How embarrassing would it be to have Jesus tell you to “get up and move” to another seat? Here’s how to avoid that from happening:
Pick the lesser seat. This whole passage is about humility. Humility is when we consider that someone else is better at something than we are. It doesn’t mean that we think less of ourselves, just “of ourselves less”. When humility is spoken of as a spiritual attribute it has two applications. 1. We must acknowledge (and then back it up with action) that Jesus is better at everything than we are. That means He has a better idea for what person you should marry, what job you should have, what movie you should see, what joke you should laugh at, and what you should do with your Sunday morning or afternoon. Given that, Jesus should be able to change our behavior with a simple command. Humility demands it. If Jesus tells us to do something, for instance: in the Bible, and we choose to ignore it then we are not humble toward God. This passage reminds us that only those who give up everything will inherit heaven. When we give up everything, we don’t physically lose it…we just lose control of it. God now has the authority to tell us what to do with whatever we have, whether it be money, time, talents, occupation or friends. God is in charge.
The second way humility is displayed is between Christians. “In humility consider others better than yourself” Philippians 2:3. The Christian puts the desires and needs of others ahead of his/her own. I have heard it described in this way “think of a room full of people who are seated around a banquet table, but each has utensils that are so long they cannot bring them back to their mouth. The Christians will feed each other, so that everyone gets to eat”. In that scenario, if you only look to your own interests, not only do you starve but so does someone else. If love is an engine, then humility is the fuel. We recognize as brothers and sisters in Christ that God speaks through each of us, and inhabits each of us. So when we treat others well, that reflects back on how we feel about Jesus.
Have a great day of serving one another, in love because of humility.
PR