City Church Charlottesville Sermon Podcast
Invitation || At the Table || 9/1/24
- Welcome to City Church. We are a biblically-based, relationally driven, spirit-led church, encouraging everyone to follow Jesus, grow together, and serve others. We're excited to share this sermon with you today, and you can always find out more about us online at citychurchceville.com. - Well, good morning. It's all staying together. And as we stand, we're going to do what we always do here at city, and that is we're going to pray the prayer of the kingdom of God, which is known as the Our Father or the Lord's Prayer. We're gonna pray it out loud together, and as we pray it out loud together, we're gonna ask the Lord to accomplish that in and through our lives. So here's what Jesus taught us to pray. This then is how you should pray. Our Father, who is in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth in Charlottesville, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. Amen, turn, give your neighbor a fist-bump, high-five hug, handshake. Take a few moments to greet each other, and you may be seated if you're not seated already. So if you've been here at City You Know, we are in the middle of a sermon series that's entitled "At the Table with Jesus." This sermon is gonna focus on invitation, an invitation that Jesus receives to go and eat in someone's house. Now, before we get there, though, I wanna start with a question, and we're gonna begin with a question, then we're gonna take a look at one episode in Jesus' life that's sort of the precursor or the on-ramp for the major episode we're gonna take a look at from the Gospels. But I wanna begin with a question. The question is this. Is there a difference between meeting someone at a restaurant and inviting them to eat a meal with you in your home? Is there a difference? How many of you would say there's a difference? Raise your hand. Yup. What is the difference? Food in both places. There's probably silverware in both places, so what's the difference? One of them is, some of you who know about budgeting well, you know if you meet a friend at a restaurant, you'll spend between 30 and 60% more if you eat out than you would if you ate at home. How many of you already know that? How many of you have been living crosswise with that for a long time? But the other thing is this, and we intuitively know this. We know that if we're gonna meet someone for a meal and we invite them into our home, it is fundamentally different than meeting them at a restaurant. And why is that? Well, one of them is, is that our home, there's an old saying, home is where the heart is. And so when you open your door and you invite someone in, there's something that feels like you're exposing who you are, isn't that true? And I can prove that point very carefully by doing the following. At this moment, if we said, you need to stand and turn and look around you and pick 10 people and you're gonna go get in your car, in their car and you're gonna drive home right now. And you're gonna have them in your house within 20 minutes and you're gonna be eating with them. How many of you would even remotely be open or willing to do that? There's like two families. And the rest of us are not on your life and here's why. Because that storm that went through last night, your house looks like that storm went through the front door and out the back door. You know what I'm talking about, right? The idea is though, because there's something that kind of exposes you. It's more than just eating food when you open your home. I've grown to have a theory and the theory is this. Every king and every kingdom has weapons. So it works. These are the greatest weapon for the kingdom of God. A fork and a spoon. If you follow Jesus, his greatest advancement of his kingdoms was often around a table eating food. As a matter of fact, one of my mentors taught me when you meet with people, always have food, always. There's something about food. And how often do you see Jesus when he connects with people and there's food and he's in a home and the kingdom advances? You see, these are the weapons of the kingdom of God. It's called hospitality. Hospitality. And for those of you who couldn't see in the back, I brought the big ones too, so that you could see those. Now the reality of it is, is that Jesus had no home. And in this culture, everyone knows to have hospitality, you have to have a home, so people invited him into theirs. And we're gonna take a look at an episode where Jesus is invited into someone's home. But before we get to that, we need to again, have a little on-ramp story that paves the way for the major episode we're gonna look at. We're gonna be taking a look at Luke chapter five verses 21 through 25. Now we need to set the stage. First of all, to set the stage, this is an episode where Jesus heals a paralyzed man who is lowered through the roof by four of his friends. The other thing we need to understand is this. That in the day of Jesus, this isn't a harsh oversimplification, but for the sake of understanding and maybe reading the New Testament well, there's a oversimplification. But in the time of Jesus, this will be hard to believe, there were two kind of political parties in the day of Jesus. Is that hard to believe that there were two? And here's how they separated out. This party over here was made up of the Pharisees. It was made up of a group called the Essenes. This group over here was also made up of a group called the Zealots. And the Zealots were kind of the nefarious crew among this group. The Zealots would kill people who went against their agenda. These were the ones, the Pharisees, the Essenes, along with the Zealots, and oh, by the way, the teachers law, that said we should have nothing to do with Rome at all, nothing. And if you, in quotes, kind of get in step with Rome, you could actually be killed by the Zealots. This group over here is very different. This group, and you'll read about all these groups in the gospel. This group over here, there's the Herodians. The Sadducees, the high priests, and a group called the tax collectors. This group thought there was nothing better than Rome. And so the nefarious group among this group, though, are the tax collectors. They're the ones who take money from Jews and give it to Rome's. And just so you know, the Zealots like to kill the tax collectors. They would slip up in the crowd and stick them with this little dagger called a sicker and kill them. They're assassins. Now just to kind of let the cat out of the bag early, Jesus had Simon the Zealot and Levi or Matthew the tax collector in his Havera of disciples. It's very intentional. Jesus chooses people that hate each other and says, "Come, follow me." Now here's the thing though. The leaders of each of these different sects can't stand each other. And if you hang out, if you're in this group and you hang out with that group, you'll be dead to them. You're not allowed to go back and forth. Now with that said, what I want us to do is take a look at the on-ramp to the story where the Pharisees and the teachers of the law will become very central for us and our understanding of what it means to use these weapons well. In Luke 5, 21 through 25, Jesus forgives and heals a paralyzed man. Again, this man has been dropped through the roof. His four friends have lowered him down. He's literally kind of hanging on some type of a hammock in front of Jesus. And here's what the text says. When Jesus saw their faith looking at the four guys that had lured this paralyzed man down, he said to the paralyzed man, "Friend, your sins are forgiven." He announces forgiveness over him. And the Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, "Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but who? God, only God." Jesus says the following, "Which is easier to say, your sins are forgiven or to say, 'Get up and walk.'" But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. So he said to the paralyzed man, "I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home and immediately he stood up." Now here's what's mission critical to understand. Being forgiven for your sins at the time of Jesus was completely dependent upon the biblically prescribed sacrificial system, along with the authority of the priests serving in the temple in Jerusalem. Therefore, if Pete Harwig is sinned, there were all different types of sacrifices. I would have to take them to Jerusalem, hand them to the priests. The priests would do the sacrifice, and then the priests would tell me when I'm forgiven. Does that make sense? Jesus sits in the middle of a conversation and announces forgiveness. And that's why everyone in the crowd went, "Wait, what? You can't do that." There is a biblically prescribed way to get forgiveness. So Jesus' declaration of your sins are forgiven ultimately means that his authority to forgive sins is not granted by the priestly sacrificial system, but instead bypasses it and comes directly from God. So here's the thing. When Jesus says, what Jesus says and does concerning forgiveness in our modern business world is known as an industry disruptor. What's an industry disruptor? An industry disruptor is a person or a company that comes up with a new idea that makes the old one either completely obsolete or almost obsolete. Let me give you a classic example. Henry Ford and the automobile. Now, if you're confused, here's my question. Did you come here on horseback? You didn't. That's an industry disruptor. It could also be things like what's called email. How many of us sitting here in the last month have written a handwritten letter, put it in the envelope and sent it in the mail? Raise your hand. Real high. How many of you don't even know what I'm talking about, right? Why? Because it's email that's an industry disruptor. Now, the snail mail's not obsolete, but there's a new thing that everyone's using. But here's the reality, when Jesus shows up and he announces forgiveness from him, he is an industry disruptor. What has been is going to move towards being obsolete, and there's going to be a new way to find forgiveness from God. Now, on the heels of that, the next story is the one we're really going to sink our teeth into. And it's found in Luke chapter 5, verses 27 through 32, and it's where Jesus calls Levi and his other name in the Newer Testament is Matthew. He wrote the Gospel of Matthew. So when you hear Levi, think Matthew. Jesus calls Levi and eats with sinners. So here's our reading, and then we're going to dive in. Here's what the text says. After this, after what? After Jesus has just announced he has the authority to forgive sins and forgives the paralyzed man and then heals him, the next thing that happens is this. So right after that, this happens next. It says after this, Jesus walks out the door of the house, and Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi, who's also Matthew, who's by the name of Levi, sitting at his tax booth. In other words, he's in the midst of his sin, like right in the sway of it. Jesus goes and sees him sitting at the tax booth and says, "Follow me," Jesus said to him, "and Levi got up, left everything and followed him." Then Levi held a great banquet. I want us to say those two words out loud. Ready? Great banquet. For Jesus at his house, he didn't take him to McDonald's next to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. He took him home. We're going to come back to that. And a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, who belong to their sect, complained to his disciples. Now remember, there's two theological political views. That's an oversimplification at the time of Jesus. And the Pharisees and the teachers of the law are over here. Don't have anything to do with anyone who is cooperating with Rome. You don't do that. By the way, theologically, Jesus is a Pharisee just so you know. His theological understanding and preaching lines up very closely to what Pharisees believe. And what ends up happening is Jesus goes in to the home of a what? A tax collector. That's that nefarious extreme end of the other theological political view. Here's a guy who is actively cooperating with Rome against the Jews. And so Jesus goes into his house. And again, it says, but the Pharisees and the teachers of the law from that group, who belong to their sect, complained to his disciples. Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners? Jesus answered them. It is not the healthy who need a doctor but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. And loved ones, that is the best news you'll ever hear. It's huge. And why can Jesus say that? He has the power to forgive you. He has the power to forgive you. And he just proved it in the prior episode. Now, let's focus in on just a couple of sentences from what we just read. Luke 5, 30 to 31. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, who belong to their sect, complained to who? To his disciples. But who answers them? Jesus does. Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners and who answers them? Jesus, here's why. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law know that they've just been eating with the wrong people and they come up to his disciples and ask him, "Why were you guys eating in there with tax collectors and sinners?" And they don't have an answer because they're creeped out too. They don't want to be in there. And so they're like, "I don't know. Do you know? No, don't know. I don't know why he took us into that evil guy's home like Levi. Why did he do this?" And they're kind of like, "The whole time we're in there, our skin is crawling. The whole time it was gross. There were sinners everywhere we looked. There were these sinful people." And so Jesus has to answer them because they have no answer. And what is Jesus' answer? It's profound. Jesus' answer to them is quite simple. I didn't come for healthy people spiritually. I came for those who are sinners and need to repent. That's why I'm here. Now, for those of you who like to go a little bit deeper biblically, here's something that is so easy to miss in the story that we just read. Because notice this story about the great banquet Levi hosts in his home for Jesus never tells us what was said by the people who are sitting around those tables. The power of the story is about the kinds of people Jesus eats with in Levi the tax collector's home. A lot of times when there's a meal, you'll get, you'll clue in on the dialogue. Luke doesn't tell us anything about the dialogue. In other words, the message is who's sitting there. That's what you're supposed to hear. But here's the thing. The text is clear that Levi threw Jesus a great banquet. What we need to understand if you want to go a little bit deeper biblically is this. Is it all Jews? At the time of Jesus are waiting for God to set them free and then culminate the end of the age. And at the end of the age, there's going to be what's called the great banquet. Now, if we pick up our reading, we're going to notice that people around Jesus were well aware that at the end of time there was going to be a big feast or a big banquet. And Luke 14, 15 tells us when one of those at the table with him heard this, another table group meeting. When they were there with Jesus, he said to Jesus, "Blessed is the one who will eat at the... at in the kingdom of God." In other words, there's an expectation, there's going to be a feast, a huge one. And blessed are those that are going to be able to eat at the feast of the kingdom. It's also called the great banquet. Now, it comes from a prophecy written 700 years before Jesus from Isaiah 25, 6 through 9. Now, picture, you're in Israel. The hobnail boot of Rome is slowly crushing the life out of you and your people. Your freedoms are completely gone. A big chunk of the people that you know and love are now cooperating with Rome. Or maybe a good chunk of the people that you know and love are completely opposed to that. The culture is fractured and broken. Does this sound familiar at all? It's fractured and broken and people that knew and loved each other, now hate each other and the separation is all over. But I want you to catch Isaiah's prophecy. Isaiah 25, 6 through 9, Isaiah looks into the future and here's what he sees. On this mountain, the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast, a rich food for all peoples. Here's the word, a banquet, a feast and a banquet prepared by God of aged wine, the best of meats and the finest of wines. On this mountain, he will destroy the shrouds that enfold all people. The sheet that covers all nations, he will swallow up death forever. The sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces. He will remove his people's disgrace from all the earth. The Lord has spoken. In that day, they will say, "Surely this is our God. We trusted in him and he saved us." This is the Lord we trusted in him. Let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation. Here's what we need to clue into. When Luke says that Levi the tax collector, the despised, and hated extreme end of that theological political view through a banquet for Jesus, Luke is hinting to you, this is what God's banquet is going to look like too. In other words, when the great banquet is held, you're going to sit around tables and you're going to look across the table and think, "How did they get here?" And they are going to be looking at you going, "How did they get here?" Look around the room. Yup. These folks, some of whom are sinners, because Jesus has the power to forgive, because Jesus has the power to forgive, will be at the banquet too. Now, at the table with Jesus, how do we put our feet to our faith with this? First of all, these are the weapons of the kingdom of God. Hospitality at your house. Hospitality in your dorm room. Hospitality, if you don't have a house, just show up at someone else's and say, "Can I use your house for the kingdom of God? God will bless you and you'll never miss the food you give us." That's what Jesus did, just so you know. So what I want us to do is whenever you look down at silverware from now on, I want you to look at it and go, those are the ultimate weapons of the kingdom of God. Hospitality, opening my home, inviting people in. But when you do that, if you're at all like Jesus, you're going to invite people that don't believe anything close to what you believe, whether theologically or politically. The other thing is this. Is that when you invite people into your home, I'm going to beg you. Don't be all fretting over cleaning and sweeping and making the food amazing. Let God worry about that on the great banquet day. You'll never out cook him anyway. Just open your home, open your heart, and invite people in. And if you're a sinner, a book of Revelation has a little episode where the text says, "Jesus stands at the door and knocks, and whosoever would open the door, and let him in, he'll come eat with you too." He really wants to. And why would he do that? He has the power to forgive. Stand with me as we close. This Blake and the worship team prepares to lead us. Could you just close your eyes but open your heart? There's an incredible invitation that God gives to every one of us. There will come a day at the end of all things where there will be a massive feast, a banquet, where death will be removed, the shroud that covers all nations will be finally removed completely, and God with his own finger will wipe away every single tear. It's going to be amazing. When we open our homes, it's a foretaste of that. But truth of it is, if you sit here and go peat if you only knew where I've been and what I've been doing, I promise you Jesus would never come to meet with me. He wouldn't go anywhere near my apartment, my dorm room, my house. He would never come anywhere near me. I promise you, you don't know him. If you open the door, he will come in, and he will eat with you. And what comes with him is the supernatural forgiveness of God. Will you open the door to him? (gentle music)