. The resurrection of the just, there's something to dwell on in the coming days. Think about that. Store it away and think about it in the coming days, what that means, the resurrection of the just. The just are those who are justified in Christ. It is the just who shall be raised, which tells us that there are those who have been made righteous in this life. the sight of God. They are righteous before they die and because of their righteousness there will be the resurrection of the just.

What makes a man, what makes a woman righteous in God's sight? Not our works, not our goodness, not our faith, not our desires. We are righteous when the Lord Jesus takes away our sin and clothes us with his holiness. We are justified when God imputes to us such righteousness as we cannot earn or merit.

It's a divine act, a divine gift, and it's an eternal act, and an act that will fit us for eternal life in the presence of our Saviour. This is what the Lord accomplished when he died on the cross. This is what his blood achieved. This is the grace and the goodness of God towards the people whom he loves.

We are growing old. Take a look around. Look at this little group of us here gathered. We are growing old. We are growing increasingly frail. We have limited time remaining in this world, but we shall be partakers of the resurrection of the just by the grace and the goodness of our God. When we were sinful and needy, God showed us mercy. Let us in turn be merciful to the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind, naturally and especially spiritually, as the Lord provides us opportunity. And we shall rejoice in the resurrection of the just with all the redeemed of the Lord. Amen.