Luke 14:15-24
15 When one of those at the table with Him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.”
16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’
18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’
19 “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’
20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’
21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’
22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’
23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.”
Luke 14:15-24 GOD’S INVITATION
Springford Baptist Church: March 19, 2023.
Notice how Jesus concludes this parable (story with a lesson), “I tell you that not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.” (Luke 10:24)
This story would be received by the Jews as laughable, ridiculous, impossible. No such scenario could ever happen. Inconceivable! Invited guests to a great feast prepared by a wealthy man as indicated by the fact that it was a big dinner and many were invited, would be the pinnacle of social life, the high point for important people to hold such banquet. An invitation to a banquet like this promised not only a great meal prepared for you, not only the honour of being there, but a chance to enjoy wonderful music and all the festivity that went along with the celebration.
This would be the highpoint of Jewish social life to have a delicious feast prepared for you and to be invited by a very prominent person. So to think that people who had been invited for such an occasion would then refuse to come is outrageous. And the thought that the rich man would then fill his banquet table with those considered the lowest of society- Absolutely absurd!
The Jews were looking forward to the resurrection of the righteous, and they in viewing the resurrection of the righteous, saw it as a lavish celebration in the presence of God and indeed that was right.
They actually saw it as a banquet. That was because the prophet Isaiah described it that way. Isaiah looks forward to the future that God has for his people. Listen to what he says. “The Lord of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain…” The Lord God will wipe tears away from all faces, remove the reproach of His people from all the earth. For the Lord has spoken, it will be said in that day behold this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited, let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.”(Isaiah 25:6)
We all have opportunity to be there. We have been invited. All the burdens will be eliminated. We can all be there to enjoy this lavish banquet. A lavish banquet was the highest experience socially, the most fulfilling and joyful celebration the Jewish people knew anything about and that is why it became a picture for the heavenly celebration. And that’s carried on even into the New Testament where we see heaven in Revelation as the marriage supper of the Lamb. We can anticipate sitting around the banquet table of God in the glory of the new heaven and the new earth.
So when Jesus speaks of the resurrection of the righteous and it happens to be at a lunch where they are sitting a table eating, somebody begins to think about the fact that isn’t it going to be wonderful when we all get to the great banquet of God, the resurrection of the righteous. We read, “When one of those at the table with Him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” (Luke14:15)
The Pharisees just expect to be there don’t they? They assume that they will be as some people today just assume that they will go to heaven. The key is to accept the invitation as God extends it-on His terms, not ours.
These Jewish leaders, the Pharisees were all raised up in a work system. They were used to trying to achieve the highest places of prominence. They expected to be noticed and honoured. They would have resented the Lord’s insinuation that they were too proud to enter God’s kingdom and that only the humble were going to show up at the righteous resurrection.
Everybody’s got faith in something. That doesn’t mean anything, unless your faith is placed in the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is going to shatter their false hope with a story, a parable. Four points: invitation, excuses, inclusion, exclusion.
A banquet, such as this one described in this story of Jesus, could last for days. Several people would be invited and the invitation would come in a very personal, formal way as an invitation would come to you even today, to a wedding or to some big banquet. It would identify the event, only when we get one of these, it tells us where it is, when it is, and exactly the time we’re supposed to be there. But in the ancient world it wasn’t like that. The actual day and the actual time were left open. In a world where you had to kill the animals and you had to clean the animals, you had to cook the animals and you had to get all of the vegetables and everything else you wanted and do all the preparation, specific details couldn’t be given at the first invitation. There were always two invitations.
The first invitation identified you as one who was being invited as an honoured guest. Then you waited to get the second invitation. As verse 17 indicates, “ At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’
Every one of these kind of events had two invitations. The one that let you know you would be future invited and then the second invitation came when everything was ready.
Again, this indicates the extravagant nature of this. This was a huge event. And the indication here is that everybody accepted. Nobody refuses. Everybody would have said, “Yes.” This would be an honour, not only the big spread and the great entertainment and all that would go on, but the prominence that you would be given by being invited by such an important person.
But in the story, at the dinner hour when all the animals had been killed and skinned and prepared and everything had been gathered and everything was ready, the servant goes to those who had been invited. He says, “Come for everything is now ready” (vs.17) and what happens?
The story moves now from the invitation to the excuses. We read, “They all alike began to make excuses.” (Luke 14:18) Everybody said, ‘I can’t come.” All of them. They all came up with excuses. Now this is where the Pharisees at lunch with Jesus are saying, this is ridiculous, nobody would do that. This is rude. Not one person would do that, let alone everybody.
And then we hear the excuses. Two of them have to do with possessions, one of them has to do with relationships. And this is typical. That’s all you’ve got in this world. You either have possessions or relationships. You either have things or people to fill your life.
So the servant comes back and reports. The head of the household is angry. His goodness and his generosity and his kindness have been treated with contempt. This is a righteous, just anger and they know it. The story seemed, at first, to be ridiculous, but the very ones amused by it were the ones who now see themselves in the story.
There was opportunity for the Jewish people to accept God’s invitation and to be included, but they chose to reject it. And then the master of the banquet says, “‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’” (Luke 14:21)
In other words, Go out and find the people who are spiritually destitute. Go out and find the people who are broken and hungry. Go out and find the sinners who know they’re unworthy. Go out and find those who know they don’t belong at the banquet of God because of their sin. Go find the beggars, the untouchables, those who are spiritually aware of their hopelessness. The banquet will not include the Pharisees, not include the scribes, not include the rabbis and the priests. With a few exceptions it will not include those who consider themselves religious. But the banquet will include the outcasts. God has chosen the humble and the poor and the lowly and those considered nobodies.
But the servant comes back and says “what you’ve commanded has been done, there’s still room.” (Luke 14:22) So then “The master said to the servant, go outside the city. Go over to the highways and along the hedges.” (Luke 14:23) This indicates Gentiles. Get outside of the confines of Judaism. Now we’re talking about the Great Commission. In the words of Jesus following His resurrection, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations.” (Matthew 28:19)
Our God extends His invitation to this great banquet in heaven and He wants everyone to be included. This is not a time for excuses but for grateful acceptance. Every day God invites us to closer relationship with Him. Will we say “Yes” to God’s invitation every day in BECOMING more and more of who He invites us to be in relationship with Him?
Prayer: Father, we come to You knowing that this same parable needs to be told again and again as it has been this morning. There is an invitation to everyone. This invitation will not be accepted by the people with superficial excuses who want to hold onto their possessions and their relationships. But it will be received by the broken and the humble and the meek and the mourning and the destitute and the lowly who know they aren’t worthy to come into Your glorious presence. They aren’t worthy to come into Your heaven. They aren’t worthy to come to Your feasts and Your banquet, but they will be compelled and urged to come. And one day Your banquet will be full and it will be full of the most unlikely. Father, extend that invitation with grace and power through Your Spirit to every heart here. May there be no excuses. May there be an embracing of the only way of salvation, the only hope of heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ. Father, we do commit to You this truth and we thank You for the great and glorious time of worship and the refreshment of being in Your presence with Your people. We pray that the truth that we have learned today may be useful to us, not only in our own lives, but as we reach out to others. May we unmistakably and clearly tell people about Your loving invitation. Use us Lord to bear Your truth to those who need to hear. We thank You in the Name of Jesus Your Son. Amen.