For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted

 

 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.  And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy.  And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"  But they kept silent.  And He took him and healed him, and let him go.  Then He answered them, saying, "Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?"  And they could not answer Him regarding these things.  

So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them:  "When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; and he who invited you and him come and say to you, 'Give place to this man,' and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.  But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher.'  Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.  For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." 

 

- Luke 14:1-11 

 

Yesterday we read that some Pharisees came, saying to Jesus, "Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You."  And He said to them, "Go, tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.'  Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem.  "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!  How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!  See!  Your house is left to you desolate; and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"

 

  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.  And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy.  And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"  But they kept silent.  And He took him and healed him, and let him go.  Then He answered them, saying, "Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?"  And they could not answer Him regarding these things.  This argument continues from the events of the reading on Wednesday, in which Jesus healed a woman who'd been infirm for eighteen years.  That healing varied slightly, in the sense that her infirmity was seen as an affliction of an unclean spirit.  This illness, we should note, is not attributed to a spirit.  Dropsy was a term for edema, caused by heart failure which led to accumulation of fluid and resultant generalized swelling.  But the issue here which is taken up by Christ is the same one as at that earlier healing.  The scribes and Pharisees had built up traditions around the Law, and in that tradition healing was considered work; it therefore was not permissible on the Sabbath.  But, once again, building on His previous argument (in Wednesday's reading), Jesus brings up the issue of a working animal, for whom exceptions were made if its life were threatened on the Sabbath.  Hence, they cannot answer Him.

 

 So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them:  "When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; and he who invited you and him come and say to you, 'Give place to this man,' and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.  But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, 'Friend, go up higher.'  Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.  For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  My study Bible points out that this parable is directed toward guests, while the one that follows (verses 12-14, to be included in Monday's reading) is directed toward hosts.  In imitation of Christ, it says, perfect humility is expected of guests, and boundless charity is demanded of hosts (see James 4:6).

The note in my study Bible regarding the command for perfect humility of guests, and boundless charity of hosts, should make us pause to think about what we might call today common courtesy, or good manners.  These traditions of charity, which over time became understood as good manners or courtesy, should not be forgotten as institutions made holy for us by Christ.  We can see in the readings in the Gospels the various aspects of formal practices at feasts and dinners which are mentioned, often coming from religious practice, such as formal washing of cups or other vessels (Mark 7:4).  Jesus also takes to task a particular host for being remiss by comparison to a notorious sinful woman who anoints Him with oil.  When Jesus knows that His host is scandalized by the woman, He first tells a parable about forgiveness and love, and then He says to him, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head. You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in."  These are customs of courtesy we may assume are present in the society.  But Jesus takes courtesy, especially in the forms of humility and charity (about which we shall read in Monday's reading) to another level, and renders them essentially commands of God.  In the practice of humility at public events, Christ speaks of gracious behavior.  In so doing, He says, we will be exalted and receive for ourselves a kind of glory in the presence of others.  This enshrining of gracious behavior is something we shouldn't forget in our own commerce and interaction with others, no matter the occasion.  For should we engage in both humble behavior or charitable behavior, in both cases we are not simply following the dictates of polite society or good manners, we are following Christ to be "like Christ."  These are commands for humility and compassion, for the practice of charity, for charity also depends on the graciousness of humility and not boastfulness or self-indulgence.  When we practice such practices of "good manners" we are, in effect, engaging in the spirit of Christ, treating others as we would be treated, and thus we can consider His words to be His gracious response to us:  "For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."   Therefore let us ask ourselves to be consciously aware of such behaviors, and not consider the forms of social intercourse of every day life to be absent significance for Christ -- for here in today's reading He declares them to be so by preaching about them.  Every small instance of engagement with another, whether we are a guest or a host, or even simply a chance encounter, is an opportunity for participating in the spirit of God through such practices of humility and charity, both synonymous with gracious behavior.  It's my belief that we're given these teachings in the Gospels for significant reasons, therefore they should not be dismissed as mere social teachings or customs, but we must see them instead as precious to Christ through His own words here.  Jesus teaches us "what manner of spirit we are of" (Luke 9:55).  In the monastic tradition, hospitality was so treasured in response that even prayer would be interrupted in order to greet a stranger at the door.  In a modern secular context, we are often unaware what social class, wealth, education, and other differences make to people, and the significant impact they have on social interaction.  Such differences can be intimidating.  For one faithful to Christ, humility can be a form of recognizing these difficulties and treating all with equal graciousness and kindness, honoring the "poor in spirit" beloved of Christ (Matthew 5:3).   We can also understand Christ's words as teaching those with many blessings the absolute necessity for humility.  Let us take to heart the significance of each opportunity for doing as Christ commanded.  In the presence of the stranger or the one known to us, we are given an opportunity to serve Christ, no matter how insignificant or unknown to others we may consider the encounter to be.