Give where it cannot come back

The social world Jesus lived in ran on reciprocity, and honestly, so does ours. You invite people who will invite you back. You give where it will be noticed, appreciated, returned. None of that is evil. It is just an exchange, and Jesus wants you to see it clearly, and then step past it:

When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you.

Luke 14:13-14

Because they cannot repay you. He puts the dead end right in the invitation. That is the feature, not the flaw.

He says it even more sharply elsewhere: love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. There it is again, the family resemblance. God's generosity flows to people who will never send a thank-you note. To give with no possible return is to act like your Father.

Un-repayable giving also performs a quiet surgery on the giver. It answers a question you cannot otherwise answer: was my generosity about them, or about what it got me? When repayment is impossible, only the love is left. That is why this kind of giving changes the giver even more than the receiver.

So look at your generosity honestly. How much of it flows toward people who can advance you, thank you publicly, or owe you one? And how much flows quietly downhill, to people who can do absolutely nothing for you back?

Tomorrow: he is asked to rank every command in the Bible, and he answers with two.