“Jesus said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time for the banquet he sent his slave to tell those who had been invited, ʻCome, because everything is now ready.ʼ But one after another they all began to make excuses. The first said to him, ʻI have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please excuse me.ʼ Another said, ʻI have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going out to examine them. Please excuse me.ʼ Another said, ʻI just got married, and I cannot come.ʼ” (Luke 14: 16-20)
Jesus, in the parable you gave above, the people who were invited to the great banquet feast gave excuses why they could not attend. You invite all of us who call ourselves Christians into a banquet with you of your grace as well. An intimate gathering where we receive your Joy, peace and all the glories of the Kingdom of God. However, though we will receive the gift of God’s grace, attending Jesus’ party is not about us getting all we want it, is about us surrendering all we have to Jesus. So before any one of us say “Yes,” and accept His invitation into His banquet as a disciple of Jesus, each one of us needs to carefully read the invitation contained in chapter 14 before we accept it. In Your invitation You plainly state the conditions::
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” (v.26)
“Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” (v. 27)
“not one of you can be my disciple if he does not renounce all his own possessions.” (v.33)
Before you head off to the banquet, consider all it will cost you, and if you are not willing to give it all, turn around. (My paraphrase of vs. 28-29)
Saying you are a Christian is good, as long as you continue to surrender, obey and imitate Christ. If you stop and are a Christian by name only, your witness stinks like crap. (My paraphrase of vs. 34-25)
After reading and understanding what Your invitation to Your banquet actually says, what the cost to attend the great banquet actually is, I can understand why those asked to attend the banquet in the parable above made excuses not to attend. It made me reflect on how I have cut and pasted Your invitation to make it imitate the world and read that it is all about me, and my agenda, instead of imitating Jesus and being all about You. How I have cut, pasted and removed your words of cross bearing, suffering, and surrender as conditions to attend your banquet from your invitation. I am sorry about that. This morning Jesus, help me remove all the excuses I have made not to attend Your banquet of discipleship. Let people not identify me as a Christian because that is what I say I am, but because my life has the “banquet flavor” of a Christian, in which they can, “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Psalm 34:8). In Jesus’ name. Amen.
My family, I pray today you take time to read Luke chapter 14 and understand what His invitation to His banquet of discipleship actually says, in Jesus’ name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you my friends!
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