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The Sermon At The Pharisees House – Part 1
Luke 14:1-24 (1-11)
November 10, 2019
This morning we begin looking at an interesting event
That took place in the life of Jesus.
I just call it “The Sermon At The Pharisee’s House”
Namely because in verse 1 we read:
(1) “It happened that when He went into the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees on the Sabbath to eat bread…”
The first two words actually make me smile as I read “It happened”
It causes me to think of an anticipated scene.
• Almost like someone saying, “Could you imagine what would happen if
Jesus actually went to a Pharisees house on the Sabbath?”
• “Oh, and what if there was a sick man there?”
Well, “it happened”
And the entire account is found in verses 1-24.
And before we start working our way through it,
Let’s sort of zoom out and make sure
We see the big picture of what occurs here.
JUST SOME OBSERVATIONS about the visit as a whole that will help us understand the parts.
Clearly in verse 12 we find that on this day JESUS HAD BEEN INVITED to this Pharisee’s house.
• He didn’t crash the party, He was invited. (the motive of that invite will be discussed later, but Jesus was invited)
We also know that at least some of them wanted Him there for the purpose of FINDING DIRT ON HIM.
• That is what is implied by the end of verse 1 where Luke says “they were watching Him closely.”
• Perhaps that is why they invited Him, but even if not, there were at least some there who used the event for that purpose.
Now, what makes this sermon interesting to me is that Jesus sort of embraces A GATLING GUN APPROACH.
• That is to say, He kind of shoots at everybody here.
• No one in this room is off limits with perhaps the exception of the man He heals.
In verse 3 we read “And Jesus answered and spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees”
In verse 7 we read “And He began speaking a parable to the invited guests”
In verse 12 we read “And He went on to say to the one who had invited Him”
And in verses 15-16 we read “When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” But He said to him…”
So you have there Jesus addressing 4 different groups.
1) The Pharisees and Lawyers
2) The Invited guests
3) The Host
4) His contemporaries
And Jesus confronts them all.
Another thing interesting about this account is that JESUS INSTIGATES most of these conversations and we DON’T GET ANYONE’S RESPONSE.
• The final man does make a sort of light hearted statement to Jesus, but other than that, Jesus initiates every one of these confrontations.
• He is clearly here to address the issues He sees.
• And we get no recorded response from the people regarding anything Jesus says.
Clearly then this text was not about what man thinks about Jesus.
This text is what Jesus thinks about man.
This text is not about man correcting Jesus.
This text is about Jesus correcting man.
THAT HELPS US WITH APPLICATION.
We have Jesus, addressing various issues,
And Luke just wants you to hear what He says
So that you and I might apply it to our lives.
And the reason each of these issues is important
Is because each one of the issues Jesus confronts here
Are issues that directly inhibit salvation.
You have Jesus here eating at a Pharisees house and He cannot be quiet about what He sees.
• These are things He must confront.
• These are issues He must address.
• These are attitudes He must expose.
Because these are the very attitudes
That keep men out of the kingdom of heaven.
These are heart issues that keep people lost.
Now, we will address 4 different ones as we work our way through the sermon, but even more simplified than that I could tell you like this.
We’re going to break it down into 4, but really it’s THE SAME ISSUE
Jesus addresses OVER AND OVER AND OVER with these people;
It just manifests itself in different ways.
The main issue Jesus addresses at this lunch is SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS.
It is the issue that shows up in each of these people’s lives
And it is the main issue Jesus is addressing.
And we’ll see it in 4 distinct areas.
So we will start working through this sermon, and learn from the preaching of our Lord.
#1 CONCERNING HYPOCRISY
Luke 14:1-6
Here we have the moment where
Jesus confronts the Pharisees and the Lawyers.
So “It happened that when He went into the house of one of the leaders of the Pharisees on the Sabbath to eat bread, they were watching Him closely.”
This was a common practice.
Sort of like you and I understand a Sunday lunch.
• After the synagogue they would go to eat bread, which undoubtedly had been prepared the day before so that no one was working on the Sabbath.
• And on this day Jesus was invited.
• And there appears to have been at least a decent sized group there as well.
And Luke adds:
(2) “And there in front of Him was a man suffering from dropsy.”
“dropsy” is sort of an old term for the condition you know as EDEMA.
It is an abnormal accumulation of fluids in the body.
It can be in your legs or your lungs or somewhere else.
Edema isn’t really a disease so much as it is a symptom of a disease.
• It can be a result of chronic heart failure.
• It can be a result of kidney failure.
• Or there are other things that can cause it.
But here we have a man who is swollen due to fluid buildup.
And similar to the HUNCHED OVER WOMAN in chapter 13,
• Nothing is said about this man asking for healing.
• Nothing is said about this man’s faith.
It’s just that on this day Jesus saw this “man suffering from dropsy”
And with the Pharisees and Lawyers “watching Him closely” we read:
(3) “And Jesus answered and spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?”
We’ve seen this play out a few times before haven’t we?
• In Matthew 12 we had the man with the withered hand in the synagogue.
• In Luke 13 we’ve got the woman bent over
• In John 5 there is the crippled man at the Bethesda pool
This is not an unusual encounter in the gospels.
We’ve also seen a variety of emotions fly at such incidents.
• When we read about the man with the withered hand in Mark’s gospel we
read that Jesus was angered at all the people in the synagogue.
• After Jesus healed that man we read that they were angry at Jesus and
wanted to kill Him.
• We read in Luke 13 after Jesus healed that woman who was bent over that all
His opponents were being humiliated.
It has been a common battle ground, and here we have it again.
And Jesus asks the question “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?”
And please understand this is not a judgment call.
• This is a black and white issue.
• This is a clear matter about what the Law says or doesn’t say.
And Jesus asks the “lawyers” (experts on the law)
If the law was ok with a Sabbath healing or not.
• He DIDN’T ASK about traditions…
• He DIDN’T ASK, “what do you think?”
• He ASKED for a ruling from the Law.
And we find in verse 4, “But they kept silent.”
And this is an interesting silence.
It speaks a great deal to their goals and purposes.
• It shows us that these man had no concern for righteousness or truth, only condemnation.
If they really thought it sinful then they should have warned Him not to do it so as to guide Him not to sin.
• But their silence here is an indication that they were interested in righteousness, only in condemnation.
If they say, “It is not lawful” then Jesus might not do it and they’ll have no grounds for accusing Him.
If they say, “It is lawful” then they again have no grounds for accusing Him.
It’s better for them if they just keep silent
And then wait for Him to do something and then pounce.
The point being, they’d rather condemn than guide.
And their silence shows that.
“But they kept silent. And He took hold of him and healed him, and sent him away.”
Don’t miss the miracle here.
• We don’t even know what the ailment was.
• All we know is the consequence of the man’s ailment was dropsy.
• But whatever the disease, Jesus healed it, and the swelling was gone, and Jesus sent this man home.
And then Jesus confronts those silent “lawyers and Pharisees”
(5) “And He said to them, “Which one of you will have a son or an ox fall into a well, and will not immediately pull him out on a Sabbath day?”
Jesus words indicate to us that the Pharisees and lawyers
Thought Jesus was wrong to heal this man.
AND JESUS CALLS THEM ON IT.
Namely because
They condemn men when they do the same thing themselves.
We have a word for this, and it is HYPOCRISY.
Romans 2 deals directly with this.
• After that passage on God’s wrath which abides on those living in sin, Paul
turns in Romans 2 to ask:
Romans 2:1-3 “Therefore you have no excuse, everyone of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. And we know that the judgment of God rightly falls upon those who practice such things. But do you suppose this, O man, when you pass judgment on those who practice such things and do the same yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God?”
That is what these lawyers and Pharisees were doing.
If their ox or their son fell into a well on the Sabbath,
They wouldn’t even think twice about pulling it out.
Jesus said they would “immediately pull him out”
Then they would turn right around and condemn Jesus
For delivering this man on the Sabbath.
IT IS HYPOCRISY.
And hypocrisy is nothing more than a symptom of is self-righteousness.
That is to say, they have convinced themselves
That they are righteous in and of themselves.
It is the same hypocrisy and self-righteousness that Jesus exposed in the Sermon on the Mount.
Matthew 7:1-5 “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. “For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? “Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”
The issue there isn’t just judging, but rather self-righteousness.
• It is biased judgment.
• It is a person who is willing to judge someone else,
• But is unwilling to judge themselves.
And Jesus constantly exposed the Pharisees and lawyers for this.
We see it with that woman caught in adultery.
• Men ready to stone a guilty adulteress.
• And Jesus says, “Sure, just check your own sin first”
It was hypocrisy, it was self-righteousness.
They would condemn others for sin they also committed.
BUT TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE,
Here they were condemning Jesus
When He didn’t even break the Law.
• The Law did not forbid healing on the Sabbath.
• The Law did not forbid helping on the Sabbath.
• But they were ready to condemn Jesus
It is just self-righteous hypocrisy all the way,
And it was a constant for the Pharisees and lawyers.
And then we read:
(6) “And they could make no reply to this.”
The word for “no reply” literally means “could not contradict”
• They couldn’t silence Jesus.
• They couldn’t correct Jesus.
• They couldn’t argue with Jesus.
• He had clearly exposed their double standard.
• He had clearly exposed their biased judgment.
• He had clearly exposed that while they condemned others, they had failed to condemn themselves.
And this is the first thing Jesus exposes at this meal.
Now, as we said, there is NO RESPONSE GIVEN,
SO WE DON’T FOCUS HERE ON THE PHARISEES OR LAWYERS.
Rather, we understand that Jesus here clearly exposed
Hypocrisy and self-righteousness as that which is unacceptable.
WHY IS HYPOCRISY AND SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS UNNACCEPTABLE?
BECAUSE IT WILL CONDEMN YOU BEFORE GOD.
Self-righteousness causes men not to trust in Christ
And that leaves men in their sin.
If we could explain it even clearer,
We would remind you of this simple truth.
God said it over and over, “Be holy AS I am holy”
God DIDN’T JUST SAY be holy or be righteous
God identified Himself as the standard of that righteousness or holiness.
Many a man has identified himself as righteous or holy
But the righteousness which he owns
Falls far short of the righteousness God demands.
Matthew 23:23-24 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. “You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!”
That was the Pharisees. They were certain they were righteous,
But the righteousness they had was not acceptable.
Remember this guy?
Matthew 19:16-17 “And someone came to Him and said, “Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” And He said to him, “Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
You see it again.
Don’t confuse your righteousness with God’s righteousness.
They do not compare.
And that is why self-righteousness is so dangerous.
That is why Jesus was so adamant to confront hypocrisy.
HYPOCRISY WAS A SYMPTOM OF SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS.
• When Jesus saw that these men would condemn someone else for the things
they do, He knew that self-righteousness was present.
• AND HE MUST EXPOSE IT.
• Self-righteousness leaves men under judgment assuming they are acceptable.
• Self-righteousness and hypocrisy breed false assurance in man and JESUS WOULD NOT LEAVE IT ALONE.
Even in this first encounter at the Pharisees house.
The miracle seems LESS ABOUT healing the man
And MORE ABOUT confronting the hypocrisy of these self-righteous men.
Jesus wanted them to know that the righteousness they trusted in
Was full of holes and ultimately unacceptable.
This, by the way, is what makes the gospel so remarkable.
Romans 3:21-24 “But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;”
So listen to the warning of the Lord there.
So the first thing Jesus addresses is hypocrisy.
There is a second thing He addresses at this meal.
#2 CONCERNING HUMILITY
Luke 14:7-11
Jesus is clearly on a role.
After silencing the lawyers Jesus now turns to “the invited guests”
Because in all the shuffle of entering
And even healing the man with dropsy,
Jesus saw another practice taking place that concerned Him.
Luke says, “He noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table”
And already we must admit that Jesus doesn’t miss anything.
He watches with clear eyes.
And when He watched these invited guests He saw a MAJOR PROBLEM.
• No, it wasn’t blatant immorality.
• No, it wasn’t drunkenness.
• No, it wasn’t profanity, or crude speech
Jesus just watched them as to which seats they chose for themselves.
And Jesus noticed that they “had been picking out the places of honor”
Typically in a room the seating would be laid out in a “U” shape.
The host would sit at the head of the “U”
With the two most important people on his right and on his left.
(Perhaps you now remember James and John’s mother
Requesting that Jesus let her boys sit in this place)
But you started with the two most important people
And sort of worked your way down around the sides
In a definite and distinguishable pecking order.
And even while addressing the hypocrisy of the Pharisees
Jesus had not failed to see the invited guests
Were preoccupied with picking out for themselves the best seats.
No doubt this was a learned practice from their spiritual leaders.
Jesus said of the Pharisees:
Matthew 23:6 “They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues,”
It is likely that this was even the normal culture of Jesus’ day.
• We already mentioned James’ and John’s mother.
• But it’s not like it was just those two.
Luke 9:46 “An argument started among them as to which of them might be the greatest.”
But that wasn’t the only time they had this fight.
Luke 22:24 “And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest.”
We read it yet again in Matthew’s gospel:
Matthew 18:1-4 “At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And He called a child to Himself and set him before them, and said, “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. “Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
Even the disciples of Jesus were deceived in this area.
Certainly we have also read Matthew 6 where Jesus confronts the Pharisees for their Hypocritical Giving, Hypocritical Prayer, and Hypocritical Fasting.
Each time point out that they do these things “to be noticed by men”
The entire culture was one of grabbing honor for yourself.
Their entire culture was about forcing yourself to the front of the pack
And making sure you were noticed.
So in that sense what these guests were doing wasn’t that unusual.
But in their self-exaltation
Jesus saw a root problem that must be addressed.
So, “He began speaking a parable to the invited guests”
(8-10) “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him, and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place. “But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you.”
It’s not a difficult parable to understand.
• If you go into a banquet hall and pick for yourself the best seat, then you run the risk of someone else coming in who is more important and in shame you are told to leave.
How embarrassing that would be.
How much shame that would involve.
• But, if you go in and pick the worst seat, you can imagine the honor when the host comes and says, “Oh no! You come up where with me”
And in that moment you “will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table.”
The simple application and point is seen in verse 11
(11) “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
This is the point Jesus is trying to make.
It is hard to imagine that Jesus actually cared
Who sat where in this insignificant meal,
However such arrogance and lack of humility was a problem.
People who are willing to so quickly exalt themselves
Indicate a dangerous heart problem.
They indicate a pride and an arrogance and a self-righteousness
That is again counterproductive to salvation.
FOR STARTERS, even in a temporal sense pride rarely pays off.
Solomon said it repeatedly.
Proverbs 16:18 “Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling.”
Proverbs 29:23 “A man’s pride will bring him low, But a humble spirit will obtain honor.”
There is a simple fact of human nature here that even society naturally resists the arrogant man and will almost unwittingly root for his fall.
We watch sports, and often the most hated and denounced athletes in sports
Will be those who continually exalt themselves and walk in arrogance.
Human nature will naturally rood for the underdog and the humble man.
Societal realities will typically prove true what Solomon said.
If you walk in pride you will be brought low.
That is a basic proverb for living.
BUT EVEN MORE DANGEROUS than that,
Is the reality that pride and arrogance
Are extremely detrimental to the call of salvation.
There is another incident
Which inspires Jesus to make this very same statement about humility and exaltation.
Luke 18:9-14 “And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. “The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ‘I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ “But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ “I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Jesus gave the same analogy,
• BUT IT WASN’T that He was worried that this Pharisee might have shame in this life.
• HE WASN’T warning that someone in the temple might start booing the Pharisees for his arrogance.
No, the danger here was a spiritual one.
The danger here was an eternal one.
Because this man had an inflated view of his own goodness
He was unwilling to cry out for mercy.
This man came into that temple claiming the figurative place of honor.
• He walked right into that temple,
• Figuratively sat down at the highest seat,
• Then looked down the table to the man at the end,
• Leaned over to the host and said, “I’m thankful I’m not like that man!”
His statement dripped of pride and arrogance and self-righteousness.
But the problem there IS NOT that the Lord kicked him out of the temple.
• Nothing is said there about the host telling him to move down the table.
• On that day, in the temple, he received no shame.
THE PROBLEM was that when he left he was still not “justified”
It was his pride and arrogance that blinded him to his own faults
And ultimately caused him not to cry out for mercy.
And because he did not cry out for mercy, he did not receive it.
And THERE IS A DAY COMING when he will be told to get up and move.
That is why Jesus addresses this issue here in this house.
It has very little to do with Jesus caring where people are sitting.
What He is concerned about is the fact that
All these people seem to be carrying a seed of pride and arrogance
And that is very dangerous.
THEY HAVE IN THEM A SEED OF THE VERY THING GOD REJECTS.
Consider the Old Testament:
Isaiah 57:15 “For thus says the high and exalted One Who lives forever, whose name is Holy, “I dwell on a high and holy place, And also with the contrite and lowly of spirit In order to revive the spirit of the lowly And to revive the heart of the contrite.”
Isaiah 66:1-2 “Thus says the LORD, “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? “For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,” declares the LORD. “But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.”
Psalms 34:18 “The LORD is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Psalms 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.”
We read it continually that God eagerly accepts those who are humble.
That makes pride a dangerous thing to have in your heart.
Even small amounts…
Even seemingly insignificant expressions of it…
We’ve read it many times that “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble”
Jesus made it clear in the Sermon on the Mount in the beatitudes.
Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
And that is why Jesus is addressing this crowd.
• They have in them a seed of the very thing God rejects.
• They have in them a seed of that which will cause them to not cry for mercy.
• They have in them a seed of that which will deceive them and ultimately judge
them.
AND JESUS COULD NOT LEAVE IT ALONE.
And again, we are not told how the crowd responded to this parable.
The application and response is for the reader.
We clearly see the warning from Jesus
About the dangers of pride and arrogance
As indicators of self-righteousness.
AND THE APPLICATION?
Root it out.
We are reminded of the story of Nebuchadnezzar
• Who was forced to eat grass like a beast for 7 years.
• And we read his testimony after God restored him in which he said:
Daniel 4:37 “Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt and honor the King of heaven, for all His works are true and His ways just, and He is able to humble those who walk in pride.”
Approaching God in pride is a foolish thing.
Approaching Him like you deserve to be there is foolish.
Again we run to the gospel
Where the only way we are made acceptable to God
Is when we are clothed in the perfect righteousness of Jesus.
To assume you are fine without Him is self-righteousness
And it will condemn you.
How do I know if I have self righteousness?
• Well, do you see hypocrisy in your life? (condemning others for what you do)
• Do you see humility in your life? (or do you think you deserve glory)
Those where the troubling attitudes Jesus saw
And He immediately confronted them.
Well, there’s the first two parts of this sermon.
Jesus was simply invited to a meal
But when He was there He saw some attitudes
That He could not leave alone.
• He could not just overlook the reality that these men would self-righteously
condemn others for things they do themselves.
• He could not overlook the obvious pride that grew in the hearts of the people
who were invited to this meal.
He addressed them both
Because both of these things are heart attitudes that prohibit salvation.
If you are to be saved IT WILL NOT BE accomplished by declaring yourself righteous,
IT WILL BE WHEN YOU RECOGNIZE YOU ARE NOT.
If you are to be saved IT WILL NOT BE by boldly walking into God’s presence and declaring yourself worthy to be there,
IT WILL BE WHEN YOU BEG HIS FORGIVENESS
BECAUSE YOU KNOW YOU ARE NOT WORTHY.
There’s the first two. But Jesus isn’t finished.
We’ll look at the next two next time.
