A Sabbath Controversy

1One Sabbath, when he went in to eat at the house of one of the leading Pharisees, they were watching him closely. 2There in front of him was a man whose body was swollen with fluid. 3In response, Jesus asked the law experts and the Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” 4But they kept silent. He took the man, healed him, and sent him away. 5And to them, he said, “Which of you whose son or ox falls into a well, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 6They could find no answer to these things.

Teachings on Humility

7He told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they would choose the best places for themselves: 8“When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, don’t sit in the place of honor, because a more distinguished person than you may have been invited by your host. 9The one who invited both of you may come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in humiliation, you will proceed to take the lowest place.

10“But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when the one who invited you comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ You will then be honored in the presence of all the other guests. 11For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

12He 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.”

The Parable of the Large Banquet

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.’”

The Cost of Following Jesus

25Now great crowds were traveling with him. So he turned and said to them, 26“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters — yes, and even his own life — he cannot be my disciple. 27Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.

28“For which of you, wanting to build a tower, doesn’t first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? 29Otherwise, after he has laid the foundation and cannot finish it, all the onlookers will begin to ridicule him, 30saying, ‘This man started to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

31“Or what king, going to war against another king, will not first sit down and decide if he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32If not, while the other is still far off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33In the same way, therefore, every one of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple.

34“Now, salt is good, but if salt should lose its taste, how will it be made salty? 35It isn’t fit for the soil or for the manure pile; they throw it out. Let anyone who has ears to hear listen.”