“Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely.” Luke 14:1.

This verse is given to show us the circumstances in which our study takes place. The study itself will be on Luke 14:15-24 coming up shortly.

As a preamble we find that Jesus mentioned to His host that when one gives a supper and invites their friends, their friends will invite them back and they will be repaid, He goes on to say the following.

“But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” Luke 14:13-14.

Please understand that this does not mean that you cannot have friends over for dinner, because that would stop a lot of fellowship among Christians.

No, I believe that most of these suppers that the Lord described are the ones that are meant to impress others either by the host’s own riches or by letting others see how important they are by the big names that show up.

And of course, there is a lot of what we now call networking going on at these dinners. It might be added that there are many rich folks who are maimed, lame, or blind, the context appears to mean the impoverished, not the rich.

Now some who read this might think, “I am just a single woman, I am afraid to ask strangers into my home.” It is very wise not to allow strangers into your home, yet there is a simple solution to this problem.

Those who are unable to invite folks into their home can always donate money, clothes, or food to the local Christian rescue mission.

If the Lord leads you, you may also volunteer to work in the kitchen, or serve. Occasionally you may have an opportunity to give a listening ear to the ones who just need to talk.

There are also shelters for women who have been abused; again, if that is your niche, you might consider volunteering; especially if the Lord has delivered you from abuse of the same nature.

Pay close attention to what verse 13 says in the above quote and is shown again below.

“But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.” Luke 14:13.

The words, the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind, mean exactly what you will find in the dictionary. It is these whom Jesus is advising us to invite to dinner.

He does not mean the drunkard, the dope addict, or the lazy poor.

There are Christian programs and rescue missions which are equipped to deal with unfortunates like this.

Avoid giving them money, which they will spend on their addiction, avoid taking them into your home, you are not a therapist.

If you are in a neighborhood or go to a church where there are many people like this; refer them to your pastor or try to have an address or phone number for a rehab center, or rescue mission to give them.

Even new Christians are not to be trusted until they are free of their addiction.

One Christian woman took her brother, also a Christian, into her home to give him a place to stay; he sold her computer and washing machine to buy drugs.

A woman approached a lady at church and told her she had a splitting headache, could she help her? All she had was a prescription for darvocet, so she gave her one. After that the woman would often come to her with headaches, because she was an addict.

If you have a prescription, do not tell anyone, if someone approaches you claiming to be in pain, give them an aspirin. Aspirin is a wonder drug, it is thought to help prevent clots that cause strokes, it is great for headaches, muscle pain, and gets rid of addicts fast.

Here are some final and important thoughts on these passages before we move on.

“And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” Luke 14:14.

You will be blessed; do not underrate blessings just because you cannot spend them. Blessings take the form of peace in your heart, peace in your home, and peace with those around you.

Your wallet might be blessed, not so much that it will be filled, but what is often overlooked is that it might empty slower. The work of your hands may be blessed, you may be blessed by your coworkers, or your employer, and you may be blessed by your customers.

Blessings are not a sounding gong, or a crashing avalanche, often they are a whisper or a soft breeze caressing your cheek. Look for them, count them, and give thanks for them, because they are courtesy of the living God who loves you and gave His Son for your sake, the greatest of all blessings. Above all, bless others.

“Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:31-32.

“Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion. Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ Therefore ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:9-21.

“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.” Philippians 4:4-5.

You will not only be blessed by God here, but you will also be bountifully repaid at the resurrection of the just.

“And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” Luke 14:14.

God is omniscient, He will not forget your goodness, and selfless deeds, and when you stand before Him you will hear with your own ears His commendations to you, and you will receive very real rewards.

“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament [sky], and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.” Daniel 12:2-3.

“According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another [every Christian] builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” 1 Corinthians 3:10-15.

A Great Supper, Part 1 taken from godisrevealed.com posted on 1-22-16, updated on 11-12-23.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version, copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission, all rights reserved.