Jesus Found in Low Places (Luke 14:7-11)

Let's start with the story of coffee that many people enjoy. Do you know what the most expensive coffee in the world is?

Kopi Luwak (Indonesian: Kopi Luwak) or civet coffee is coffee made from the coffee beans eaten by Malay civets and passed through their digestive system. Even if civets eat coffee beans, the coffee beans are not digested and excreted. It is mainly harvested in Indonesia, Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi and the Philippines and Timor-Leste. Kopi Luwak is the most expensive coffee in the world, with prices ranging from $120 to $600 USD per pound. It is 10 to 50 times the price of regular coffee beans available in the market. They are even more precious and expensive because their quantities are limited, with only around £1,000 per year being supplied to the global market. A cafe called “Heritage Tea Rooms” in Queensland, Australia, sells Kopi Luwak for AUD 50 a cup, which is said to be about 4 cups a week. Also, at a restaurant inside a department store in London, England, a coffee called “Caffe Raro,” a mixture of Kopi Luwak and Blue Mountain, is sold for £50 a cup (about 80,000 won). why? Why is Kopi Luwak, like cat dung that no one seems to care about, so expensive? It is respected for its uniqueness and rarity. Now that it is famous, consumers have diversified, but in the past, it was a precious coffee enjoyed only by people in the know. There are similar stories in the Bible. The baby Jesus, who came to save the world, was also born in a manger full of excrement and filth. Some people looked down on the lowly and feeble figure of the baby Jesus. However, if the whole world knows why Jesus came and his precious value, they will hold onto Jesus no matter how expensive it is. It's still a long way from Christmas, but let's think and answer the following questions for ourselves. "Why was Jesus the savior born in a lowly manger?”

In common sense, it doesn't make sense that the One who will save the world is born in a low, lowly, cattle manger. Moreover, he was born not in Jerusalem, but in a village called Bethlehem, and grew up in a village called Nazareth. Before becoming a disciple of Jesus (John 1:46), Nathanael rejected Philip's testimony, humbly asking, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" In this way, Jesus came to us with a life where he was born and raised in a place that no one could acknowledge. Even the intellectuals and wise men of the time, the Magi, did not know the “lower world view”. He was so zealous that he did not hesitate to come all the way to follow the stars to worship the king. Moreover, he did not come empty-handed, but prepared gold, frankincense, and myrrh. They were very polite. However, the place they went to meet the baby Jesus was Herod's palace. Since you are a precious person, of course, you thought that you would be in a high place. Our view of the high places is what I call “Herod’s worldview.” Herod went so far as to slaughter countless lives in order not to usurp his own high position. People with this worldview do not have Jesus as their king, but rather live with a view of life that wants to become a king like Herod himself. However, Jesus came to a lower place. And, the wise men eventually come to a lower place, not a higher place, and can worship Jesus. Every time Christmas comes, our children also have the heart of Herod, “What gift will we receive this Christmas?” However, Jesus came to give Himself all. When I think of Jesus at Christmas, another question comes to mind. "why? Did he come in the form of a baby, infinitely frail and unable to live without help?”

People don't expect a savior to be a baby. Babies cannot live without the help of their parents. The only ability is to cry. The people of the world do not accept such a baby Jesus as their savior, nor do they realize that his soul is running toward hell.

The Jews are still waiting for a “militarily powerful Messiah” like King David, so they cannot accept Jesus as the Messiah, who came in the form of a weak baby and was slain on the cross. The same was true of the disciples who followed Jesus. The sons of Zebedee, James and John, say this because Jesus was portrayed as the super hero of Israel, a mighty warrior who would overthrow the Roman regime. (Mark 10:37) “In your glory, give us one to sit at your right hand and one at your left.”

Jesus replies (Mark 10:38), “You do not know what you are asking.” On the contrary, the disciples' request brings to mind the following words (Mark 15:27): “And they crucified two thieves with Jesus, one on his right hand and one on his left.” Those who confessed that Jesus is Lord on the cross of Golgotha, the seat of sinners, will hear the news of the gospel.

(Luke 23:43) “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

The name of Jesus means “He will save his people from their sins”. Also, Immanuel means “God is with us.” ▶ Yes. Jesus came to a lowly and lowly place in the form of a weak person to be with us, to forgive us our sins and to save us. Please believe in this gospel message. Ex) When I was in the 5th year of public school, I watched a movie about Pastor Joo Gi-cheol’s life story called ‘Towards a High Place’ at Myungbo Theater in Chungmuro with my church family. The title of the movie is to go to a high place, but in fact, that high place was the site of martyrdom like the Hill of the Cross of Golgotha. When I saw the pastor walking on the nail plate full of nails, I turned my head away. Like the title of the hymn we sang today, the place where Jesus calls us is the hill of the cross where Jesus went first. Paradoxically, when you go to the lower places in the world, you are pointing towards the higher places in the sky. ● Go low! why? = Because the Lord is there. Jesus invites us to “the feast of salvation” through the parables of Luke 14. Just like in our country, there was a concept of the so-called chief seat in the days of Jesus. The high seat was in the middle, and it was usually the high seat that occupied the seat next to the owner. The Pharisees wanted a seat like this. Through the Pharisees, we rediscover ‘Herod’s view of the world’ that points to the heights. The owner of the banquet had the power to relocate the seats of his guests, even if everyone at the meal had already been seated. The owner made the chief person sit on the highest seat, and depending on the circumstances, he could tell the first person to get out of the table. However, Jesus tells us to go to the lowest seat, not the upper seat. Because (verse 11) “He who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” When man exalts himself, God humbles him. When man humbles himself, God exalts him. How should I understand the meaning of low places? Is it the simple wisdom of life? It is not just a level of humility. When we see it in the light of the gospel, we discover a deeper and nobler meaning. ▶ As the story of the salvation of the baby Jesus born in the manger was described, the low place is a place where you can meet Jesus and reveals the way of salvation of Jesus. The message of salvation cannot be preached in Herod's way. Jesus is our King, and the place where we can meet the Lord is not in a high place where success, wealth, and honor abound, but in a life that is humbled by the life of the cross, where we deny ourselves daily.

(James 4:8) “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” ▶ (James 4:10) “Humble before the Lord, and the Lord will exalt you.” You must not understand. Then we fall into the simple error that the rich and the high cannot be saved, and the poor are saved. Even the poor live with material things, and even the lowly ones will not be able to meet Jesus if they cling to success. If even the rich live a life of sharing by visiting the lowly, and if the high-ranking people live a life of serving the lowly, it will be a life of knowing where Jesus is and experiencing the gospel and the power of salvation. That is the life of daily denying yourself, taking up your cross, and becoming more like Jesus. ▶ All of the saints, I hope you will have a blessed life where you will meet Jesus in a low place and experience the events of salvation every day. ● Meaning of going low = Serving those who can't pay. Plant the gospel in them. The mystery of the gospel is hidden in today's invitation. At the time of Jesus, Jews had a 'balanced reciprocity' within the culture of the Greco-Roman society. The person who opened the feast and invited it was done only if the person who was invited was at a similar social level. This is because it is the custom of the invited person to give a return in a reasonable amount within a relatively short period of time. The invitation between the upper and lower classes of society was almost unimaginable. In the story of Luke 14:15-24 that follows today's text, the person who can hold a great feast invites the poor and the disabled who are not on the same level as themselves. The banquet, which was not a give-and-take ceremony, was offered at no cost to the Jews and disciples who listened to the word, and it was customarily incomprehensible to them. As Christians, we serve and give to someone, not because we can get it back. We must remember that Jesus Christ solved the problem of sin that we could not solve on our own and that He gave us free salvation. The life of the cross following Jesus is a life of giving freely in a low place.

“Intentionally,” we must deny Herod's worldview. “Intentionally,” we must possess the worldview of Jesus who came to this earth and died on the cross to save us. The ultimate goal is a life of obedience, devotion, and martyrdom, giving up your life for the sake of the gospel. We have been called to the message of salvation and become children of God. And, following Jesus, like Jesus, we are sent to the lower parts of the world. We will experience the God of the lowly in our daily lives, and we will enjoy the joy of salvation every day, longing for a low place. May the grace of meeting the Lord be with you there.