You are an Invitation | Ps TeeJay Davidson

Hey, welcome to the City Point Church podcast.

Thanks for joining us. Every day is an opportunity to

take hold of. So we hope this message inspires

you and build your faith, but it helps you have more of a God

perspective for your day. Enjoy.

So I'm going to speak on today invitation.

We're going to go through a parable.

We're going to break that verse down and we're going to go

through what that means. So the title of my message today

is it's already up there. That's pretty good.

We've got some good servants at the back there.

You are an invitation. You are an invitation.

We're going to break that down and we're going to go through

Luke chapter 14 verse, sorry, Luke chapter 14, verses 15 to

Luke 14 · chapter mention Luke 14:15–24

24. And the NIV says this.

When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to

Jesus, Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the

Kingdom of God. Jesus replied.

As Jesus always replies, A certain man was preparing a

great banquet and invited many guests.

At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those

who had been invited come, for everything is now ready.

But they all alike began to make excuses.

The first set I have just brought a field and I must go

see it. Please excuse me.

Another set. I've just brought a yoke of oxen

and I'm on my way to try them out.

Please excuse me, I can't. That's #20 versus 20, says still

another set. I just got married, so I can't

come. 21 verses 21 says 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 the alleys of the town and bring them in the pool,

the crippled, the blind in the lane.

So the servant said what you ordered has been done, but there

is still room. Then the master told his

servant, go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come

in, so that my house will be full.

I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a

taste of my banquet. You can see in there invitation

come up many times and we're going to go through that and

break it down. But I want to tell you a story

about invitation as my wife just brings up some water.

Oh, it's there. Thank you, love.

That's amazing. See, she already knew and the

invitation was there. Thank you, my darling.

That's so good. That's impressive.

I love that woman. Thank God.

Thank God for our wives, men in the House of God.

Thank God for them. Thank God for our children and

thank God for husbands and good godly marriage.

It's amazing. You know who I see do this

really well. I just want to honor you, Pastor

John and Pastor Rach. These two are incredible and

display what godly marriage looks like.

In actual fact, they invited us to our life group and taught us

all about godly wisdom around marriage.

It transformed our marriage. God used them to transform our

marriage and so was Sarah and Jack's.

God used them as well. But it's amazing about

invitation. See, they invited us to their

life group and something happened.

But also, something happened when me and my wife got invited

to church. I was a broken young man sent on

the path of recklessness, not on the path of righteousness.

On the same loop over and over again, in this loop of despair,

stuck in my sin. It was damaging me.

I was addicted to every sort of thing.

I was just broken and angry. And one day I was at the boxing

gym of all places. One man confidently said to me,

why don't you come to church and invited me.

And I was like, yeah, yeah, I'll come, I'll come next Sunday.

But in my heart I was like, you are right up there, man.

I don't, you know, this is a boxing gym.

You're inviting me to church. But that's how I thought back

then. And but what happened was weeks

went on and it burnt a hole in my soul.

It seared something in my soul, man.

I could feel the physical searing of it as weeks went on

and I didn't tell my wife, but man, it just kept going on and

on. I could feel it.

And one day I couldn't take it, man.

I was like, woke up that early in the morning.

I turned on my wife. I said, listen, we got to go to

church. We got to go there.

We went to church. I said get keep that car running

because I don't know what's inside.

So we went in. I said if one person just winks

at me wrong, I'm out. So that's exactly what I said.

And anyway, I come in. Weeks went on, my wife got saved

me. I held on to that old man for

weeks and weeks and weeks until I couldn't take it no more and

I'd give my life to Christ and it transformed my life from

there on. Only because of Him.

I didn't do it. It was him.

I didn't even know who who I was.

I kept saying to my wife, I've changed so much, I don't even

know who I am anymore. But that's the beauty of

invitation. If that man didn't invite me,

man, that wouldn't have happened.

But I've seen that man weeks on after that.

And I said to him, I seen him at McDonald's and I told him, I'm

like, bro, how many people have you invited?

Because what happened to me isn't a miracle.

Like it changed my life. I just, I feel this changing me.

I'm not doing this anymore. I'm not doing that anymore.

And he looked at me and he wept. And he said, TJI never thought

that I'd ever see a miracle in my life.

You're the first miracle I've ever seen in my life.

And then he told me he's never invited anyone to church before.

And I thought that was incredible.

The power of invitation, the power of invitation.

Let me tell you, beloved, you are an invitation.

You don't know who is on the other end of that invitation to

stand up here. I never thought I would ever

stand up here, but all's I did is say yes to that invitation,

yes to the call of God. And there's a yes and an

invitation over your life for you.

Next. There's an invitation to Jesus

today who got me started preaching.

I got to, I got to go to verses 15 to settle down a bit.

The only way to settle me down is yeah, Amen, brother, Amen.

That's the only way. Praise God.

Verses 15 says when one of those at the table with him heard

this, he said that Jesus blessed is the one who will eat at the

feast in the Kingdom of God. What that we hear in the

previous verses is Jesus telling though he was at a prominent

Pharisees house and he was telling him he says don't, don't

go to a, you know, the wedding, don't go to a wedding or a

banquet and take the place of honour in the seat.

Otherwise somewhat some person more honourable than you might

take your seat and the Master would say, come on down.

And that would be a thing of shame, not shame I'm talking

about, but you would be embarrassed to go.

Man, I thought I was higher. But Jesus saying no, no, no,

take the take the lowly place and wait for the Master to say,

what are you doing down there? Come on up, come on up, take the

humble place. So he's he's he's talking about

that in response. Now Jesus replies in Jesus

replying way, he's like, yeah, a certain man was preparing a

great banquet and invited many guests.

Now this banquet he's talking about is the Kingdom of God that

represents the Kingdom of God and the blessing of salvation

and the invitation into the family of God.

There's a reference to revelation.

Yes, we use reference to revelation in this church in

verses 19, nine where it talks about the wedding of the Lamb.

So here is this great feast. They're talking about the

Kingdom of God that one day who is going to be a great feast, a

great party BBQ out the back with snags and sausages and

onions and bread. That's that's an Aussie banquet,

by the way. But verses 16 as we sing, as we

go on, Sorry to verses 17. And at the time of the banquet,

he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited come,

for everything is now ready. How amazing is that, that it's

not our invitation. Let's take the pressure off.

It's God's invitation that we extend.

See, we the servants have been sent by God to invite people.

There's a great harvest out there, you know.

There's a scripture that says the harvest is plenty, but the

labourers are few. Let me tell you, Church, we are

the labourers. But who's going to go forth?

Then? Who will go forth?

It's so easy to put the onus on evangelists.

Let the evangelists do it, servant.

That doesn't say evangelists in there, does it?

We always put these a notion, Oh no, that's the evangelist.

Job at the time, verses 17 says the banquet.

He sent his servant who's a servant in the House of God

today, who's a sent servant in the House of God today to tell

them, hey, you've been invited. Come for everything is now

ready. We're living in a time where

everything is now ready. We have a beautiful House of God

with beautiful people that have life groups in it that had

everything. We got the word.

This. Now is the most wonderful time.

We have so much information but not enough revelation in this

place. This is where you'll get the

revelation from that invitation that you have extended.

Christ is real, my friend. Christ died for your sins.

Christ is the only way, the invitation, the power of it.

It's not just on the evangelist, it's on you.

And I, servants of God, go and help people to respond to God's

invitation. I understand inviting can be

scary. Before I knew I had the gift of

evangelism, I was out there inviting everyone I could.

I first started with my family, man.

I said, Auntie, have I got a story for you?

I'm over there and people like what is going on with him?

Cousins, aunties, uncles, they started flooding in.

Me and my brother worked together.

I said brother, we got to get him in, get him in, invite them

all, invite them all. Next minute, aunties started

getting saved, uncles started getting saved.

Attitudes started losing their power.

Next minute though, the the power of shame started coming

off my family. The power of guilt started

coming off. Oh, forgiveness started running

rife in the family. Are you kidding me?

How does, how do I do that? I can't.

It's all by Jesus, man. He can't help himself but get in

here by his Holy Spirit and transform you.

Every day there's this transformation, the washing of

the word. And you know what?

Most of them are still in church today.

Oh man, most of them are. They're spread out everywhere.

I don't no longer talk about to my family how you know this and

that and gossip about that family member.

We're talking about. Jesus, man, We ain't got no time

to talk about that sort of stuff anymore.

But I understand how scary it can be.

But this is it. We've been given the Holy

Spirit. We've been given everything.

You know, there's a key to this. You know that Scripture perfect

love cuts our fear. Well, here's the key.

When you're on the same frequency as God and you catch

his heart and you have a revelation of the love that He

has for humanity, your love for that person will overcome the

fear that comes against. Let me say this again because

there's anointing on that. Your love for that person, your

love that God has put in you. When you have that revelation of

how much God loves people, how valuable God's people, your love

that God has put in you, that love of God would say No Fear,

get behind me. I need to invite this person

today. No Fear, it's cut, you've been

casted out. But the perfect love of God, I

need to invite a neighbor. Oh come on, Lord, I need to

invite God Almighty. I need your love, God Almighty

that casts out fear. Father God, your perfect love,

oh God Almighty, I'm an invitation, God, I'm an

invitation. I'm an invitation.

And you keep speaking that over your life.

But in the verses it gives us a picture of sometimes why we

don't invite and what happens in the robbery that goes on.

Have a look at verses 18. These are three great excuses.

Verses 18 says, but they all alike began to make excuses.

I can't come. But you notice in that it says

they all alike. There was something going on

there. They were in unity with

something. Instead of being in unity with

Christ, they were in unity with excuses.

Some of us need to divorce excuses, man, we're married to

excuse of mass. Some of us need to say, oh

Shakayana, get all Pentecostal in your room.

Maybe if you don't even know how to speak in tongues, just say

whatever, Lord, fill my mouth. Oh Shakayana, see, oh Lord, I've

divorced excuses a long time ago.

God, I'm not even a man that even takes on excuses.

I'm not even a woman that that that takes on the heat of

excuses. Oh God, shake that off in Jesus

name. Oh man, the first said I have

just brought a field and I must go and see it.

Please excuse me. Here's a business tip for all

the business people in the house.

Don't go into business with people who buy fields and don't

see it first. Faria, what an excuse.

Come to my banquet. I'll give you a three out of 10.

That's a three out of a 10 excuse.

But man, that rock, that guy's getting robbed.

Truthfully, that guy's getting robbed.

He's gone. My fields more important than

that feast. I'm not going there.

I remember old marks over there. I remember what he said to me

last year. You know I'm not going over

there. Listen now, mate, over there.

Listen. When you're a Christian, you

can't wait to get around those people and speak life into them,

man. It's like almost I come over

here, I need life spoken over me.

I look for those people, man. You, you go and do that sort of

stuff in there. I can't wait to go to those sort

of places and go, you know what? That person's gonna get a cup

full of life because out of the mouth speaks life and death and

I ain't gonna talk in death over that person.

They need life. They need Christ in their in

their life excuse #2 versus 19 Another said I've just brought 5

yoke of oxen and I'm on my way to try them out.

Please excuse me. I can only try them out during

the banquet. These ox they're very acting

very strange. Could be sheep in ox clothing.

Could be. I've got a sneaky suspicion they

ain't going to do what oxes do, so I need to go find out, and

it's only during this banquet that I've got to go try them

out. Maybe, just maybe, they are a

wolf in ox clothing versus 19. No, sorry, 20 excuse #3 this guy

still another said I just got married so I can't come.

He didn't even say please excuse me.

OK, That guy's got an attitude. That guy needs Jesus.

So he's thinking, man, like I've got one year of like smooth

sailing. I need every moment with this

woman. But let me tell you, marriage is

beautiful. I'm not saying that, but these

are the excuses that we make. I make excuses.

They rob you. Excuses rob you.

But you know what? You know?

You know the biggest robbery that happens?

Excuses are lies. Thank you, Pastor Rach.

Excuses are lies. Devil is a liar and the truth is

in his word, and the truth is here today being spoken.

They don't only rob you, but they rob others.

They rob others when you become an invitation and you've got

excuses. You know what?

Oh, I can't, I can't. That person.

What if they say no? I'm not bold, I'm not

courageous. I don't have the gift of

evangelism. I can't invite.

But they rob other people of the opportunity to be in the House

of God. They rob other people from that

invitation to receive salvation. They rob you of the calling of

God. They rob you of what God has in

store for you. And you're next.

Oh God I can't go to CHC. I'm working too much.

I can't go to Bible college. But yet God's saying so, right?

I'm going to strengthen you. I'm going to look after you in

finance. I'm going to provide for you.

I'm Jehovah Jireh. The joy is must.

The joy of the Lord is our strength.

I'm going to strengthen you. It's OK, but I understand it

excuses Rob and Rob and Rob and the enemy behind it is a liar,

as Pastor Rach says. Now I just pulled out a few

excuses out of the the Bible that's been used.

There's some famous ones here. Here.

Adam, the woman you gave me made me do it is blame that goes

along with it. Eve says this.

The snake made me do it. Moses, I don't speak good.

Jeremiah. I'm too young.

This is the best one. Ready.

Aaron. Who knows?

Aaron in the house? Moses, brother.

I threw the gold in the fire and out came a golden calf.

Are you kidding me? Wish that happened today.

I wouldn't worship it. I'd melt it down and give it to

the church as as worship as my old friend to God.

Excuses. Excuses.

Excuses this. Excuses Rob you that I can't

invite people because you are an invitation.

I can't do this. Oh God, what if it's those

things? I know I come against it

sometimes, but that perfect love casts out fear, right?

This is it. Some of us.

Here's a real key today we've been speaking.

I'm not this, I'm not that, but what's God been speaking over

your life? He says that He's given us His

Holy Spirit to help us. It's OK, It's not on ourselves.

We've been strengthened, Him and his joy.

Let me tell you something, there's something inside you

very powerful, and we need to get a great revelation of it.

We need to understand that the Holy Ghost that He's put in US

is the one that helps us in power and in mind to go out and

bring an invitation and to go out there for.

Let me tell you, sometimes we got to have the power to speak

that over our life. Man, if you don't feel bold, you

do Got to just get out some oil. I do this everyday.

Put it on your forehead and say God, TJ is a bold man.

I'll say it again, God, I anoint my head with oil.

I walk with boldness. TJ is a man of authority.

TJ is anointed to speak. I am an invitation.

Oh God Almighty, I can come boldly before the very throne

room. God, I am loved today and I will

act in love and I will respond in your love, God, to represent

you so people can glorify your name, Your name.

That's how we speak over herself.

Not I'm not bold. I can't because that person's

eyes twitching at me, He looked at me once and now I'm thrown

off. Man, the Holy Spirit is more

powerful than that. Maybe they're looking at you

because you've got something inside of you that there's

spirit years, something inside of you.

They're not just looking at you and go, oh, you know that person

wants to. No, they're looking at you

because we're different. You know, God, man, he's put his

spirit in US. He's holy.

He's set apart. There's no God liking.

There's no other God. He is the one true God that

people are looking at you directly and they are yearning

and they are thirsting and you have the living water in you.

The scripture says out of you, out of your belly will flow in

your innermost being. Rivers of living water, livers

of living water, man. People come to drink, but not

it's not of you. It's the drinking of Christ

that's in you, that's in you. Excuses, man, rob you from

becoming an invitation. You are an invitation.

And Charles Spurgeon said this. Excuses are made.

They are fashioned for convenience and are clung to in

desperation. Hope doesn't begin until excuses

end. Excuses are curses, and when you

have no excuses left, there will be hope for you.

At the end of excuses, There you find hope.

At the end of excuses, there you find your next step.

At the end of excuses. There you move into your

calling. Let me tell you, beloved,

please, with all everything that's in you, get rid of

excuses. Out of your life, get rid of

excuses. Here's my question to you.

What is excuses stopping you today?

What excuses are stopping you today that is hindering what God

is inviting you into your next? What is it or who are you

robbing of an opportunity to receive salvation in this House

of God by not inviting them, not trying to slap you around today

to extinguish the excuses. By the power of God, by the

power of God. That's why we need His power.

You are an invitation, beloved. Come on, let's say it together.

I am an invitation. Now let's say it as we're saying

it to this community and calling them in.

Are you ready? I am an invitation.

You are invited. Do you believe that beloved?

Let's go out and invite people. Verses 21 as we get the band up,

please. And the servant came back and

reported this to his master. Then the the owner of the house

became angry and ordered his servant.

See the word servant again. He says go out quickly into the

streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the

cripple, the blind and the lame. You know how amazing that is,

how incredible that is that those people who have been

invited make excuses about not coming to church.

OK, but there's still an invitation for them.

But this invitation goes against the culture.

It went against the culture back then.

Usually the poor, the crippled, the blind in the lane, they're

not turning up to these banquets.

But this is the heart of the Father.

This is the goodness of God. He doesn't exclude anyone.

An actual fact. His heart is for these people,

the poor, the crippled, the blind in the lane.

You know why we are an invitation, and I'll tell you

this. Here's the reality of it.

People are stuck in their sin, like once we were and Christ

freed us from the power of sin and eternal death.

And now we see our brothers and sisters out there who are poor

in spirit, absolutely poor, when now we are rich in our spirit.

Man, my spirit's never been so richer in all my life.

People are crippled with sin, crippled with the blindness that

sin comes over there, makes them blind and and lame.

But you, beloved, have an answer inside of you, and his name's

Jesus. You have an invitation to extend

to people to say, you know what brother, I once was poor in my

spirit and I've never been so rich.

Would you come with me and get rich?

Would you come with me and experience the riches of heaven

that God has poured out? Did you know you're in his

inheritance? But even that, if, if we at a

minimum, we should just invite. I'm not saying that we all go

out there and get a box and, you know, start saying, you know,

turn away hell, hell, hell, turn away hell.

But I'm saying that you're an invitation.

We've been preaching. I'm not going to go there.

We preach the good news. It's not the bad news.

I'm not compelled by bad news. I never would have been.

I was compelled by good news and you'll see this, but this is our

God. I just pulled it out of Isaiah

118 and the NLT says this. The Lord says now the Lord says

now what a word the Lord says now let's settle the matter.

You were stained red with sin, but I will wash you as as clean

as snow. Although your stains are deep

red, you will be as white as wool.

You know if if, if you don't know Christ and you feel dirty,

you feel unclean and you've been stuck in that loop.

Let me tell you, there's nothing that you can do to get out of

that. But there is an answer and I

will give an invitation shortly, but I pray the Holy Spirit would

deliver this invitation into your heart.

Now that God will wash you as clean as snow, who wants to be

as clean as snow? And who is as clean as snow?

Come on, as white as wool. You know that feeling?

I never experienced it before Christ.

But in Christ, man, do I feel clean?

Do I feel washed? Do I feel?

But also no, I feel, and I know, man, I'm washed and there's

nothing that I can do about it. But just Christ's righteousness,

His blood that was shed for my life has washed me clean.

And there's people out there now, our brothers and our

sisters, right? Let's get that revelation of the

love that God has for His people out there, that love that's

greater than fear. We know there's a miracle

service coming up. We know that you are an

invitation. Let's invite.

You don't know who's next. You don't know what God is going

to do in their life, what miracle that God has in store

for them. But first we need to give them

the opportunity. We can pray and pray and pray

and call them in all day long, but faith without works is dead.

We are an invitation. You are an invitation.

If you're in a workplace and you're the only Christian there,

let me tell you something that is the most powerful thing that

God could ever do is put you in there.

But you need to voice your invitation.

Hey, I know that you're going through hard times, but why

don't you come to church with me?

I'll I'll be waiting there with you.

We've got coffee out there. You don't have to sit there and

give them the A-Z in the Bible. Just an invitation, an

opportunity, the miracle service, but also church.

Who's coming to church next Sunday and who you bringing?

Who you bringing you are an invitation.

You're ready. Verses 2223.

So the servant said what you ordered has been done, but there

is still room, man. That's the heart that we carry.

There is still room. Have a look around.

There's still rumors in their beloved.

There's still room. There is still room, man, we got

chairs, we got open doors that we can open up and put chairs

out there if need be. But let me tell you, there is

still room in the House of God today.

There's still room. There's still people that

invite. There is still room for people

to come to know Jesus. And verse 23 says this.

Then the master told his servant go out to the roads and country

lanes and compel and compel, not force.

I know this Scripture is being taken out of context in history,

but compel them to come in so that my house may be full, will

be full. Our heart aligns with God is

that his house will be full. His house might be full.

You're an invitation. It doesn't just happen by

itself. Let's align with God's heart,

that is that this house would be full.

You have a compelling invitation.

You have a compelling testimony. Some of you here today have gone

through the most horrific thing, but then God has restored you.

God has given you the hope to share, and God has given you a

story to say, Hey, brother and sister, there is hope for you.

Because once I was this way and now I am here only because of

the name of Jesus and because of City Point north of the church

that I'm in. Let me invite you in, brother

and sister, There's hope for you now.

Our heart is that God's house may be full.

Come on. I sometimes I'm so unset or I'll

just be honest with you in my heart to know that there's

people out there that are struggling, single moms, single

dads, people that are broken and and stuck in there.

Who's who's going to invite them?

Come on. Who's going to invite him?

Beloved, have I got a Here I am. Send me moment.

Is there any bold people in the house today?

We got one there. Come on.

Who's going to invite him? Yes, brother.

Who's going to invite him? Come on, Josh.

Come on. Come on.

We are an invitation. You are an invitation, an

invitation of Jesus's hope, an invitation of salvation, an

invitation to freedom, an invitation to love.

Because beloved, let me tell you, he loves you so much I

can't even fathom his love. Verses 24 As we finish with this

verse, he says, I tell you, not one of those who were invited

will get a taste of my banquet. This is a sad reality of of the

world that we live in and the sad reality of people not

accepting that invitation of the father's call to his children.

That invitation that God is saying, come on home, I've got

more for you. That invitation where yes, we

see the prodigal son, but also we were protocols from the

start. We the ones that cut ourselves

off from God, but God saying get the finest robe, come on home

and the ring. He has that in store for you

today and he has that in store for our community restoration,

full restoration, transformation that would transform our

generations on.