Luke’s Gospel indicates that the evangelist may have particularly appreciated good food – at least it shows clearly that he noticed and commented on food more than any other Gospel writer! But Luke does not simply mention food and meals – he draws lessons from them.
As a frame of reference, we should notice that Luke’s account of the life of Jesus really does have a noticeable focus on food. For example, while Matthew uses the word “eat” 18 times, and John only 15 times, Luke uses the word 33 times. Mark also uses this word quite frequently (25 times), but overall Luke uses a number of eating and food-related words twice as many times as Mark and the other Gospels, so his emphasis on this is clear. Within his Gospel, Luke also – uniquely – describes ten meals in which Jesus participated, and we will look at them all briefly.
Luke’s Gospel indicates that the evangelist may have particularly appreciated good food – at least it shows clearly that he noticed and commented on food more than any other Gospel writer! But Luke does not simply mention food and meals – he draws lessons from them. As a frame of reference, we should notice that Luke’s account of the life of Jesus has a noticeable focus on food. For example, while Matthew uses the word “eat” 18 times, and John only 15 times, Luke uses the word 33 times. Mark also uses this word quite frequently (25 times), but overall Luke uses a number of eating and food-related words twice as many times as Mark and the other Gospels, so his emphasis on this is clear. Within his Gospel, Luke also – uniquely – describes ten meals in which Jesus participated, and we will look at them all briefly.
1) Dining with the Despised. Luke 5:27-32 tells the story of how Jesus accepted an invitation to “a great banquet” at the home of Levi (Matthew) – one of the hated tax collectors employed by the Romans. We are told that “a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them” and that the Pharisees and religious teachers who saw this complained “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” The first meal Luke describes immediately teaches us that eating with others is an important form of showing true acceptance. It’s a lesson we can all learn from. Is there someone we could eat with as a way to show our acceptance and love for them?
2) The Horrible Host. Luke 7:36-50 records how Jesus went to eat at the home of a certain Simon, one of the Pharisees who invited him but did not provide him with any of the normal forms of welcome and comfort. Dinners such as this were often eaten partially outdoors in the cool of the day, which meant that the woman who came to anoint Jesus with costly perfume would have been able to see and go to him. But the woman crossed an invisible social barrier in doing this and in her subsequent actions, and when the self-righteous Pharisee became indignant Jesus gently corrected him while showing support for the woman. Sadly, in many families, more arguments occur during meals than at any other time and Jesus’ actions teach a valuable lesson in the effective de-escalation of interpersonal tensions at such times. We can learn a lesson from this regarding keeping our meals and interactions positive.
3) Catering for a Crowd. Luke 9:10-17 tells how a large crowd of people followed Jesus to hear his teaching, and the disciples then urged him to send them away so that they could find food and lodging. Jesus felt empathy for the tired and hungry crowds, however, and performed the miracle of feeding the crowd of five thousand with only two fish and five loaves of bread. The story contains a symbolic lesson in that the twelve baskets of “crumbs” the disciples gathered up after the meal (vs. 17) doubtless represented the twelve tribes of Israel for which Jesus was providing spiritual food. But at the practical level, the story teaches us the need for an observant and thoughtful attitude that looks for and sees the needs of others, and that we should never hesitate to help those in real need because we do not have much ourselves.
4) The Hassled Hostess. Luke 10:38-42 describes a dinner Jesus attended at the home of his friends Mary and Martha. When Mary sat and listened to Jesus, Martha complained that she could not complete all the preparations by herself. Jesus, of course, gently rebuked Martha by telling her that sometimes listening is more important than eating, and pointed out that she was “worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed” (vss. 41-42). Meals can be an important part of our relationships with others, but they shouldn’t become an end in themselves. Less food may be better if it means more time together.
5) Consider Cleanliness. Luke 11:37-53 is a somewhat different meal story. When a Pharisee invited Jesus to eat with him, we are told “the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not first wash before the meal” (vs. 38). We do not know exactly what the Pharisee said, but Jesus’ response was withering: “you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness” (vs. 39). Jesus then continued by detailing some of the Pharisees’ problems and showing them their hypocrisy. The dinner seems to have ended at this point, but Jesus doubtless knew this meal was doomed from the start (vs. 53). Of course, the lesson from this meal can be applied in our own lives if we are more concerned with details of physical cleanliness than with cleanliness of thought, speech, and attitude.
6) Principles with our Provisions. Luke 14:1-24 tells how “One Sabbath …Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee.” Jesus used this dinner as a teaching opportunity and told three parables, each with its own lesson – the lawfulness of healing on the Sabbath day, the principle of humility in not taking the place of honor at banquets, and the principle of inviting “the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind” to our feasts (vs. 13). The second two principles are certainly ones that we can apply in our own lives when we are invited to a meal or offer one to others. And if we think about them, of course, these principles can be applied in many other areas of life as well as meals.
7) A Salvation Stopover. Luke 19:1-10 gives the story of Zacchaeus, a tax collector at Jericho who wanted to see Jesus and hear his words. While Jesus had doubtless been offered dinner at a number of “respectable” homes, he had evidently declined as he was only planning to pass through Jericho (vs. 1). But seeing Zacchaeus’s receptiveness, Jesus invited himself to the man’s home (vs. 5), ate there, and brought the word of salvation to him (vs. 9). Sometimes we need to be willing to stop doing even the most important work or be willing to change our plans in order to fit in a meal or other activity that can make a difference in someone’s life – as Jesus certainly did with Zacchaeus (vs. 8).
8) Making the Meal Matter. Luke 22:14-38 is the account of the most memorable meal in the Gospels – that of the Last Supper Jesus shared with his disciples. Although the meal symbolized and was spiritually all about Jesus and his coming sacrifice, Jesus explained this, but focused nonetheless on guiding and serving his friends (compare John13:3; etc.). Today, most of our big celebrations – birthday, anniversary, graduation, and other dinners – are about us, and it is natural to tend to focus on ourselves at such times. The Last Supper teaches the opposite of this and has many lessons we can learn in this regard.
9) A Supper Surprise. Luke 24:28-35 describes a post-resurrection event when the risen Jesus – unknown to them – joined two of his followers as they walked to the village of Emmaus outside of Jerusalem. Jesus talked with the followers and explained the Scriptures to them, but they still did not realize who he was until they stopped to eat supper together. As soon as Jesus gave thanks for the food and broke the bread, as he had done at the Last Supper, the two disciples’ eyes were opened, and they recognized him (vs. 31). The lesson here is simple but important – the story prompts us to ask ourselves if people would recognize us as Christians if we were to eat with them, and if so, how?
10) Proof in the Presence. Luke 24:36-43 is the final meal Luke records in his Gospel, occurring when Jesus appeared to the main group of his disciples after his resurrection. It was at this meeting that he allowed them to see and touch his wounds to prove that it was indeed him. But, in a fascinating turn of the story, as though it was unplanned, we read “And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, ‘Do you have anything here to eat?’ They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence” (vss. 41-42). In taking a physical meal with his disciples, Jesus showed it was he – the one who had eaten so many meals with them in friendship and mutual acceptance. When we do meals right, we follow his example.
*This post is abstracted from our free E-Book, Lessons From Luke: Understanding More of the Message of the Third Gospel By R. Herbert. Download a free copy here.
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We are all time travelers to some extent. Most of us spend at least part of our lives reliving the past or thinking about the future. This is not necessarily wrong – we were given memories to remember the lessons of the past, and imaginations to see and plan for the future as well as we can. But we were never intended to live in another dimension of time.
Sadly, some Christians who have undergone traumatic experiences, or who have made mistakes they find hard to forget, spend a lot of time and emotional energy dwelling on the past – re-living or analyzing events and mistakes and often suffering through the events repeatedly. This is definitely something that we need to overcome. We should always try to learn what we can from the past mistakes that we or others have made, but as Christians we are instructed to let these things be covered by the forgiveness we have in Jesus Christ (Hebrews 10:14–18). Isaiah specifically tells us “I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins” (Isaiah 43:25 ESV – and the clear implication is that what God chooses to forget, we should also.
Anything less is not to trust in the fullness of Christ’s sacrifice – it is to proudly believe that the sins and problems of our past are too great to be covered. We may not consciously think this, but if we do spend a lot of time re-living past events we should carefully assess our thoughts and ask God for help we may need to come back from the past: to forget the details, remember the lessons, and let God move us forward. As the apostle Paul (who was as conscious as any of us of mistakes in his past) wrote: “one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead” (Philippians 3:13).
It is much healthier – both emotionally and spiritually – to look forward rather than backward. But Christians may also fall into a ditch on that side of the road of life. If we find ourselves frequently being concerned about the future, we must focus on the fact that trusting God regarding our future is a basic aspect of our faith (Matthew 6: 31–33). As Jesus said: “do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself” (Matthew 6:34).
But there is a final and equally debilitating aspect of living in the future. Many Christians begin to look to the future as an answer to the problems of the present. This is not wrong if it is part of our trust that God will work things out, but if we begin to focus unduly on the coming kingdom of God or “when I get to heaven” or prophecies regarding the end of the world and what might happen next, we can begin to live in the future and lose our focus on living God’s will and doing God’s work today. Sadly, many who do this inadvertently diminish God’s calling in their lives. We can and should pray daily for God’s kingdom to come, but that involves the institution of God’s will now just as much as in the future. The responsibilities God gives us in this regard are all in the here and now. God calls us not to live in the future to escape the now, but to live in a now that is inspired by the future.
God himself is clearly a God of the present. When Moses asked God what his name was, God told him: “I am that I am” (Exodus 3:14) – God does not focus on what he has been or will be, his identity is tied to now, to eternally filling the present. Certainly God is the alpha and omega (Revelation 1:8; 21:6) – the beginning and the end – but that means he was and will be the same in an eternal present. And that is what God calls us to be, also. Trite as it may sound, there is a lot of wisdom in the old saying “Today is God’s gift, and that’s why we call it the present.”
When we focus on living in the present-moment, whatever we do – even the simplest action – can be fulfilling God’s long-term purpose for us. The psalmist wrote “I will sing praises to your name forever as I fulfill my vows each day” (Psalm 61:8), and this is God’s intent for us – for us to keep the big picture of eternity in mind, but to live in the present of each day we are given.
We should always remember that God calls us to let the past be our teacher, to let the future be our hope, but to let the present be our life.
FINDING HAPPINESS : God’s Surprising Purpose in Your Life
By R. Herbert
Although happiness is something we all want, perhaps above all else in life, most people look for happiness in the wrong places, live in ways that destroy what happiness they could have, or find only shallow and short-lived joy in their lives. Few people turn to the Bible to answer the question of where we might find lasting happiness, and even established believers rarely focus on what the Bible might teach them about this important topic. Yet the Bible contains hundreds of verses that show us how important happiness is, where we can find it, and how we can develop it in our lives. This non-commercial and non-denominational book looks at what the Bible teaches on this subject that can help you find the happiness you were meant to enjoy. Download a free copy directly – without need for registration or email address – here.
We all live by chance to a certain extent. How a given day in our lives goes often depends on whether we got up in time to have breakfast, what the traffic was like, or because of any number of variables. As the book of Ecclesiastes confirms “Time and chance happen to all” (Ecclesiastes 9:11). But the same biblical book tells us that it is equally true that we should make thoughtful plans and be diligently active toward making them happen (Ecclesiastes 11:2,4; etc.).
Why Plan?
Our brains are wired to make plans and to follow them. As far back as 1949, the Canadian neuropsychologist Donald Hebb coined the phrase “Neurons that fire together, wire together.” Hebb’s axiom is simply a neurological way of saying that when we direct ourselves to an action and consistently repeat it, our brains reinforce the behavior. In the same way, when we plan for growth and consistently implement our plans, the directed energy and repetition builds on itself, and we grow far more than if we just wait for growth to happen.
The truth is, we rarely grow through chance alone. As is often said, “Change doesn’t happen by chance but by choice.” Just as we can’t build a home without a blueprint, we can’t grow without a plan. Even the biological growth of plants and animals is planned –the plans for growth are built into every cell.
Spiritually, this is especially important. We know we are called to grow (Hebrews 6:1; 1 Peter 2:2–3; 2 Peter 3:18; etc.), but do we grow only occasionally – by chance – when we happen to hear a sermon or read an article that we can see applies to us, or do we actively look for such information?
Do we promise ourselves we will spend more time studying the Bible or doing something productive or valuable “when we have more time” – or do we plan to make the time?
Do we help others when they happen to cross our paths and we see they need help – or do we plan to help those who need help?
God Wants Us to Plan
The word “plan” appears hundreds of times in the Bible, and we need only read the Bible’s first chapter to see that God plans everything: that he already had a plan as he began the work of creation. Later, God provided detailed plans for the construction of the Tabernacle along with plans for all the many offerings, as we find documented in the books of Exodus and Leviticus. Acts 2:23 even tells us that Jesus was “delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.” God is, indeed, the planner par-excellence – as Isaiah wrote “the Lord Almighty, whose plan is wonderful, whose wisdom is magnificent” (Isaiah 28:29).
So it is clear that if we want to grow, and we want to grow to be more like God, we need to learn to plan our growth. We cannot refuse to plan and use the excuse that we are “letting the Holy Spirit guide our lives” because the Bible (inspired by the Holy Spirit) frequently urges us to plan. Jesus himself said “suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace” (Luke 14:31–32 emphasis added). What Jesus describes here, is simply the importance of planning.
Naturally, our spiritual planning should be done in a prayerful spirit, asking God’s guidance. Proverbs tells us “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans” (Proverbs 16:3) and “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps” (Proverbs 16:9). If we desire to grow spiritually, God is more than willing to help us achieve that goal, but we must show God we want to change and we must plan for change. That is why the psalmist could confidently pray “May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed” (Psalm 20:4).
Complaining is one of the most deeply ingrained of all human traits. The biblical story tells us that the first man Adam and his wife Eve both complained immediately something went wrong (Genesis 3:11–13) and we humans can always find something to complain about – as is often said: we pray for rain then complain about the mud, our cup runs over and we complain about the size of the cup we were given!
We all complain at times, and the Bible shows that even some of its greatest heroes and servants of God occasionally fell into this problem, but the Bible is also full of examples and instructions to guide us away from this kind of attitude. This may be seen in the Old Testament stories of ancient Israel’s wanderings in the wilderness – the Israelites complained about the amount of water they had (Exodus 15), the amount of food (Exodus 16), and even the kind of food they were given (Numbers 11). In the New Testament, the apostle Paul tells us “We should not test the Lord, as some of them did … And do not grumble, as some of them did … These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us” (1 Corinthians 10:9–11). Elsewhere, Paul tells us explicitly “Do everything without complaining or arguing” (Philippians 2:14).
This biblical rejection of fault-finding is because in complaining, sooner or later, we invariably harm ourselves – and often others as well (complaining has been called the world’s oldest communicable disease for good reason). Complaining also easily turns to bitterness which can be spiritually deadly as many scriptures show (Hebrews 12:15; etc.). But even in its “milder” forms, complaining can be a failure to acknowledge God’s sovereignty in all situations, and his ability to make all things work for the best if we let him.
So how do we avoid the all-too-common failing of criticism? There are four simple things we can do that can turn a complaining attitude into a contented one:
1. Keep perspective: Contentment often only comes when we stop complaining about the troubles we have and begin to appreciate the troubles we don’t have. We may see the truth behind the old proverb that tells us “I had no shoes and complained, until I met a man who had no feet,” yet it is often hard to relate this to our own situations. As Christians, however, we have an additional reason to keep a more positive perspective in that we can choose to trust God to bring good out of even the negative things that happen in our lives (Romans 8:28).
2. Focus on something better: Psychologists know that we can only put negative thoughts and criticisms out of our own minds by replacing them with more positive things. The poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson is said to have written “Don’t … bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good.” The apostle Paul said it even more clearly when he wrote: “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).
3. Confront the problem: We often complain to others about problems or situations we are not happy about, but don’t take it to the person or people with whom we are discontented. If the situation is not one we can simply put out of our minds as insignificant, we should often follow the principle behind the biblical commands found in both the Old and New Testaments: “Do not nurse hatred in your heart … Confront people directly so you will not be held guilty for their sin” (Leviticus 19:17) “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone” (Matthew 18:15).
4. Pray about it: Rather than an “if all else fails” approach, we should often pray first about things we are unhappy enough to complain about. We may try to do what we can to avoid the problem, but if we find ourselves complaining to others – or just to ourselves – and the situation is not one we can practically take to the cause of the problem, we should switch gears and complain to God. The Bible shows God is perfectly willing to hear our concerns (Psalm 142:1–2 ) and asking his help is always the right thing to do. God does not tell us not to complain to ourselves and others without leaving us a way of help. Sometimes, all we have to do is ask for it.
Simple but effective
These four steps may seem absolutely basic – and they are – but the problem is not that they do not work for being so simple, it is with us when we do not utilize them. But once we recognize complaining in ourselves we can reject it and begin to think and speak in a more uplifting way. In his final imprisonment, the apostle Paul had perhaps as many reasons to complain about things as anyone – he was unjustly accused, badly treated, and about to be executed though he had done no wrong. Yet in his letter to the Philippians, written at that time, Paul tells us:
“Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life” (Philippians 2:14–15).
Paul’s inspiring words remind us all that whatever our circumstances we should not complain and that in not complaining we truly let our light shine in showing those around us that we who have the truth of God have nothing to complain about.
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