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I Put Others First

October 16, 2022

Luke 14:1-6

1One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. 2 There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body. 3 Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” 4 But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way.

5 Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?”6 And they had nothing to say.

Read Luke 14:1-4

  1. Does this story sound familiar? Do quick review of the book of Luke up to this point. How many similar stories like this have we already encountered?
  2. The Pharisees did not really love Jesus, and Jesus was regularly quite critical of the Pharisees. Nonetheless here is Jesus once again breaking bread with an opponent. What does this suggest to you? Who are the opponents in your life that, perhaps, you should be more willing to break bread with?
  3. Do you think it was a coincidence that a man in need of healing just happened to be at the home of a prominent Pharisee for the Sabbath meal? From what you have seen of the Pharisees up to this point in Luke’s gospel, do you think they may have brought him in intentionally in an attempt to trap Jesus? Why or why not?
  4. Why do imagine the Pharisees and the experts in the law remained silent? This kind of question and answer about the law of Moses was their stock and trade. It’s how they operated. Why remain silent now?
  5. In many of the accounts we have read, Jesus has something to say to the person being healed. That doesn’t happen here. Do you see any significance in this?
  6. Verse 4 concludes by saying that Jesus sent the healed man on his way. When is the last time you can recall that you felt like God was sending you to go and do something specific? What came of that?
  7. For an extended deep dive on the subject of keeping the sabbath, try this article: https://www.scottlapierre.org/lawful-on-the-sabbath/. Share with the group any insights you received from this lengthy article.
  8. Do you think this is a case of Jesus temporarily setting aside the laws related to the sabbath? Or do you think this is a case of Jesus having a different understanding of the sabbath laws than the Pharisees did? Explain.