Luke 14:15-24


Luke 14:15-24
15 When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” 16 But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many; 17 and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’ 18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’ 19 “Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’ 20 “Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’ 21 “And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ 22 “And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23 “And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled. 24 ‘For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.’”

The kingdom of God will be the greatest reward for eternity.  There can be no doubt that the priority of every person should be to make sure they are prepared to participate in the kingdom of God.  The reason Jesus became a man and came to this earth was to be able to invite fallen men to believe on Him, so they might be prepared to enter the kingdom of God.  Redemption from sin is the opportunity God offers through Christ.  This invitation was give to the children of Israel initially, but was eventually expanded to include all peoples, nations, tribes and tongues.  It is a blessing to be invited to the kingdom but it is a tragedy when man rejects that invitation.

EXCUSES: A man who offers a banquette invites his friends and neighbors who gladly accept his invitation and promise to attend when they are summoned.  However, when the day of the banquette arrived, these people made excuses as to why they could not come and excused themselves from the banquette.  This was clearly a disappointment to the man.  God called the nation of Israel to be His people and He promised to send the Messiah through them to bless all nations beginning with them.  The Jews were prepared to receive the Messiah and were waiting for the Messiah; however, when Jesus came they rejected His invitation to come to the kingdom.  They had made other plans and established other priorities the caused them to spurn Christ’s invitation.  There should never be any priority that is placed above the priority of the kingdom of God.  It is the greatest blessing and highest priority known to man to participate in the kingdom of God.

EXTENSIONS: When the originally invited guests were too busy to attend the feast, the king ordered the servants to go out and invite the poor, crippled, blind and lame.  The king was angry the original guests refused to come but was determined to have his home full for this feast.  It is hard to know exactly whom Jesus has in mind besides the obvious answer that they were the poor and unhealthy people living in Israel.  The religious and political leaders refused to recognize Jesus as Messiah, so Jesus focused His ministry on the poor and marginalized people in Israel.  We see this principle taking place all over the world.  Those who are rich, powerful, successful and healthy tend to consider themselves as being above their need of God.  Those who are less fortunate on earth seem to have a much easier time looking towards heaven and living for God.  No matter what our financial status or physical ability, we must all make the Lord our priority and recognize our dependence upon Him.

EXCLUSIONS: After inviting the poor, blind and lame, the Master’s house was still not full.  He instructed the servants to go out to the highways and compel more and more people to come in.  However, he made it clear that those who had originally refused to come would not be invited again.  God longs to have His kingdom full of people.  He does not care about what race they are, what tax bracket they are in or how healthy they are.  Jesus seems to be telling His audience that the Gospel would spread to all nations, not just the Jews and these religious leaders assumed.  It is also significant that Jesus excludes those who have already rejected the invitation from being invited again.  It is a dangerous thing to reject the Gospel.  Those who harden their hearts to the work of the Holy Spirit in their lives may find themselves being like Pharaoh in Egypt when God hardened his heart.  When God calls us to Himself, we would do well to respond immediately.  This is true for salvation as well as sanctification.  Pay close attention to the voice of God.

APPLICATION: Don’t make excuses when God calls us to do anything.  His will must always be the top priority in our lives.  Understand that God loves all people from all walks of life and longs to have them in His kingdom.  Actively and intentionally go and invite people around us and around the globe to trust Christ and join us in the kingdom of His grace.  Don’t harden your heart before God or He may end up hardening our hearts.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2 Timothy 1:3-7

I thank God   whom I serve, as did my ancestors,   with a clear conscience, as I remember you   constantly in my prayers night and day.    As I remember your tears,   I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.    I am reminded of   your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and   your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.    For this reason I remind you   to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands, for God gave us   a spirit not of fear but   of power and love and self-control. It is easy for us to forget many important things especially in the face of difficulty or danger.  Paul is in prison and Timothy is facing difficult times in ministry so there are important reminders that Paul wants to make sure that Timothy understands.  God has given us everything we need to face the difficulties He allows into our lives.  These blessings from God are always available to us as long as we remember the
Read more

2 Timothy 1:8-14

Therefore   do not be ashamed of   the testimony about our Lord, nor of   me his prisoner, but   share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God,   who saved us and   called us to a holy calling,   not because of our works but because of   his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus   before the ages began, and which now has   been manifested through   the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus,   who abolished death and   brought life and   immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But   I am not ashamed, for   I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until   that day   what has been entrusted to me.  Follow   the pattern of   the sound words   that you have heard from me, in   the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.    By the Holy Spirit   who dwells within us, guard   the good deposit entrusted to you. There is nothing more important th
Read more

Titus 1:1-4

Paul, a servan t  of God and   an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God's elect and   their knowledge of the truth,   which accords with godliness ,  in hope of eternal life, which God,   who never lies,   promised   before the ages bega n  and   at the proper time manifested in his wor d  through the preaching   with which I have been entrusted   by the command of God our Savior;   To Titus,   my true child in   a common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior. Paul begins this book written to his co-worker whom he has left on the island of Crete, with his own job description.  Paul felt called by God and compelled by God to minister in the lives of other people.  Those who were unbelievers needed to hear the Gospel.  Believers needed to be brought to maturity in Christ.  He also had a deep desire to see Titus blessed and encouraged in the Lord.  These initial greetings give us insight into Paul’s heart. THE PURPOSE OF AN APOSTLE:
Read more