Grudges
and pride keep us from reconciling with each other. They destroy the thought of
forgiveness. A pastor and his wife were going to give a mid-morning garden
party. They invited everyone with engraved invitations. The delightful back
yard of the parsonage was manicured, tables decorated the lawn, and the rose
bushes elegantly bloomed their floral splendor! This was going to be THE EVENT
of the year. The night before the party the pastor discovered (to his
horror) that Mrs. Snoot, charter member, resident matriarch of the church had
been left off the invitation list. The pastor immediately dialed Mrs. Snoot.
“I’m sorry, it was a terrible oversight,” he pleaded, “Won’t you please come to
the garden party anyway?” Mrs. Snoot replied, “It’s too late, Reverend….I’ve
already prayed for rain!”
There is a story in the Bible where
a rich man wanted to throw a banquet and sent out invitations. The guests were
not as prayerful as Mrs. Snoot was in the illustration but they responded
differently. We will find their responses in Luke 14:15-24.
BACKGROUND TO THE TEXT:
Jesus was at the house of one of
the leaders of the Pharisees for a meal on a Sabbath day. He healed a man who
had been suffering with dropsy (An old term for the swelling of soft tissues
due to the accumulation of excess water) to the much annoyance of the guests;
who were only concerned in getting the best seat at the dinner table. Jesus
gave them a good lesson on “dinner etiquette.” That triggered a response from
one of the guests who said, “Blessed is everyone who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God
I. GOD’S GENEROSITY:
Vs 16, “A certain man was giving a big dinner, and he invited
many.” This tells us the position and the host and the intention of the
feast. In Matthew 22:1-14, we read Jesus
compared the Kingdom of heaven to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son.”
Jesus used the choice of words such as “wedding feast, banquet or dinner which
was clearly understood by the Jews of that time. For example we read in Isaiah 25:6; “And the LORD of hosts
will prepare a lavish banquet for all people on this mountain; A banquet of
aged wine; choice pieces with marrow and refined aged wine.” Looking at these
passages we conclude that this banquet is no ordinary one; but a heavenly one and
the host is no one else but God himself. The banquet is for all people.
It was the custom then, as it is
today, to send out invitations to such a special event quite a long time in
advance. Then, as the actual day approached, a more personal invitation was
extended. In Vs 17, “and at the dinner hour he sent his servant to say to those
who had been invited, “Come everything is ready.”
God, too, has sent a personal
invitation of salvation to all people. Saying "Come, for everything is now
ready." The question is this, "What are you going to do with your personal
invitation? According to Vs 18 instead of receiving the invitation joyfully, all
the invitees began to make excuses. Let’s hear the excuses of the guests.
II. GUEST’S EXCUSES:
(Vs 18:19)
“Then they all began to beg off, one after another making excuse.
The first said, ‘I bought a piece of property and need to look it over. Send my
regrets.’ “Another said, ‘I just bought five teams of oxen, and I really need
to check them out. Send my regrets.’ “And yet another said, ‘I just got married
and need to get home to my wife.” (The Message)
Excuses! Excuses! Excuses! Who is
not familiar with them? We all are guilty of them at one time or the other.
Here are some wise sayings: “There aren’t
nearly enough crutches in the world for all the lame excuses.” “Excuses are the nails used to build a house
of failure.” “Ninety-nine percent of the failures come from people who have the
habit of making excuses.” And here is one from George Washington “It is better
to offer no excuse than a bad one.”
The invited guests in the story
gave bad excuses. They represent three categories of people even today who give
bad excuses when it comes to coming to God. The First one said: ‘I bought a
piece of property and need to look it over.” This category represents of people
who are overly concerned about their possessions or material things they use possessions
as an excuse to reject the Holy Spirit’s invitation of salvation.
The second one said, ‘I just bought
five teams of oxen, and I really need to check them out. This category gets
caught up in the trap of making money. They get so busy with their job or
business that they have not time for the Lord. No matter who you are one day
you are going to die, and you will discover that business will go on as usual
without you; but you will die without salvation eternally in Hell. The third
one said, ‘I just got married and need to get home to my wife.” This is the
most weakest of all excuses; he could have extended the invitation to his wife
too. For this category natural affections keep them away from coming to Christ.
Similarly; many give excuses saying
I can’t go to Church on Sunday because it is my only day off; I got to take
kids to a soccer game. It is the only time I can spend time with my family…(
going shopping; fishing; working around the house etc). These things:
possessions, business (work) and natural affections… keep more people from the
Lord than anything else.
What excuses are keeping you away
from the Lord; from the Church and the fellowship of other believers? How did
the host of the banquet respond to the lame excuses of the invitees?
III. GOD’S RESPONSE:
(21-25)
In the parable we note that none of
the guests said “I will not come” They overtly did not refuse the invitation
but made excuses to simply cover up the fact that they did not want to come.
How did their refusal to attend the banquet make the host feel? He was outraged
and told the servant to get out into the streets and alleys. Collect all who
look like they need a square meal. Bring in all the misfits; the homeless; the
lame. The servant comes back with a report saying; “I did what you commanded
and there is still room. The master responded then go to the country roads
wherever you find people drag them in so that my house will be filled.” He
further said not one of those originally invited guests will get a bite at my
dinner party.
I see five truths tucked in this
passage. Firstly; the originally invited guests in this parable represents the
Children of Israel. The Prophet Isaiah poignantly depicts the state of the
house of Israel .
Isaiah 53:6 “We all, like sheep,
have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and
the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
Secondly; when the children of Israel rejected
Jesus as their messiah the gospel was extended to the gentiles that is you and
me. John 1:11-12 says, “He came to
that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who
received him, to those who believed in his name he gave the right to become
children of God.” Thirdly; The servant in the parable represents the Holy
Spirit who goes into the streets; the high ways and the by ways and compels or
gently forces people to come to the table. Fourthly; there is plenty of room at
the banqueting table. In other words there is room for all of us at the Lord’s
Table. God does not want anyone to perish, but everyone to come to
repentance.(2 Pet 3:9). Fifthly; those who reject God’s invitation will be
separated from God forever.
What does this all mean to us
today? Just like in the Parable; God has sent an invitation that says, “You are
cordially invited to come and enjoy the delicious banquet of my salvation.
Serving will begin at My House and will continue for eternity. I’d love for you
to come and get to know Me personally–and join my Family. This feast is
free to you because the cost has already been paid by My precious Son, Jesus.
You are receiving this invitation simply because I love you. Please join
me...and you may come just as you are. Sincerely, God Almighty (RSVP) Engraved
with the Blood of Jesus,”
How would you respond to this
invitation? You can either accept it and enjoy the eternal benefits or reject
it at your own peril. The Holy Spirit is saying; “Come now everything is ready at
my table” Come to the table. Come back to the Lord, it is time for you to wake
up from your slumber. You may have become caught up in all sorts of other
pursuits but today is the day to return with words of repentance: “Lord I am
sorry for all my sins” and you will receive forgiveness of your sins.
We want to worship and bow
down and kneel before the LORD our maker. For he is our God, and we are the
people of His Pasture, and the sheep of His hands. The Spirit of God is warning
us if you hear His voice do not harden your hearts and become the objects
of God’s anger and wrath. Instead come back to the Lord in obedience and by
faith to receive His grace and mercy. Will you continue to offer lame excuses;
or will you accept Jesus' invitation of salvation? Amen
