Revolution

“When you give a dinner, do not invite your brothers, your friends or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid.  But 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.” Luke 14:12-14.

It is great to do good things for the people we love, but I have found myself guilty of expecting too much in return from them lately. I can easily fall into the mindset of  “what can I get from spending time with this person.” But that isn’t how Jesus called us to act as His disciples. Jesus walked this earth with the “how can I invest in this person by spending time with them” mindset.

It is very easy to use those around us, most of the time without realizing what we are doing. Our natural human tendancy is to figure out what we can receive from others, not what we could give them. I love this verse in Luke, becuase we are reminded that true giving means to expect nothing in return. How many times do we give a gift, only because we are expecting something in return? Jesus laid His life down on the cross for us, knowing well, that many would not return His gift by laying their lives down for Him. But He did it anyways. I would challenge you to start finding people who cannot repay you, and start blessing them. For it says, “Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”