The Great Banquet

Well, how many of you have ever been invited to something, but you kind of didn't really want to go?

Maybe it's something that you've gone to before, like an event or a meeting, and it's even a really good thing.

But there's just other things that you feel are more important.

Of course, you don't want to offend that person who invited you.

And so you find yourself searching for an excuse not to attend.

It's something that we've probably all experienced.

We don't want to lie.

We don't want to say that we're sick when we're not.

Sometimes we just decide to go anyway because it's just easier than having to tell that person who invited us that we don't really want to go.

Other times we've just sort of made up our mind and, no, I'm not going to go.

And we resort to giving the best reason that we can think of.

And hopefully it's something that we feel the other person will understand.

Well, believe it or not, Jesus actually uses that same experience that we've all had to teach us a lesson about the kingdom of God.

It happened like this.

Jesus was at the home of a prominent Pharisee, as we've been talking about.

We heard about that last week.

He was invited over for dinner.

And there's other Pharisees and experts in the law who are there.

And they're watching Jesus carefully.

And it's the Sabbath day.

And Jesus has just healed a man who has abnormal swelling right in front of everybody.

And then Jesus watches as the guests rush for the best seats in the house, the seats of honor.

And Jesus gives them some wisdom.

It becomes a teachable moment about how we can conduct ourselves with pride or humility.

And even some wisdom on who we should invite over for dinner in the first place.

And as Jesus is teaching, one of the men around the table speaks.

We read this in Luke chapter 14, verse 15.

Luke 14:15

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

Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.

Now, we don't really know too much about this guy.

Why did he say this?

What is he thinking?

It could be that he's been listening really carefully to what Jesus has been saying.

Because we know Jesus talks a lot about the kingdom of God.

We heard it just back in chapter 13, verse 29.

Jesus was teaching about the narrow door.

And how they need to make every effort to enter into the kingdom of God through the narrow door.

And Jesus talked about the kingdom of God in that same sort of language, with the language of a feast.

He said, people will come from east and west and north and south and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.

And so it could be that this man has been receptive to Jesus' teaching.

And that in this moment, he's even expressing his own anticipation of being part of this future feast in the kingdom of God.

But there was another guy whose thoughts on this I read this week.

And he thought, well, no, I think this guy's just another self-righteous Pharisee who assumes that he and all of his companions will be at that feast.

Whatever the case, this comment from this man sparked the fire of Jesus' teaching.

And Jesus launches into another one of his parables.

Let me read it for us from Luke chapter 14, beginning in verse 16.

Luke 14 · chapter mention

Jesus replied,

Please excuse me.

Another said, I've just bought five yoke of oxen and I'm on my way to try them out.

Please excuse me.

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

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.

Sir, 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 compel them to come in so that my house will be full.

I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.

There's a few details in this parable that we really got to chew on in order to get what Jesus is talking about.

Because that's the question, right?

Why this parable?

What does this mean?

What's the point?

And the first details that we get from Jesus are about the banquet itself.

He says,

A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests.

So we're not just talking about a little dinner invitation or a fancy dinner party.

This is a large banquet.

In today's world, maybe the closest thing to this would be like a big wedding reception.

Or maybe a graduation banquet.

Or something to commemorate a special milestone in someone's life.

Maybe a 60th birthday.

Or a diamond anniversary.

And the size of this banquet is seen in the number of guests invited.

Many guests were invited, says Jesus.

Before we get any further, what does this great banquet correspond to in reality?

Any guesses?

Heaven.

Heaven?

Pretty much.

The kingdom of God.

If we look back to what the man just said right before this.

Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.

So that's what Jesus' parable is about.

That's what this banquet corresponds to in reality.

The kingdom of God is like a great banquet to which many guests have been invited.

Now let's just pause and think about this.

Those kinds of banquets I mentioned earlier.

Weddings, graduations, milestone birthdays and anniversaries.

Do you like to be invited to those kinds of banquets?

Yeah.

Okay.

Not everybody loves the dressing up part.

We know people like that or maybe you feel that way.

But usually these are joyful occasions, right?

A time to celebrate.

Enjoy some good food and drink with others who are also there to celebrate.

These are special and happy occasions.

Unless maybe you're down in the dumps and just really not wanting to be with people or something like that.

Who wouldn't want to attend a great banquet?

And Jesus compares the kingdom of God to a great banquet.

That right there says something about the kingdom of God.

It's a place of joy and celebration.

Of music.

And singing.

And even dancing.

The kingdom of God, when it fully arrives, will not be boring.

It will be full of joy and celebration.

This parable really is well suited to Jesus' guests.

Not his guests, but the other guests at the table.

The Pharisees, the experts in the law, they were sort of well to do in their day.

And they love to invite each other over for meals and put on parties and banquets.

And so Jesus has their attention.

They can relate.

I think we can relate too.

Who doesn't love to be invited to attend a good banquet?

And so it probably shocked them to hear Jesus tell them this surprising twist.

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.

Back in their day, it was common to have a double invitation to an event like this.

There was the first invitation, which would go out well in advance and let everybody know the date of the banquet,

the purpose, who was being celebrated or what was being celebrated.

And back in their culture, they didn't put the time to arrive on the invitation when it first went out.

Preparing big feasts was a complicated and difficult thing.

To estimate just what time of day it would be ready.

So they would just set the day for it.

And then on the day, when everything was ready, you'd get the second invitation.

They'd send someone around to go and tell everybody,

All right, it's time to come.

The banquet is ready.

You did typically still have to RSVP, in our language,

to that first invitation.

And to let them know, yeah, I'm coming.

Either accept or decline.

And if you accepted, only if you accepted would you get the second invite

when they would send someone around.

Well, the shocking twist happens here in verse 18.

They all alike began to make excuses.

And not just some of them, but all of them made excuses.

And Jesus, still in parable mode, gives three samples of the kinds of excuses

that the invited people made.

The first said, I've just bought a field.

I must go and see it.

Please excuse me.

Another said, I've just bought five yoke of oxen,

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

Please excuse me.

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

We'll talk about the excuses in a minute,

but first let's just hear the reaction of the host one more time.

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 lame,

bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.

Why is the host angry?

Yeah.

How would you feel if you'd been working all day

to get this big feast ready for a whole bunch of people

that you'd invited to celebrate something very special

and not a single person showed up?

Think of the time and the effort and the cost even

of putting on a large banquet.

If you want to have a good catered banquet meal these days,

you can easily spend $40 to $70 per plate

depending on the menu.

Just for fun, I thought, why not look up the catering company

that we decided to not use for our wedding.

We were thinking about it.

They had a great reputation, great food, great service.

We did manage to find something that's a little bit cheaper

14 years ago.

But today, for a classic turkey dinner,

you're looking at $37.50 a plate.

And that sounds like a lot,

but for assorted fresh-baked rolls and bread,

spinach salad with mandarin oranges

with some pomegranate and pumpkin seeds sprinkled through,

butter-glazed corn with roasted vegetables,

honey-roasted carrots with toasted almonds,

creamed mashed potatoes,

slow-roasted turkey, gravy,

cranberry sauce and pickles,

and a slice of homemade pumpkin pie.

And even the whipped cream has a little bit of cinnamon in it.

Suddenly $37.50 doesn't sound so bad, eh?

Well, if you want the beef tenderloin,

it's $70 a plate.

So, chew on that.

We'll go with the classic turkey dinner for $37.50.

And let's just times that by,

let's not get too crazy,

but let's just say 250 guests.

Well, that's about $9,400

just for one meal.

And that doesn't even include the drinks

or any of the other related expenses

for the banquet.

And can you imagine spending that

and nobody shows up?

Back then, they also didn't have freezers and fridges

and all that good stuff that we have today.

So, to keep things fresh,

they probably would have slaughtered

and butchered one or two animals

in time for this meal.

And so, it was costly.

Everything's ready.

But I do imagine that probably the cost

was not the biggest factor

in the master's anger.

Probably the bigger factor

is that those who were invited,

it's sort of implied

that they had already accepted the invitation

the first time.

Just sort of rudely cancel

at the last minute.

When it comes right down to it,

barring an emergency,

that would have just been

downright rude

and disgraceful.

And again, it's implied

they had already accepted

that first invitation.

They'd already put it on the calendar

and said,

yeah, I'll be there.

They've had plenty of time to decline

if something else that's more important

comes up.

But now the day of the banquet

has come

and last minute,

no,

I'm not gonna go.

Think of the public embarrassment

on the part of the host

having prepared all this

and nobody's gonna go.

So it's not surprising

that he is angry.

This twist probably would have shocked

Jesus' dinner companions.

Who would do such a thing?

What on earth would they rather be doing

than being at the banquet,

going to the banquet?

Well, let's look at those excuses.

One guy would rather go

and see the field that he just bought.

Well, that's kind of a poor

and disappointing excuse, isn't it?

I mean, if he's already bought the field,

can't he just go look at it tomorrow?

When it comes right down to it,

it's like the guy's just more interested

in his property

than in the person

and in the occasion being celebrated.

The second guy

says,

I just bought five yoke of oxen.

A yoke is a pair.

So ten animals.

This guy must have had some wealth.

But even for a big purchase like this,

I mean,

that's kind of a poor

and disappointing excuse.

Just like with the field.

If you've already bought the animals,

like,

do you have to try them out right now?

What about tomorrow?

When it comes right down to it,

this second guy,

he's just more interested

in his animals

than in the person

and the occasion

for celebration.

The third guy says,

I just got married,

so I can't come.

At least this third guy

isn't putting property

ahead of people.

But we have to wonder here too,

what about just getting married

means they can't go to the banquet?

I mean,

the wedding's already happened.

Surely the wife

would have been welcome

to attend with him.

And besides,

the banquet's like

a one-time deal,

whereas the marriage

is gonna last

for a long time.

Why can't he

and his new wife come?

They've known about it

for a long time.

I think Jesus

deliberately chooses

excuses

that are sort of common.

And if we're honest,

we can kind of relate

to these kinds of excuses,

can't we?

being excited

about a new purchase

or maybe just not

feeling up to it

during a transitionary

moment in life.

Or,

if we're honest,

maybe just more excited

about being with someone else.

Whether a wife

or other friends

that are maybe

a little bit more fun

to be around.

But then again,

it's implied

they had already

accepted the invitation

when it first came.

They knew the banquet

was set for this day.

These excuses

sort of reveal

what's going on

in their heart.

It shows what's

most important to them.

They would rather

go look at

the new field,

take the new animals

for a test drive,

hang out with

the new wife,

than go to the banquet.

No wonder the host

of the banquet is angry.

And so what does he do?

Well, he makes

a quick decision

to send out

the servants again.

Verse 21,

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.

And the servant

goes and does it

and there's still room.

And so the master

sends him out

a second time.

This time,

a little further,

out into the countryside.

Round up anybody

who will come.

Fill my house.

Go out to the roads

and country lanes.

Compel them to come in

so that my house

will be full.

Now that word

compels maybe,

I wouldn't,

I'm not sure

that's the best translation.

It's not force,

but that word

can mean to strongly urge.

Like,

don't just give them

the quick invite

and then pass by

if they say no,

no,

persuade them.

Tell them about

what's being celebrated

and what's prepared.

Persuade them

if you can.

And then the parable

ends with this comment

from the master.

Verse 24,

I tell you,

not one of those

who were invited

will get a taste

of my banquet.

Many have noticed

how Jesus kind of shifts

to the first

and second person

pronouns here.

Jesus often spoke that way.

He often said,

I tell you.

I tell you.

And so is Jesus

right in this moment

speaking to the people

around the table.

I tell you,

not one of those

who were invited

will get a taste

of my banquet.

Or is this just

the host in the story?

I can't resolve

that question,

but it sure makes us think.

Well,

what does all this mean?

We already know

it's about

the kingdom of God,

this parable.

We know Jesus

is saying

that the kingdom of God

is like a great banquet

to which many

have been invited.

What do all these

details

add to that?

The invitations

go out to many,

but when the time

to come to the banquet

and sit down

at the feast arrives,

the excuses

come in.

And those who were

initially invited

don't want to come.

They're preoccupied

with other things

that are more important

to them.

even though

their declining

of the invitation

sounds polite,

it's rude

and it's dishonorable

to choose

the lesser

things

at the last minute.

I believe

that Jesus

is describing

how it goes

with the kingdom

of God

using this parable.

It's like

a great banquet,

the kingdom

of God,

a wonderful thing

that God

is very generously

giving

and preparing

for people

and many

are invited

to come

into his kingdom

and to be a part

of it.

Even to feast

and celebrate

with him

and maybe

the first promises

of it

sound really good

and many,

oh yeah,

I want to be

a part of that.

I'll be there.

I accept

the invitation

but then

at the moment

when all is ready

and God now

extends the call,

come,

it's ready.

Those

who were invited

refuse

and they're just

preoccupied

with things

that they consider

more important.

I think

the first stop

as we apply

this parable

is to think

about how

it describes

the very moment

that Jesus

is in

in human history.

What has Jesus

been doing

up to this point?

He's been traveling

all over Israel

saying what?

the time

has come.

The kingdom

of God

has come near.

Repent

and believe

the good news.

It's time

to come

to the banquet.

It's time

to enter

into the kingdom

of God

and this

is it

right here.

and we

could go

into all

the details

of what

about the

double

invitation?

Was the

Old Testament

prophets

the first

invite

and Jesus

the second

or was it

John the

Baptist

the first

and Jesus

the second?

Was the

banquet fully

ready at

Jesus'

first coming

or is it

kind of

at his

second coming?

We could

really dig

into all

that and

maybe get

ourselves

spun around

in here.

Some have

even suggested

that maybe

the first

invitation

or the

second

invitation

to the

poor

and the

blind

and the

crippled

and the

lame

well that's

to the

Jews

and then the

next one

is sort of

further out

to the

Gentiles

and these

aren't unreasonable

ideas.

I'm not sure

if Jesus

really meant

all that

specificness

through the

parable

but to me

I think

that anchor

truth that

really helps

us see

what this

is about

is how

have people

been responding

to Jesus

when he says

the time

is here

the kingdom

is at

hand.

Well

the same

way

right?

Excuses

rejection

the strongest

rejection has

been from the

Pharisees of

course and the

religious leaders

of the Jews

right around the

table there

with him

but we've also

heard excuses

as well

back at

Luke chapter

nine near the

end there

Jesus was

saying follow

me and

people were

saying well

that sounds

great but

first let

me go and

take care

of some

stuff

and so

I really

do think

Jesus is

like that

servant who

has been

sent out to

tell people

the banquet

is here

the kingdom

of God

has come

near

but the

many

the people

of Israel

many in

Israel that

in Jesus

very day

they didn't

want to

come

they didn't

want to

follow him

they made

excuses

and kind of

like in the

parable this

isn't just

a sort of

optional

event

the kingdom

of God

it's not like

Jesus can just

say well

whatever floats

your boat

that's good

for you

don't worry

about it

no this

is a rude

rejection

of a very

generous

God

he has

put before

them

an invitation

to his

great and

glorious

kingdom

and they

don't value

it

they care

about

lesser

things

more

they make

excuses

and how

does God

feel about

this

I think

angry

does describe

it

maybe not

with that

sort of

typical

unrighteous

anger

that we

have

or that

we

imagine

the banquet

holder

in the

parable

having

but with

a holy

and righteous

anger

those

invited

have

spurned

him

they've

turned

up

their

noses

at his

gracious

invitation

they've

said

I'd

rather

play

with

animals

than

come to

your

banquet

and what

does God

do

well in

the parable

the host

of the

banquet

doesn't

cancel

it

the

banquet

is

still

going

to

be

on

everything

is

ready

and if

those

who

were

invited

won't

come

then

go

out

and

invite

those

who

will

come

round

them

up

till

my

house

is

full

I

think

this

is

meant

to

highlight

the

generosity

of

God

even

the

mercy

of

God

the

so

called

friends

of

God

aka

the

Pharisees

the

religious

leaders

of the

Jews

they

won't

come

and so

God

opens

wide

the

door

to

the

people

that

they

would

least

expect

to be

in the

kingdom

of

God

the

poor

the

crippled

the

blind

why

would

these

people

be

invited

I

think

we

kind

of

know

it's

not

because

the

master

is

just

desperate

to

have

people

at

his

banquet

no

it

shows

his

generosity

he

will

make

people

who

have

nothing

to

offer

his

honored

guests

instead

and

what's

interesting

about

this

little

detail

of

poor

and

blind

and

crippled

in

the

real

story

of

what

happened

who

responded

favorably

to

Jesus

it

was

the

same

sorts

of

people

quite

literally

the

poor

the

crippled

the

blind

they

came

to

Jesus

they

called

out

to

Jesus

remember

that

paralyzed

guy

who

had

his

friends

bring

him

on

the

mat

and

put

him

through

the

roof

right

down

in

front

of

Jesus

remember

blind

Bartimaeus

on the

side

of the

road

calling

out

with

all

his

might

Jesus

son

of

David

have

mercy

on

me

I

want

to

see

and

Jesus

commended

them

not

just

because

they

were

so

!

desperate

that

they

came

to

him

but

because

they

had

faith

that

Jesus

could

heal

them

they

believed

that

God

was

really

at

work

through

Jesus

and

so

in a

sense

literally

the

kingdom

of

God

will

be

full

of

people

who

were

actually

poor

and

crippled

and

lame

and

blind

but

that

being

said

I

really

do

believe

that

the

poor

and

the

crippled

and

the

blind

stands

not

just

for

poor

people

or

people

with

disabilities

but

for

all

whom

our

world

considers

nobodies

and

worthless

that's

what

Jesus

has

been

talking

about

at

the

dinner

table

already

how

the

lowly

will

be

exalted

and

how

the

proud

will

be

humbled

I

think

we're

seeing

this

truth

again

here

that

with

the

kingdom

of

God

everything's

going to

be

turned

upside

down

those

who

thought

they

were

going

to

be

in

the

kingdom

will

be

on

the

outside

wishing

for

even

a

taste

of

the

banquet

and

those

that

they

thought

would

never

make

it

in

will

be

the

honored

guests

seated

at

the

table

of

God

God's

going to

turn it

all

upside

down

and

for

those

who

do

get in

the

kingdom

of

God

it's

it's

not

that

they're

there

because

they

were

worthy

but

because

God

is

exceedingly

generous

think

back

to

that

first

comment

that

sparked

the

whole

teaching

moment

blessed

is the

one

who

will

eat

at

the

feast

in

the

kingdom

of

God

that

guy

said

to

Jesus

and

I

believe

that

Jesus

with

the

parable

and

response

is

basically

saying

yes

indeed

but

many

who

think

they

will

be

at

the

feast

in

the

kingdom

of

God

will

not

be

and

many

who

you

think

least

likely

to

be

at

the

banquet

will

be

at

the

table

who

are

the

first

disciples

of

Jesus

fishermen

!

A

tax

collector!

A

prostitute!

A

woman

who

had

been

possessed

!

By

demons!

to

name

a

few!

Meanwhile

the

Pharisees

the

chief

priests

who

served

at

the

temple

the

experts

in

the

law

rejected

the

invitation

that

Jesus

is

bringing!

This

little

parable

captures

really

well

how

things

actually

went

as

Jesus

walked

the

earth!

But

how

does

it

apply

to

us

today?

I

think

that's

part

of

the

great

surprise

of

the

kingdom

of

God

it

has

come

near

and

it

did

come

near

in

Jesus

but

there's

still

a

final

moment

which

awaits

when

the

feasting

finally

begins

there's

this

gap

in

between

Jesus

first

coming

and

his

second

coming

and

in

that

gap

it

has

been

given

to

all

a

brief

window

of

time

to

be

born

to

live

and

to

die

and

in

that

brief

window

for

each

of

us

there

is

still

time

to

respond

to

God's

gracious

invitation

to

come

and be

part

of the

banquet

to

repent

and

believe

the

good

news

and

so

the

question

it

really

brings

us

to

first

of

all

is

have

you

accepted

the

invitation

of

God

to

his

banquet

or

are

you

still

making

excuses

about

why

you

can't

come

are

there

other

things

that

you

think

are

more

important

if

you

don't

really

believe

in

Jesus

and

you

know

it

I'm

interested

what

is

your

excuse

and

is

it

really

worth

it

more

to

you

than

to

have

a

place

at

the

feast

in

the

kingdom

of

God

as

Jesus

said

in

the

last

chapter

narrow

is

the

door

of

salvation

and

many

will

find

themselves

locked

out

at

the

end

and

it's

not

because

God

doesn't

want

them

in

they

stand

outside

pleading

to

get

in

at

the

end

and

longing

for

a

taste

of

God's

banquet

because

they

refuse

to

come

when

the

invitation

was

given

and

eventually

our

time

is

up

that

window

that

we

have

in

our

lives

it

closes

the

door

is

shut

and

then

it

will

be

too

late

the

time

to

respond

to

Jesus

invitation

is

now

don't

make

excuses

other

things

might

feel

really

important

or

seem

really

important

in

this

moment

but

in

the

grand

scheme

of

all

things

set

those

things

aside

for

Jesus

and

for

his

kingdom

finally

for those

of us

who

have

accepted

the

invitation

it

can be

easy

for us

to

forget

how we

got

this

standing

that we

have

with

God

it's

not

because

we

were

more

worthy

but

it's

because

God

is

gracious

and

generous

we

are

the

poor

the

blind

and

the

lame

who

have

come

in

but

it

can

be

easy

for

us

to

look

around

at

others

and

be

like

the

Pharisees

thinking

that

we're

somebody

that

we

really

deserve

those

seats

of

honor

in

the

kingdom

it

can

be

easy

for

us

to

look

down

on

others

who

are

poor

or

who

are

struggling

in the

eyes

of our

world

are

worthless

again

what

did

Jesus

urge

his

host

to

do

for

his

future

dinner

parties

he

said

invite

the

poor

the

crippled

the

lame

and

the

blind

and

you

will

be

blessed

you've

made

it in

if

you've

accepted

that

invitation

of

Jesus

but

who

are

those

people

in

your

life

right

now

and

maybe

God's

plan

is

to

use

you

to

bring

them

into

his

table

let's

pray

father in

heaven

thank you

so much

for this

parable

it really

does

stir our

thoughts

and

convict

and

we

just

ask

that

you

would

help

us

to

see

more

clearly

in

our

world

through

it

fill us

with

wisdom

give us

that sense

of urgency

that you

show us

about our

time and our

moment in

this life

our opportunity

to listen to

you and

respond to

you but

also to

be at

work with

you in

your

purposes

to save

others

thank you

for these

moments we

have

together

soften and

speak to

our hearts