Luke 14:1-4 The Great Sin. The Greater Gift.

September 1, 2026 

The Ten Signposts of the Bible

CAMDE—400—CALY

Creation. Abraham. Moses. David. Elijah. 400. Christ. Apostles. Letters. Yet-to-Come.

In his classic book Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis devotes an entire chapter to what he calls “The Great Sin.” Lewis says, “Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, all that, are mere fleabites in comparison….”^[1] Any idea what that “great sin” is? Lewis is talking about pride. He says, “It was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.”^[2]

Pride is the disease that infects us all. The Pharisees in Jesus’ day were full of it. It sounds crazy, but their legalistic efforts to please God had produced an “anti-God state of mind.” Jesus, God in the flesh, stood before them, and they saw him as a threat to the religious system they had built and followed. 

On the Sabbath, a ruler of the Pharisees invited Jesus to dinner. Luke notes that the Pharisees “were watching [Jesus] carefully” (Luke 14:1). They were trying to catch him saying or doing something that would give them grounds to bring charges against him. When Jesus arrived at the Pharisee’s home that day, Luke said, “And behold, there was a man before [Jesus] who had dropsy” (Luke 14:2). 

Dropsy is an old term for what doctors now call edema. It is abnormal swelling caused by fluid buildup in parts of the body, and it often points to a problem with the heart, liver, or kidneys. However, the Pharisees believed that this disease was God’s judgment on sin and a refusal to obey their laws.^[3] A man with dropsy would have been considered unclean and an unlikely guest at a dinner hosted by a prominent religious leader. Therefore, I think it is possible that this man was a “plant” whose appearance was arranged to see how Jesus would respond, since it was the Sabbath.

Jesus seized the opportunity to ask a probing question.

Luke 14:3–6

 And Jesus responded to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” But they remained silent. Then he took [the man with dropsy] and healed him and sent him away. And [Jesus] 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?” And they could not reply to these things. 

The Pharisees invited the sick man to dinner, hoping to accuse Jesus of breaking the Sabbath law, but Jesus used the moment to confront their pride. In Jesus’ day, where you sat at a special dinner mattered greatly. Those seated closest to the host, a ruler of the Pharisees, were considered people of prestige and honor. Jesus saw the guests trying to sit as close as possible to the host and claim the most esteemed seats. They arrived early to secure these coveted spots, only for a more distinguished person to come later and take their place. This custom highlighted their elevated view of themselves.

Luke 14:9–11

“…And he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” 

This practical teaching had both personal and national implications. On a personal level, each of us must acknowledge and confront our pride. The apostle Peter said, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you…” (1 Pet. 5:5–6).^[4] Jesus is our ultimate example. Our Lord humbled himself to go to the cross, and because of this, God “highly exalted him” (Phil. 2:1–11). 

Let’s be honest: pride affects all of us every day. As Christians, our standard is to follow Jesus, and that call should lead us to honestly and continually examine ourselves for any self-focused actions, attitudes, or motives.

On a national level, the Jews thought they deserved God’s “seats of honor” based on their nationality. But they were rejecting the Messiah. And, as he said he would do in the Old Testament, God was inviting all the nations of the world to come to him through his Son. 

Jesus makes this point by continuing his message to the Pharisees. 

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.  But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.” 

What a powerful picture of God’s grace! He offers the free gift of salvation to those who could never repay him through human status or performance. When we humble ourselves to receive the gift of Jesus, we will be eternally “repaid at the resurrection” as those made just by Jesus. The greatest sin is paid for by the greatest gift. 

Read and reflect on Luke 14:1–14: Where does pride show up most often in your life? Are you seeking recognition, control, status, approval, or the feeling that you are better or more deserving than others? What would it look like to intentionally humble yourself before God in that area?

Talking to God: Ask God to show you areas of pride in your life. 

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