The Great Supper

Good morning and welcome to Our Daily Walk.

Audio version at http://tinyurl.com/35yrbj

What if you threw a party and no one came? That may well be the fear of some people who want to entertain others but are unsure if they will attend. Can you imagine the waste that would be involved if no one showed up for your party? Just think of all of the time cleaning and arranging things, not to mention all of that food that would go to waste. Having no shows at your party would not only be a waste, but would also be an insult to you as a host.

Jesus teaches a parable of a great supper where people declined an invitation to a feast. We find this in Luke 14:15-24.

Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’ But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’ Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.” So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’ And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’ Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’”

The excuses given by these people were very flimsy. One said that he had bought some land and hadn’t even seen it yet. Another said that he was going to test five yoke of oxen that he had purchased. Both of these men must have been very trusting of their business partners. Who do you know that would buy property or beasts of burden without seeing the land or proving the animals? No one I know would.

The last man appealed to the fact that he had married a wife and therefore could not come. There were regulations that covered a newlywed couple during their first year. You can read about that in Deuteronomy 24:5. It says there that a newly married man should not go to war or be charged with business for a full year. Instead, he should stay at home and bring happiness to his wife.

But this was not war, nor was it business. This was an invitation to a great feast. These men had already been invited and they were expected to come. But with one voice they each immediately made excuses for not fulfilling their commitment.

They just simply did not want to attend this feast. They had each become absorbed in their own material, business and marital affairs and did not currently see the need or the appeal of the great supper.

This obviously angered the host who quickly sent out his servants to gather others for the feast. The preparations had already been made. The feast was to be a time of great fellowship and joy. More people must be invited.

So the servants went into the less desirable areas of the city and brought in the poor and the handicapped and still there was much room. Then another plea was made to go and compel others to join in the feast before the time had passed.

In the end those who would not accept the invitation were bypassed in favor of all those who would.

It’s hard to imagine someone declining an invitation from God. But that is what this parable represents. Representative of the Jews, these who declined the invitation had an inside track. They were already invited, but then they lost interest and declined.

Isn’t it sad today to think of those who already have a belief in God but who reject His invitation? Friends, don’t let business, material things or even family come between you and your God.

On Our Daily Walk today, may we be thankful that God desires to have us in His presence. May we do all that we can to make sure that we will be faithful to His invitation as we look forward to the joy and fellowship of His feast.

Our thought for the day: A church sign once read, “You aren’t too bad to come in. You aren’t too good to stay out.”

May God bless you on your daily walk.

© Our Daily Walk, Mike Baker, 2007. Permission is granted to copy these articles provided they are not sold and the author's name and copyright are included.