Luke 17:7-10 7“But will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep after he has come in from the field say to him, ‘Come at once, recline at table,’ 8but rather say to him, ‘Prepare what I will eat and preparing yourself to serve me while I eat and drink, and after these things you will eat and drink’? 9Does he thank the servant because he did the things commanded? 10So you also, when you have done all the things commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have done what we ought to have done.’ ”
This parable is the last saying of Jesus in this long teaching section that began back in chapter 15. It reveals a common cultural response that gives a clue to its message. Jesus gives this parable in the form of rhetorical questions. The first one is quite long, spanning verses 7-8. It starts off by setting the scene. Servants should be out in the field or taking care of the sheep, which is one reason people would have servants. Servants, or in some situations, slaves were the lowest in the job market and did the menial work in a large estate. In that economy, there were few rich but many poor who would earn enough money or support for one day at a time. Being a servant was not easy. The expected answer to the first question is that the typical master would not invite a lowly servant to eat. Servants were to eat separately and not have a feast at the master’s table.
The second part of the question would have been more culturally acceptable and what the typical master would say. The servant’s job was to cook for the master, who would get to eat first. The servant would get to eat the left overs. The master was first in everything. The servant was to serve the master. The listeners would agree with the second question and not the first.
In verse 9, Jesus gave the apostles (verse 5) a choice about how they should respond to him and his teachings. The expected answer to the question in this verse is “no.” A servant should not assume the position of the master and expect special treatment. A servant must do his or her job willingly and with full commitment.
In case the disciples missed the point of the story, Jesus makes it clear in verse 10. The first part shows the expectation, that the apostles and all who will follow Jesus should do all that they are commanded, because that is the job of servants. They could have a proud attitude and put themselves in the spot of the Master and assume more than they should, or they could be humble and do as directed. The key point is that Jesus is not the servant but the Master. The job of followers is to follow, not to lead.
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