� � of 3 1Won’t You Be My Neighbor, Week of July 16, 2017

LEADER GUIDE

HHIGHLIGHT: Luke 14:12-24

12“He also said to the one who had invited him, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, don’t

invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors, because they

might invite you back, and you would be repaid. 13On the contrary, when you host a banquet,

invite those who are poor, maimed, lame, or blind. 14And you will be blessed, because they

cannot repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” 15When one of

those who reclined at the table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is the

one who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” 16Then he told him: “A man was giving a large

banquet and invited many. 17At the time of the banquet, he sent his servant to tell those who

were invited, ‘Come, because everything is now ready.’ 18“But without exception they all

began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out

and see it. I ask you to excuse me.’ 19“Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m

going to try them out. I ask you to excuse me.’ 20“And another said, ‘I just got married, and

therefore I’m unable to come.’ 21“So the servant came back and reported these things to his

master. Then in anger, the master of the house told his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the

streets and alleys of the city, and bring in here the poor, maimed, blind, and lame.’

22“‘Master,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, and there’s still room.’

23“Then the master told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges and make them

come in, so that my house may be filled. 24For I tell you, not one of those people who were

invited will enjoy my banquet.’ ”

� � of 3 2Won’t You Be My Neighbor, Week of July 16, 2017

LEADER GUIDE

EEXPLAIN

Leaders: Feel free to use any of the “Explain” materials to guide discussion as it is needed or to expound on a certain area of the text as it comes up during your Life Group time, but the purpose of this section is to deepen your own personal understanding of the Word. Your members have access to all of this material as well.

In this passage, Jesus is having a meal with some religious leaders at the home of one of the leading Pharisees on the Sabbath because He was invited. His ministry had been picking up steam, and so the Pharisees had been watching Him closely. He uses this opportunity to use a parable to teach about the Kingdom of God—how it is an upside-down kingdom. He shows us how God pours His grace on those who are neither worthy to receive it, and who could not ever be able to pay Him back for His generosity.

v.12 When Jesus says “don’t invite your friends, your brothers or sisters,” etc., the word for “do not invite” is more specifically “do not habitually invite.” Jesus is not saying it's wrong to be generous to your close friends and family; He’s making the point that it’d be wrong to only be generous them. Jesus is getting at the heart of this matter: these Pharisees were doing favors for each other because they knew that those they did favors for would do them favors back. This is the attitude that’s wrong—we shouldn’t be generous only with those who are able to repay us; we give without even thinking about getting anything in return.

v.14 By talking about being repaid at “the resurrection of the righteous,” Jesus is re-adjusting His audience’s perspective—shifting it from the temporal (you obviously lose resources by giving them away) to the eternal (giving them away is an investment for the future). It’s important to remember, though, that we don’t live generously in order to be repaid later. We live generously because God has given generously to us.

vv.16-20 In an age before clocks, when someone was throwing a party, they’d announce the day of the party beforehand, but the actual time wouldn’t be announced until that day. The guests would be aware that the banquet was that day and, assuming they accepted the invitation, they would have been expected to clear their schedules. Refusing to come on the day of the party after having accepted the invitation already was a grave offense. That is what underlies the excuses that these people give—they knew the day was coming, and they’d already given their word to be there. At this point they were just weaseling out of their commitments.

Each of the excuses, though different, are just that—excuses. Spurgeon wrote that hope lies at the end of excuses: “Excuses are curses, and when you have no excuses left there will be hope for you.” People offer excuses to avoid answering Christ’s call all the time—Salvation is a free gift from Him to those who believe, but people will put themselves and their desires ahead of His invitation.

Each of the excuses that the people in the parable give are different, but they share something in common: they are excuses the people “made.” They knew this day was coming, and so they should have been ready for it, but when the day came they put it off.

vv.21-24 Because the master was determined that someone would enjoy his feast, he was going to make some come in. It wasn’t that he was going to force some to come in, but those who understood they didn't deserve to come but had an invitation anyway would feel so compelled by love that the only logical choice would be to go and enjoy the feast set before them.

This is a lesson for us in two ways: first, it demonstrates a proper attitude toward Salvation. Once we recognize that we are in no way deserving of the gift we’ve been given, but we’ve been offered it anyway, we are compelled by love to accept it. But it is also the way we are to show grace to those around us. We are to offer grace to people without expecting anything in return, whether or not they deserve it.

� � of 3 3Won’t You Be My Neighbor, Week of July 16, 2017

LEADER GUIDE

A

R RESPOND Take a few moments to respond:

• Write down the name of one person you can intentionally show Kingdom hospitality to this week. Make plans to show them hospitality they won’t be able to repay you for.

Encourage one another through email, text messages, or coffee dates throughout the week to build up and encourage each other.

APPLY Your Leader Guide will have material that the member guides do not have. The bolded material is what the people in your group will have, the other material is only for you to help guide discussion.

This guide can be as strict a script or as general a resource as the leader needs it to be.

1. What stuck out to you or challenged you in what you heard in the sermon or read in the text?

2. When is a time you’ve been shown hospitality? What were the circumstances? How did it make you feel?

3. How is the Gospel the ultimate example of the Master’s hospitality in Jesus’ parable?

Notice the parallels between this parable and the Gospel. God has given us an opportunity to join His family and dine at His table—we just have to accept that invitation. Unfortunately, many people have been extended the invitation and make excuses to reject it. We are in an amazing position, though: we have both accepted the invitation and have the privilege of extending it to others.

4. Not everybody has the resources to throw an elaborate banquet to invite strangers to. What is something you have that you can give without expecting anything in return? How might this give you a chance to have a “God conversation” with someone?

The simple act of inviting someone over just to eat dinner with you with no agenda and no strings attached is something that’s relatively rare in today’s society. Think of resources you have (time, talent, cooking skills, etc.) that you can use to live generously and hospitably with those around you.

5. In Jesus’ day, some looked at the poor and handicapped as people who were punished by God and who were unworthy of His blessings. How does Jesus turn the tables on this view? Where do you encounter people who are less fortunate than you? Who is one person you can demonstrate Kingdom hospitality to this week?