The Feast

Trinity II,  2014  " Luke 14:16-24"
    In the middle of talking about inviting the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind to a feast or supper, someone hears our Lord talk about this, and feels the wonder of that kind of action.  In this life it is rare that one would invite those who cannot reply in kind to such a feast. " Now when one of those who sat at table with Him heard these things, he said to our Lord,' Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God' ".
    Our Lord directs this story /parable to this individual to show the hope of heaven and that we also must claim that too without excuse.  " When the critical time came, would he really accept God's invitation?  Or would he be too busy about some activity affecting his more immediate interests?" The Gospel of Luke, Leon Morris.  Too busy.  I did not know that the Captain of the Titanic received six warnings about ice bergs on that night in April of 1912 , but apparently even though these were received beginning at 0900 of that day up to 11 pm of that fateful night the Captain said he was too busy to respond to the messages.
     The Gospel tells us that a man "made a great supper, and invited many."  The invitation had gone out. How would we respond to such an invite?  Our Lord invites us to dine with Him for an eternal banquet that shall never end.  This is the hope of heaven and what eternal joy and glory shall it be for those who are invited to the Great Supper of the Lamb and respond to the invitation.  Morris says, " Men are saved, not be their own effort, but by responding to the invitation."
     Jesus puts the man to the test and us as well for he tells a story some call, " the parable of the excuses."  There appears to be general acceptance of the invitation, but then they all began to make excuses perhaps speaking together at the same time.  But we will listen to their excuses as Jesus did one by one, and see how he concludes this matter at the end.
     The first man said, " I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go see it.  I ask you to have me excused."  Who would do such a thing?  Imagine that.  This is a excuse but not a reason.
      The second man said, " I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused."  Morris says, " No-one would buy oxen without first satisfying himself that they would do the job.  And if he did, there was no hurry for his testing.  The oxen would keep."  This is another excuse, not a reason.
     The last excuse sounds the most noble but is the weakest.  " Ihave married a wife, and therefore I cannot come."  ( this is allowed but only during wartime and the first year of marriage)  What they put in front  of God is obvious.  The master's anger is understandable.  " Go quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind."
    The proof was in the pudding.  They did not mean it.  They had no intention of going to the dinner.  Just a general yes, of course, I will, of course I believe.
   Lloyd Jones puts it this way ," You say that you believe in God, that y ou hope to go to heaven and that you believe that God forgives you in and through Jesus Christ.  ...does this belief make any demands upon you and test you?  Are you conscious of the fact that it influences your life and makes a difference to it?  To what extent do your belief and your religion make a difference to your life?  How often are you activated by them, how frequently are they the motive in your words and in your deeds?"
" who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good deeds" Titus 3:14
No change in the life...what can be more insulting to the Master...to say we are coming to His feast, yet all along we are not.  All the preparation that has gone into it for us...can you see the Master who is humiliated?
There are those like this...who say yes to Christ, then just go on through their lives as though nothing has happened to them...accepting His salvation on their terms.  God does not want ouragreement and our fine phrases and our nice talk about Him....He wants us to forsake our sins and give ourselves utterly to Him now.
What we put before God---He says He wants us to be pure to forsake all worldly pleasures and carnal delights---and we give more time to the world than we do to God. We give more money to pleasure and to things sinful than to God and His work, having more enthusiasm for mere men and women than for God and Jesus Christ Himself.
Do we see the folly of showing more enthusiasm over games and politics and mere men and women than about Jesus Christ and His Gospel?  What can be more insulting?If we really desire the things of this world, it would be better not to mention the name of God at all.  Profess Him with our lips, but deny Him in our lives.
If we have really decided to believe in God and in Jesus Christ, prove our genuineness at once by responding to His further call...and come to that great Supper where our Lord is the Host.  Come and enjoy the feast.  The wrath of the Master is terrible, but let us not think of that; let us rather think of the glory and the wonder of His feast!
" For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper." Let us not be like that.  There is hope of heaven for those who truly respond.  It is good to be reminded of these simple eternal truths of the Word of God.  Let us begin by preparing for His feast now by forsaking sin, and giving ourselves wholeheartedly to Him.  Let every one examine themselves.