Monday Morning Music Ministry

6-1-26

“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.” Among the many popular phrases that we regularly employ and whose origins are obscure, this one has a logical source.

Its earliest recorded use actually quoted a saying that had already been in use.

The Church Father St Jerome writing around 400AD, in the Patristic Era, referred to a popular proverb Noli equi dentes inspicere donati – basically, “when you receive the gift of a horse, do not insult the benefactor by critically examining the animal’s teeth.” (You would appear ungrateful by checking if it were “long in the tooth,” another latter-day proverb.)

As is often the case, the Bible has its own version, a relevant application of the aphorism. In Luke 14 a rich man prepares a sumptuous banquet for his friends, only to find that many of his guests declined to attend. Worse, the flimsiest of excuses were proffered by those who bothered to RSVP. As Jesus related this parable, the rich man sent out for strangers to be invited; and then, to fill out the table, the highways and byways were combed for the poor and destitute to share in the banquet.

As I related last week, Mickey and I recently returned from a postponed three-week honeymoon in Europe. Adhering to today’s theme, we visited drop-dead gorgeous and famous sites, but did not look a gift horse in the mouth at any time (although there are butcher shops specializing in horse meat, for humans, in France and Italy…)

Horse meat, no. But we did enjoy beef cheeks in Ireland; frog’s legs in France; pig cheeks in Germany, where it was also white-asparagus season; smoked salmon and caviar (for breakfast!) in Florence; and exotic dishes like deep-fried baby artichoke chips in Rome. We loved it all – not exactly American picnic food – discovering odd-sounding but tasty dishes like pajata (the ancient Roman dish with little sausages made of the naturally filled intestines of unweaned calves).

Don’t look gift cheeks or lizard legs or veal offal or fish eggs in their so-to-speak mouths.

But in the parable of Jesus, the rich man’s friends did exactly that. They did more than answer his generous invitations with rudeness. They cheated themselves. In the story they did not turn up their noses, or mouths, at the esoteric menu of a rich man; surely he offered the basic meats and vegetables and breads and wines too. No, they were too rude, or lazy, or self-centered, to return their host’s gracious invitation. As I said, they cheated themselves.

They bypassed more than filling their bellies: They flouted basic courtesies. They missed fellowship, great relationships, and possible long-term personal fulfillments.

The truths behind the parable are obvious. Christ is the Rich Man who has prepared a wonderful spiritual feast for us all. He happily welcomes everybody – even those people frequently shunned by the world; the outcasts, the forlorn, the hungry. All are invited to the Banquet of the King.

To me, a major focus is the group of invitees who would otherwise consider themselves “first in the line.” How often are people too “busy,” or preoccupied, or self-centered, to respect the Host, the Invitation, the amazing fruits of the Master’s Table? Answer: Too often. All of us frequently are deaf to the Lord’s appeals to us.

His banquet table is open to us (we are part of the “all”!) Are we too good to respond to God, His gifts, His love? How dare we ignore His spiritual and material blessings!

Whether exotic fare or simple bread and wine, our priority must be the One who invites us, not the specific menu items!

Dinner is served!

+ + +

Click: Welcome Table