Friends, it’s a joy to be back with you. On September 4, 2026, my wife gave birth to our third child, a little girl named Scarlett. We are overjoyed. I highly recommend having babies in your forties. From the moment Scarlett was born, it was clear that she is a Cohen. If you look at her physical appearance, it’s clear that she looks just like my son, just like my daughter, and just like me. My poor wife. I hoped we might get one that looks just like her. If you look at our precious Scarlett, it’s clear that she has the physical characteristics of a Cohen. Our passage in Luke chapter fourteen this morning focuses on one particular characteristic, not of those who belong to the Cohen family, but of those who belong to God’s kingdom through faith in Jesus Christ.

Luke 14:1-24 focuses on one particular characteristic that marks everyone who has repented of their sin, received Jesus Christ as their only hope in life and in death, and been welcomed into God’s kingdom by grace. It focuses on one characteristic of those who have already entered God’s kingdom spiritually and will be exalted into God’s kingdom physically and forever on the last day. That characteristic is humility.

Listen to how our Lord puts it. Luke 14:11 — For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Humility is a saving grace that characterizes everyone who has entered God’s kingdom through faith in Christ and will be exalted on the last day. It’s the family resemblance.

The 19th-century Anglican Bishop J.C. Ryle put it this way: “Humility may well be called the queen of the Christian graces. To know our own sinfulness and weakness, and to feel our need of Christ, is the very beginning of saving religion. It is a grace which has always been the distinguishing feature in the character of the holiest saints in every age.”

That brings us to the big idea of our passage this morning: The humble will be exalted.

The humble will be exalted.

If the humble will be exalted, then who are the humble? What is humility so that we can cultivate it more and more? Our passage provides three answers:

1. The humble let Jesus question them (vv. 1-6).
2. The humble wait for Jesus to exalt them (vv. 7-14).
3. The humble receive Jesus’ invitation to the banquet (vv. 15-24).

THE HUMBLE LET JESUS QUESTION THEM

Let’s set the scene for our passage. Throughout chapter thirteen, the Lord Jesus was going on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem, where he will die for the sins of his people and, on the third day, rise. Along the way, in chapter fourteen, the Lord Jesus accepts an invitation to eat a Sabbath meal or banquet at the home of a ruler of the Pharisees.

Luke 14:1 — One Sabbath, when he went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees, they were watching him carefully.

One New Testament scholar points out that the phrase “watching him carefully” implies that they were lying in wait and ready to pounce. They didn’t invite Jesus to learn from him, but to find fault in him, and it seems that they have their chance.

Luke 14:2 — And behold, there was a man before him who had dropsy.

Now, we don’t know if Jesus’ opponents planted the sick man there or if the man came to the meal seeking healing from Jesus, but either way, Jesus does not let his opponents pounce. Jesus goes on the offensive and begins to question those present about what is and what is not appropriate to do on the Sabbath.

Luke 14:3-6 — And Jesus responded to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” [4] But they remained silent. Then he took him and healed him and sent him away. [5] And he said to them, “Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?” [6] And they could not reply to these things.

This discussion between the Lord Jesus and the lawyers and Pharisees probably sounds familiar. The Lord Jesus Christ teaches that the Sabbath is the ideal time to heal someone because the Sabbath is like a sign on a trail that points toward the summit. The Sabbath is a sign that points to the new creation, when all who repent and believe in Jesus in this life will be welcomed into God’s eternal rest.

The Sabbath is like a sign that points to the future new creation where there will be no dropsy, no disease, and no death. Therefore, the Sabbath is the perfect time to heal.

The Pharisees and law experts don’t see it that way, so Jesus questions them to help them change their minds. Jesus questions them, confounds their wisdom, and silences their objections, but they still won’t change their minds.

Their problem is pride.

They question Jesus rather than allowing Jesus to question them.

As New Testament scholar Tom Schreiner puts it: “The Pharisees and lawyers are present not to be questioned but to question Jesus; they are unwilling to be examined themselves, for they position themselves as critics and judges, not as those willing to learn and grow…The religious leaders have nothing to say in reply, but they are not humbly reconsidering their views.”

In pride, the lawyers and Pharisees exalt themselves over the Lord Jesus. If they don’t repent and bow the knee to Jesus, they will be eternally humbled because only the humble will be exalted.

These verses lead us to one simple, profound application: Let Jesus question you.

The humble will be exalted. The humble let Jesus question them.

The humble let the Lord Jesus question and examine how they feel, what they believe, and the way they live. And when Jesus tells the humble to feel differently, believe differently, or live differently, the humble adjust to Jesus rather than being like the lawyers and Pharisees who remained entrenched in their own views.

The humble let Jesus question them.

The humble cultivate an attitude of total teachability before Jesus.

The humble let Jesus question them.

Jesus questions us through two means: His Word and His people.

The first means through which Jesus questions us is His Word, the Bible.

So, when you sit under the preaching of God’s Word, when you’re together studying God’s Word at Citygroup or in a discipleship group, or when you’re reading God’s Word privately and Jesus begins to question your feeling, believing, or living, the humble who receive His kingdom say, “Lord, this is different from the way I’ve been feeling, believing, or living. You’re my Lord, you’ve saved me from my sins, you have the words of eternal life, so help me to humbly adjust to you.”

That’s how the humble let Jesus question them.

Do you let Jesus question you?

For example:

1. When Jesus questions your joylessness by saying, “rejoice in the Lord always” (Phil. 4:4), do you begin rejoicing, or do you rationalize that your circumstances or personality give you a pass on rejoicing right now? Do you let Jesus question you?
2. When Jesus questions your sexual ethics by saying that there should not even be a hint of sexual immorality among you (Ephesians 5:3), do you kill fornication, cohabitation, lustful looks, and fantasy-inducing entertainment? Do you let Jesus question you?
3. When Jesus questions your words, tone, and anger by saying that a soft answer turns away wrath (Prov. 15:1), or that a fool gives full vent to his spirit but a wise man quietly holds it back (Prov. 29:11), do you hold it back and answer softly? Do you let Jesus question you?
4. When Jesus questions your unforgiveness, bitterness, or grudge-keeping by saying, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave you” (Eph. 4:32), do you seek God’s grace to forgive from your heart? Do you let Jesus question you?
5. When Jesus questions your parenting priorities by telling you to raise your children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord, or when Jesus questions how you treat your mom and dad by saying, “children obey your parents in the Lord” (Eph. 6), do you adjust? Do you let Jesus question you?
6. When Jesus questions your generosity by saying, “it’s more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35), do you start giving away your money and your time to magnify Jesus? Do you let Jesus question you?

Jesus questions us through the Bible, but Jesus also questions us through other Christians. When another Christian gently but honestly says, “Are you regularly reading God’s Word and talking to Him? Are you planning to follow the Lord in baptism? Why have you still not joined the church? Are you killing this sin or that?” and so forth, are you letting Jesus question you through them?

The humble will be exalted.

The humble remain always teachable before Jesus.

Are you letting Jesus question you?

The humble let Jesus question them.

Second…

THE HUMBLE WAIT FOR JESUS TO EXALT THEM

Let’s get back to the Sabbath dinner at the house of the ruler of the Pharisees. While at the dinner, Jesus noticed the guests at the banquet doing something that is the opposite of humility.

Luke 14:7 — Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they chose the places of honor, saying to them…

Dinner parties and places of honor were a big deal in the first century. As one scholar puts it: “In an honor/shame culture, the places of honor at a banquet reveal one’s social status and influence. Dinners were regarded as barometers of one’s prestige in the gathering and the community. The dinner becomes a place for social jockeying and self-advancement.”

In response to this jockeying for respect, honor, and recognition, Jesus tells the guests what is often called The Parable of the Wedding Feast. Jesus tells the guests that when they are invited to a wedding feast, they should not sit in a place of honor, lest someone with greater status arrive and the host tell you to get up and move to a less honored seat. That would be humiliating.

Jesus then told the guests that instead they should sit in the lowest place so that the host might see them and say, “Friend, move up higher.” If you do that, you’ll be exalted rather than humiliated.

Of course, the point of the parable is not to teach these self-seeking people a cunning technique to manipulate others into honoring them. That’s the exact opposite of the point. Jesus’ point has nothing to do with how you seat yourself at social gatherings for maximum public honor.

Rather, the point of Jesus’ parable is that those who humble themselves and receive God’s kingdom with the empty hands of faith now will be exalted eternally. The point is that the humble don’t seek to be honored by people in this life; instead, they wait for Jesus to exalt them.

Jesus then turns his attention from the self-seeking actions of the guests at the party to the self-seeking actions of the host himself.

Luke 14:12-14 — He said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. [13] But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, [14] and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

Of course, Jesus’ point is not that it’s sinful to invite your family and friends over for dinner. Jesus himself often ate with his friends and disciples. Jesus’ point is that the host and the guests are doing the exact same thing: They’re seeking honor for themselves.

The guests are jockeying for the seats of honor in order to be made much of by people. The host is inviting his friends, relatives, and rich neighbors in order to receive a return invitation and be repaid in some way.

The guests and the host are suffering from the same symptom of pride: they’re seeking praise and honor from people in this life.

Seeking praise and affirmation and honor and respect from people in this life is a bit like dropsy; it’s an unquenchable thirst. Seeking to be honored in this world will leave you full, but never satisfied.

However, the humble will be exalted.

The humble wait for Jesus to exalt them.

Now, our passage provides two practical ways to wait for Jesus to exalt you.

The first is: Refuse self-promotion.

Refuse to seek honor for yourself. The people at the dinner party sought the best seats as a badge of honor and a means of self-promotion. However, Jesus’ kingdom-citizens are characterized by humility. Humility waits for Jesus to exalt us to his heavenly banquet and refuses self-promotion and honor-seeking in this life.

We trust in the final reward and exaltation, so we can say no to self-exaltation in this life.

Very practically, instead of jockeying for recognition at school or work, seek first God’s kingdom in the way you study or the work that you do. Work hard as unto the Lord, not unto people. Humble yourself under God’s hand by doing the Lord’s work in the Lord’s way.

See no work as beneath you. Do all things with excellence, humbly, for God’s glory.

Instead of seeking constant affirmation and honor from a friend, be a godly friend. Instead of constantly seeking to be honored by your wife, be a godly husband, and the same goes for wives with husbands.

Proverbs 27:2 says, “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.”

Humble yourself under God’s mighty hand, and he will exalt you, perhaps in this life, but certainly at the resurrection of the just.

That’s the first way our passage teaches us to wait for Jesus to exalt us.

The second is: Do good to those who can’t repay you.

Remember, Jesus’ point was not that the host can never have his friends over for dinner. Rather, Jesus’ point was that if the host only invited his friends, family, and wealthy neighbors in order to receive repayment and an invitation in return, then you’ll receive your reward in full in this life.

The wealthy and upwardly mobile—as many, if not most, of you are—face a strong temptation to exclusively socialize with one another in order to be rewarded in this life.

However, if you show hospitality to those who can’t offer you anything in return, if you do good to those who can’t bring any advantage to your life, if you aid the poor and the marginalized, then you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just, as Jesus says.

Now, refusing self-promotion and doing good to those who really can’t advance you in any way requires an eternal perspective because you may never be acknowledged, repaid, promoted, or exalted in this life.

If you believe that you’re a sinner and are bankrupt toward God, but receive His kingdom by the grace that is offered in Jesus Christ, and you set your hope fully on the grace that will be yours when Jesus returns, then you can be free from the urge to promote yourself and can instead wait for Jesus to exalt you to his heavenly banquet forever.

The humble will be exalted.

The humble let Jesus question them.

The humble wait for Jesus to exalt them.

Finally…

THE HUMBLE RECEIVE JESUS’ INVITATION TO THE BANQUET

Let’s return one more time to the Lord Jesus’ awkward dinner party. At this party, the Lord Jesus has healed a man with dropsy, questioned the lawyers and Pharisees about their view of the Sabbath, confronted the guests for seeking places of honor, and corrected the host for inviting people in order to receive a return invitation or be repaid. It’s an awkward dinner party.

At this point, one of the more socially adept people at the dinner jumps in and tries to change the subject to something more pleasant.

Luke 14:15 — When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

The man is exactly right, but the Lord Jesus won’t entertain the man’s desire to tone things down at the dinner party. Yes, blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God, but Jesus responds to the man by ratcheting up the temperature at the meal by telling a parable that explains why so many, in fact, won’t be among the blessed who eat bread in the kingdom of God.

Luke 14:16-24 — But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. [17] And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ [18] But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ [19] And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ [20] And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ [21] So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ [22] And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ [23] And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. [24] For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’”

This parable reveals two little-known characteristics of the pride that keeps one out of God’s kingdom.

First, pride is blind to God’s lavish invitation.

The man at the party was exactly right: blessed is everyone who is invited to the end-times banquet in God’s kingdom. The prophet Isaiah anticipated the eternal banquet in the Messiah’s kingdom.

Isaiah 25:6 — On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.

The Apostle John affirms that it’s an incredible blessing to be invited to the eternal marriage supper of the Lamb in Revelation 19:9 — And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

So, the man is correct: True blessing is being invited to the eternal marriage supper of the Lamb, but pride is blind to the lavish, expansive, wondrous invitation and instead spits in the face of God who invites.

Second, pride chooses the lesser joy over the greater joy.

The people in the parable choose fields, oxen, and wives over the far greater joy of eating bread in the kingdom of God. Choosing created things—even glorious ones like a wife—over eating bread in the kingdom of God is, as C.S. Lewis once wrote, like a child choosing to make mud pies in a slum because they can’t comprehend the idea of a vacation at the beach.

Pride always chooses the lesser joy over the greater one.

So, what should we do? Put the world behind you, accept Christ’s invitation to the eternal banquet, and compel others to come in.

Leave off every excuse. Turn away from a life of mud-pie-making and receive the far greater joy of God’s kingdom. Repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and He will save you from your sins and welcome you into God’s kingdom forever.

Embrace the greater joy, and because the Master wants his home filled, compel others to come in as well. Don’t merely tell others about Jesus Christ and His gospel; passionately compel them to come in.

As Charles Spurgeon once said, “If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees, imploring them to stay. If Hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go there unwarned and unprayed for.”

CONCLUSION

The humble will be exalted. The humble let Jesus question them, wait for Jesus to exalt them, and receive Jesus’ invitation to the banquet.

The humble will be exalted, and we can be sure of it because our Savior humbled himself, and He was exalted.

Philippians 2:5-11

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.