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Breakfast with the Word Monday 31st Week Ordinary Time Year B
Luke 14:12-14
Giving Without Expectation
Have you taken your time to think about some people that you helped in life? Can you also remember how many of them forget you within a twinkle of an eye? Did you discover that many people that you helped do not even remember you again? This is life.
I have once thought of this. In the end, I discovered that the more we expect much from people whom we once extended a hand of giving the more we will be disappointed. It is better to give for the sake of giving. It is much better to give for the sake of God.
In the gospel, Jesus says that when you have a banquet or celebration invite people who cannot repay you. It does not mean that it’s wrong to invite your friends.
The message is that true hospitality is the one we do without expecting something in return. Giving with expectation is not charity. it is a trade by barter. Giving without expectation is the true hallmark of the Christian life.
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The Point of Reflection.
In Luke 14, On a Sabbath day, Jesus was invited to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, it was there that he noticed how the guests picked the places of honour at the table.
He, first of all, advised the guests that it is very wrong to scramble for the seats of honour when someone invites them to the table.
After advising the guests, He focuses on the host. Jesus advises the host, that when hosting a banquet, dinner or lunch, he should not invite friends, relatives and brothers so that they repay him by inviting him in return.
Jesus rather said to him “when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
A Little Digest.
The first point we have to explain here is that Jesus is not against inviting people who are close to us during ceremonies and occasions.
It is not wrong to extend invitations to your parents, brothers, sisters, friends and relatives. To understand this gospel, we have to evaluate the background that He is coming from.
The Background
It was obvious that the pharisee who organised this dinner invited many of His friends who are also Pharisees and experts of the law, which must have made Jesus make this statement.
It is also obvious that the leading Pharisee neglected the poor and the needy at the feast. My reasons for this assumption are:
1. When Jesus wanted to heal a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body in the house of this pharisee, verse 1 of this chapter said that Jesus was being carefully watched.
We do not need another revelation to let us know that these people watching Jesus must be the Pharisees and the scribes. They are always against Jesus’ healing on the Sabbath. So, they were present at the dinner.
2. In verse 3 of this chapter, Luke mentioned the group of people who were there when he said that Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law there, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?”
Therefore, the major people who were honourably invited are the Pharisees and the experts of the law.
3. The man who was suffering from abnormal swelling of the body was even neglected and may not be there because of the feast. He may have come there for healing and that could be the reason he came in the presence of Jesus for Jesus to see him.
These are not part of the reading today. The above analysis aims to explain the reason for Jesus’ statement.
Do Not Give to Expect something in Return.
So, in the gospel text, Jesus tells the host “When you give a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends, brothers, relations or rich neighbours, for fear they repay your courtesy by inviting you in return.
We have to read through that again, and pay attention to the clause “do not invite…, for fear they repay”.
Therefore, the message is not that we do not invite those close to us but do not invite people for the fear or the desire they repay you.
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Therefore, Jesus is saying “do not invite, do not give or help for the sake of expecting something in return.” When we do this, we have already received our rewards.
What the Gospel is not saying.
1. The gospel is not saying that we do not invite our friends and relatives, No. Rather, we do not do it only to those who will give us something in return.
Remember that it was immediately after this that Jesus gave the parable of the great banquet from verse 15. In the parable, the Host invited everyone. So, it is contradictory to say “do not invite” later you invite.
2. It is not saying that when people give you gifts, you will reject them, No. Rather, extend a helping hand and invitation to people who cannot also give you gifts.
There is a Reward When We Give Without Expectation.
Jesus tells the host, “when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Jesus enlisted these people as an example of what He is trying to tell the Pharisee.
These groups of people that He mentioned are seen as the lowest of classes in their time.
Therefore, the message is that when we invite our friends, let us not forget those who are in desperate need of that food. Let us not also forget those who cannot pay us back.
There is always a reward when we give to those who have not. There is a reward when you give without expectation.
When you give with expectation, you may suffer betrayal, hurt, heartbreak etc. Hence, when we give without expectation, we often have an inner satisfaction.
When we give for the sake of God, there is this inner joy that will surely occupy our hearts. There is an eternal reward when we save lives for the joy of doing it. Not when we do it expecting appraisal and reward.
Therefore, it is very wrong to only help those who can help you back or invite only your beloved ones. We have to remember also the poor, the needy and the downtrodden. There is an eternal reward.
2. It is wrong to associate with people only based on what they could do for us. That is selfishness. There is something wonderful in giving a gift that one can never repay you.
It is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35).
This kind of living will cost us something, yet God will repay us with the full repayment coming at the resurrection of the just.
Therefore, we should not limit our aim of giving to this earthly realm, we shall also remember that we have an eternal destination. Let us always keep that in mind.
The True Charity.
Giving without expectation is the true charity. Today, we find it very hard to give without expectation and that is why many people today feel a sense of entitlement to someone’s resources.
You do not have any entitlement to anyone’s resources and no one is entitled to you.
Some people also think they are indebted to the other person, you are not too. The practice of giving without expectation seems impossible, but this is a true act of kindness. This is the type of charity that God wants. Eternal reward comes from giving without expectation.
The mistake that we normally make today is when we give and expect something in return from the other person. The more we do this, the more we lose ourselves.
If you want to give, give for the sake of giving. If you want to help someone help because you want to help. It is more blessed to give without expecting. This is the message of today.
So, It is not true giving, if we expect something in return. Giving with Strings Attached is not giving.
We must not have one eye on giving and the other eye on calculating the return. That is selfishness. We have to give for no selfish reason at all. This is the charity that God loves.
Consider these Quotes
When you put others in front of you, whether intended or unintended, things just happen. It’s magical. Be it in life or business, I implore you to always seek to be the giver first. If you can give without expectation, you’ve got everything to gain. It’s not an easy trait to acquire but it’s certainly something I advise everyone to work towards… Gary Vaynerchuk
How I rose to prominence is when I was giving out my thoughts and writing for the sake of changing humanity. I derive joy in doing that, I never knew when I wrote about 20 books, many audio tapes, and go to seminars. I survived because I was not doing it for the money, I was doing it for the world. So, it gave me joy doing what am doing even when the gain is not coming forth. God came back to me. Do the same, you will succeed… Anthony Robbins
The best givers give in ways that are thoughtful and courteous and they aren’t worried about receiving something in return from whoever they’re giving to. When they give, they believe karma will come back around for them, through other means…Dan Tamasulo, PhD
May God bless you and never forsake you. Amen
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