COME TO THE FEAST

BURIED TREASURE: Exploring The Parables Of Jesus

by J. W. Jepson, D.Min.

Life In Christ Center, 3095 Cherry Heights Road, The Dalles, Oregon 97058

(541) 296-1136

The Author hereby grants permission to reproduce the text of this article, without changes or alterations*, as a ministry, but not for commercial or non-ministry purposes.

*Permission is given for publication of excerpts and condensed versions.

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16.

COME TO THE FEAST

A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: and sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.

And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused. And another said I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.

So that servant came, and showed his lord these things.

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 hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.

And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.

And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.

--Luke 14:16-24

COME TO THE FEAST

Almost everyone regards a dinner invitation as a gesture of real friendship, an honor to receive and a pleasure to accept. Most of us enjoy good food and pleasant table company.

That is why the behavior of the men Jesus talked about in this parable seems so strange and unreasonable.

It seems strange that apparently sane people would decline an invitation to a delightful evening of delicious food and pleasant companionship sponsored at great effort and expense by a generous host. But the excuses they offered were stranger still!

The first claimed that he could not come because he had just bought a piece of ground and had to look at it. That was nonsense, of course, and he must have known it. People look at their property before they buy it. Anyway, he could have viewed it later. The property would still be there.

This man represents the people who refuse the invitation to the Kingdom of God because they are all wrapped up in their possessions. Their possessions possess them.

The second man's excuse was that he had just bought five yoke of oxen and he had to try them out.

More nonsense! Any man not smart enough to try out the oxen before he bought them probably did not own enough ground to require five yoke of oxen to plow it.

He represents those who are too busy with personal projects to accept eternal life. They are like a child who is too absorbed with TV to come to dinner. Such behavior may be understandable in children, but not in adults when eternal values are at stake.

The third man claimed he had married a wife and therefore could not come. Well, the poor fellow! Just married and hen-pecked already? Of course, it was just a flimsy excuse. Why not bring the bride along? Make the great supper part of the honeymoon. That would be a good way to start married life.

He represents the people who allow other people to stand between them and the blessing of God. People are their excuse. If we allow people to keep us from living for God, they will.

So we have the excuses: possessions, projects, people. The devil is well supplied with stumbling-blocks. If we will allow anything to come between us and God, the enemy of our souls "has it in stock," and he knows just how and when to place it in front of us.

If we are going to enter the kingdom of God, we must determine once and for all that we will not allow anything or anyone to stand in our way. God will back up that kind of

commitment with the full resources of His all-sufficient grace!

These people had showed interest in attending the feast when the preliminary contact was made (such contacts were customary); but when the moment arrived to do something

about it, they were unwilling to make the effort. Such callous disregard for the feelings of the generous host! Such insult to him after he had prepared so much for then!

This is the callous way millions of people treat God and His gracious invitation. They just cannot be bothered! Oh, they think and talk about Heaven, all right: but when it comes to doing something about it, they are not willing even to accept a free invitation. They are guilty of unreasonable disregard for real values.

Certainly, "the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not..." (2 Corinthians 4:4).

But Heaven is not going to be empty. God did not prepare the everlasting joys of Paradise at the tremendous cost of the death of His Son to have it all go for nothing.

Jesus made that clear in the second part of the parable. The host sent his servant into the streets to bring in the poor, the maimed, the halt, and the blind. When every seat was filled, the feast began.

Jesus came to His own, and they rejected Him (John 1:11). Now the command is "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15).

"Bring them in," Jesus orders. All are invited. All are welcome to sit down and enjoy the everlasting feast of God's mercy and love.

And here they come: publicans and sinners, rich and poor, spiritually hungry souls "of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues..." (Revelation 7:9).

They marvel that such a feast has been prepared for them. Yet they do believe. Leaving their sins and the rags of their spiritual poverty, they come with "everlasting joy" (Isaiah 51:11), to "sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 8:11).

"And yet there is room." Room for you. Leave the moldy crusts of selfishness. The Master has prepared an everlasting feast for you, and you may enjoy it both now and forever in His presence absolutely free as His invited guest.

To turn down such a gracious offer would be most unreasonable. It would be utter folly.

You have received the priceless invitation. Jesus urges you to accept it, to accept Him. He is waiting for your decision. Come to Him now and tell Him that you accept with deepest gratitude.

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17. The Lost Sheep

Buried Treasure index

introduction 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Bibliography