<p>17:7 <i>But who is there of you, having a servant ploughing or keeping sheep- </i>Not all the disciples were dirt poor. Their fishing business employed hired servants. The parable about &ldquo;one of you&rdquo; having a servant ploughing and preparing his food was spoken to the twelve. This continues the theme so far developed in the chapter; that we should have the love, faith and vision to be forgiving and radically inclusive of others. The disciples had asked for more faith to forgive effectively without repentance when repentance is patently insincere; and the Lord gives part of the answer in this observation that we are all desperate sinners. The motivation for radical forgiveness of others is because we recognize that even if we are fully obedient, we are &quot;unprofitable servants&quot;; and even the highest standard of behaviour, as was seen uniquely in the Lord, is simply what is expected of us as God's servants.</p><p><i>That will say to him when he comes in from the field: Come immediately and sit down to eat</i>- We are not worthy to sit at the table of our master and eat. Eating together has been a theme of this entire section, beginning in chapter 15, where the Lord answers the objection that He eats with sinners. The elder brother of chapter 15 and the &quot;rich man&quot; of chapter 16 refuse to eat with the likes of the prodigal son or Lazarus. To motivate us in not being exclusive and rejecting our brethren from the Lord's table, we are here reminded that our place at His table is by grace. For in no secular situation at that time would a servant ever eat at his lord's table as an equal, let alone have his master serve him there. And yet this is that the Lord Jesus does to us; this is the unique nature of His table.</p>