Parable of the Banquet

My wife Sasha and I were walking through Chinatown in NYC.

But we had a small problem, we were hungry.

Decision paralysis is a real thing. We of course were looking at Yelp and peaking at window menus but the whole thing was unfamiliar.

We could have asked but that involves a cultural danger called “Talking to a stranger or talking in general”

First off, everything is cash only and I’m a millennial.

Additionally, I have a mistrust of ATM’s with blinking lights who look like they came from a textbook of “How to get robbed 101”

But then we found it, it was a busy Chinese restaurant. With a little glorious paper sign that said “We take Venmo” Venmo is an online payment app.

We went to the front of it, asked for a table at the busy place. The waiter said

“Come on in, we will put you with another party”

A show called Friends has a character Joey who yells “I don’t share food!”

I wanted to shout “I don’t share tables with strangers” it’s weird to be put together with strangers and no context other than we are hungry.

Need: To get into our glorious Chinese Venmo accepting restaurant, we had to accept an invitation into the unknown, we had to abandon our familiar practice of excuses and be introduced to new.

For a lot of us this may not be far off from our experience with Christians and church.

It’s a jarring unnatural thing that moves us from familiar experiences to unfamiliar ones.

Or it may be the bubble we grew up in our whole life. It’s no excitement at all in fact it’s become complacent and regular without life in it.

Last week Mark led us in this statement with Jesus is Messiah and Lord, meaning that He is who we place our trust in to be lead of our life.

He helped us understand that the Bible’s message is that Jesus is the one who can lead us but we have to answer the question of “who do we see Jesus is?” Who do we really say He is, as Christians we want people to recognize the goodness of Jesus.

Whether you are coming from the church being familiar or unfamiliar to us, we are looking at Sermon series titled “Jesus is _________”

When we fill in that blank for ourselves and think about how it is to enter into churches it may be something like

Jesus is for Exclusive Country Club Christians who have life together and act perfect

Jesus is for people who exist in a bubble out of touch and out of reality of the ‘real world’ that happens, or Jesus is for my bubble to keep out the ‘unfamiliar’

Jesus is just one of many religions out there and any ‘party’ will do

We have many places we can fill in the blank but while the world and even sometimes the church sends message about Jesus we want to focus on the Jesus of the Bible.

We want to look at a parable today found in Luke 14:15-24. This is a Parable called the Great Banquet. It’s found in Luke 14:15-24. Parables are made to unleash the imagination and send a hidden message of how Jesus spoke to others.

We will start reading from there in Luke 14:15-24

15 When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

16 But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many;

17 and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’

18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’

19 Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’

20 Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’

21 And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’

22 And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’

23 And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.

24 For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.’”

When I read this through the first time, I’ll admit I didn’t get it.

It seems like a story about a host getting stood up at a party.

When I was in high school there was a big call for prayer going on in my Youth group, so I decided I would host a prayer meeting and invite everyone. Now our youth group was around 40 people. Guess how many showed up to my prayer meeting? The Youth pastor and one of my friends. We set up the room for 20 people. It was weird and awkward and angering. Is this just a story about an angry host getting stood up by guests?

The Sr High know this isn’t true of Parables since parables have been major focuses for us.

A Parable is a story but more than that.

Parables is two words Para “alongside” and bole “to set”

Parables = “To Set Alongside”

Parables have a goal, to reveal they are set alongside something else.

The goal of Parables is not to teach a nice moral lesson and it is not to teach theology lessons about God.

Parables challenge the world around them to reveal something new. Parables are stories that aren’t true in the way of how they happen but are true in what they reveal about us.

Parables are Jesus weapons of war in his ministry. They teach and shroud a message of who Jesus is and what He is building as a Kingdom.

Warren Wiersbe defined a parable as “a picture that becomes a mirror and then a window,” in that “we gaze at the scene [or see the story] in the parable, we see ourselves; then we see truth.”

Using the parable as our guide we will go through how to enter into and see what Jesus is doing and who Jesus is we will have to first, accept the invitation, abandon our excuses that keep us outside, and enter into something new.

Why does this matter? Because going to church and being religious and being here isn’t enough. We know it’s not enough because we find ourselves in hard seasons, challenging churches, and cultures in disarray.

This is no different then Jesus day, where Rome has conquered military and politically. The elite Pharisees are using religion as a weapon against people and into chaos Jesus is.

To some Jesus is Messiah. To some He is a great teacher, a prophet, a healer, a social activist.

To others Jesus is a liar, a heretic, an enemy who is to be killed.

This parable is the second half of another parable which likewise focuses on banquets and feast.

Our context is Jesus just called Jesus called out an exclusive elite country club of people called Pharisees who were in a bubble and maybe it’s awkward.

Which is why the v.15 is said by a partygoer

“Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”

Blessed is for me, blessed is about me, blessed is me going to heaven and only people like me.

The Jewish people believed in a great feast where God would conquer all sin and death.

Everyone at this party agreed God would win. The difference is the Pharisees believed it was all about them.

The elite party in the bubble of comfort and exclusiveness would be there.

In their kingdom of self, the party and banquet were for the elite and in-club.

Sadly, Christians can think here as well, instead of a party to celebrate and invite others into as we are called to “Go and Make Disciples” we say “Stay and Hang out with my friends”

The party isn’t for us. And the party is not a funeral of sit and stand-up bubble people.

Jesus’ entire parable works from here as he begins to tell a story about the man who sent out an invitation

The closest kind of invitation we have is an exclusive wedding. Something of true celebration.

One of my groomsmen flew in from California to be with me as I married. He was excited and happy to be there in that no excuse would hold him back.

I thanked him for coming and his future invite to me was whenever he got married, I was to stand up there with him.

In order to truly be a part of this party, we all have to Accept the Invitation.

The invitation has been sent out in our passage of v.16 “A man was giving a big dinner and he invited many”

The man, God who is Jesus is inviting us into his party.

This is the ultimate party, it’s not a funeral it is a true party

Jesus is the invitation. A great feast with those who respond.

Like most weddings, there is the save the date and invitation response this is the first one that has been sent out in v.16.

The guest has now responded. Banquets are not short notice either, they are informed far in advance.

One of the many beliefs our culture can hold is that all religions lead to the same direction and eventually go to same place.

Frankly, it’s just lazy and not true of any major religions.

Judaism said it is through good works of the Torah, Jewish scriptures, and sacrifices.

Islam said it is through obedience to the Qur’an and following the prophets.

Both share the same problem. It is through effort and man-made work to get into next life.

Even Eastern religions work from this effort of self-effort and self-exhaustion to enlightenment such and Hinduism and Buddhism.

Only Christian makes the claim that it is not man’s effort we are saved to heaven, it is God’s effort and invitation.

All of these religions Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism hold that they are exclusively correct. This is no surprise for some it’s self-effort. For some it’s built into their religious fiber.

For Buddhism they are most exclusive they believe that all people will eventually reincarnate into Buddhists whether it takes one lifetime or 1000. Hence why they don’t feel need to be missionaries, we all end up in same Buddhist heaven according to them.

I spent a lot of my life pondering Buddhism as my family background is Japanese Buddhist.

So when Jesus is sending us the invitation to come to His party, it’s not a work of effort or religious trickery.

When we look at our parable.

v.17 “Come, for everything is ready now”

We didn’t work for it. We didn’t deserve it. God inviting us to come to His party, it’s not a trick or effort it’s us accepting that invitation.

v.18 But they all alike began to make excuses.

God has made the effort, in this context God has called Israel by loving and caring for them and freeing them to a promise land.

God is consistently kind and loving to Israel, but they keep making excuses and now, God’s own son Jesus is making the invitation and they are missing it.

We like them an miss God’s invitation to accept the party and instead we focus on our second point of excuses.

In this parable the people alike begin to make excuses of why they can’t come into Jesus’ party that celebrates Jesus’ reign and power overall.

v.18 The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’

The point of a parable is to open the imagination. The excuse is flimsy at best in this story.

Now we have a strange housing market but usually one doesn’t buy first and see second. There is no online world to go browse.

The second reason it’s a bad excuse is that banquets are in the evening. What’s he go do? Look at a dark field’s corner with all that he can light with a torch?

He already bought it, there is no rush to go see it.

The second is similar

“I bought five yoke of oxen and I’m going to go try them out”

Again, they are already bought, it’s dark, and how is he going to try them out? They are fine in a stable.

Both men excused themselves by business and materialism.

Here we find the priorities of excuse that keep us from accepting the invitation.

Jesus has made the invitation, the invitation for them to enter the Kingdom, to be people of the kingdom who welcome and bring others into the party.

Instead, they are too busy for God.

The first two excuses say to God

I don’t have time for recognizing Jesus’ invitation because I have financial concerns and work life.

The third excuse seems stronger but on closer look it fails to stand up either

“I just got married, so I can’t come.’

This seems like a good reason; I mean who doesn’t want to have a night off from social. But here’s the tension.

Marriage ceremonies are not done in a day. It’s months of preparation much like this banquet is months of preparation. Nobody gets married privately or from surprise.

In Deut 20 there is talk about how a man is not go to war if he is married.

This isn’t a reason here, that is related to war, this is a party.

A newly married couple can spare an evening and celebrate at a party that is well known in advance.

Jesus is inviting us into a relationship with Him. To our eternal security in the Kingdom, to be not part of an exclusive country club but a life building life giving relationship and something that doesn’t look at being perfect but looks at being home.

A preached named Billy Sunday said excuses are “The skin of reason stuff with a lie, a person who is good at excuses is usually not good at anything else”

The guests said to God

“I can’t accept your invitation; I’ve got to take care of my stuff”

“My job won’t allow me to seek God at this time of my life”

“I’m married, my first priority is my spouse”

Things get grey when we measure social obligations against other obligations.

When we try to determine who or what is most valuable.

But think of how these would go over with my friend from before who I promised

“I can’t accept your invitation; I’ve got a car that needs an oil change. Or my job is priority over my word with you. Or my spouse is my excuse for why I break promises”

These excuses don’t work well with people, why would they work with God and when Jesus is inviting us into His Kingdom.

They all made excuses and all of them assumed because they were good religious people that they were excused.

They were all wrong.

Instead, the parable turns to others, the party host invites everyone else.

21 ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’

22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’

23 “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.”

The mistake we make about Christian churches and Christianity is that it’s for the perfect people.

The people who have life together, who act right, sing on cue, clap at the right spots, pray the long prayers.

New England has a culture, and churches can share that culture all over the country. It’s called the Elite Party. The In group. The regulars.

That may not be bad but a woman in Vermont died at the ripe age of 94 years old. She lived in Vermont for over 90 years as she moved there from NY when she was 4 years old. She never moved out of that town, and she never moved out of the state again.

The newspaper ran an obituary heading for her

“New York woman died in Vermont at 94”

We carry cultures inside of us, some of them are powerful and uplifting.

Others though keep others from entering. This woman no matter who long she lived in New England was collectively rejected as “one of ours”

If that is our experience this morning with Christianity, I’m sorry.

I wish it wasn’t and that’s why we have sermons like today. Because it hurts and this is not the party Jesus is inviting us into. Whether here in this church or in the Kingdom of God.

We think these types of experiences are far from us but that’s not the case.

We have had some consultant friends come through here.

In one of those experiences a consultant who experiencing our church was told exactly this “You’re in my seat”

Here, in this room, in this church, in this last year.

The kingdom of God is upside down, God’s priority is not on the powerful, or together, or the in-crowds. God’s priority is on the lost, the lame, the broken, and the desperate.

God’s inviting the people we cut out.

If we feel Christians have cut us out, I hope today we hear a different invitation.

It’s a horrible thing to see a group have a party that you hoped for an invitation to.

We are all invited to God’s kingdom, and we are not to be the people who cut others out of it.

Jesus alone saves and is inviting all to receive and come to the party, let’s not get in his way by deciding who gets the invites.

The difference between a welcoming person and a Jesus’ person is that a welcoming person will introduce themselves and leave you.

A Jesus person invites you into the party, no matter who you are.

None of the people have the excuses of prosperity, family, or power. But each of them, each of us have that invitation.

For the Jewish people the social outcasts from Judaism are Gentiles, the outsiders.

Jesus calls his followers to do whatever they can to invite others into the feast.

Not brainwashing, religious trickery, or attacking, you can’t force a horse to drink but you can give it salt.

Are we living lives that are attractive and truly welcoming? To help see that Jesus is inviting all types, all people into relationships, and guess what?

It will get messy. Social cues will be ignored. Awkward conversations. No chemistry. Culture clashes and conflicts.

But what is worse, is to miss the invitation to enter into Jesus’ kingdom and the way of his Kingdom.

Our final verse is frightening. Parables are stories with a lesson, this one has a landmine.

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

Jesus is the banquet inviter, it’s “My banquet” Jesus is the true messiah, Jesus is the true one who gives salvation.

Remember this is a parable, meaning this story didn’t happen but is meant to teach us.

These party goers didn’t want to come into the party, so excluding them has no meaning.

Jesus is sending a message that to be part of His Kingdom we must accept his invite.

God is ruling. He is bigger than our excuses of materialism, work life, family, or cultures. A person or nations rejection of God will not undo his plan.

The landmine is this, Jesus is inviting us all into His Kingdom. Israel and these Pharisees had excluded themselves by making excuses.

God is interested in the lost, and so should we.

Jesus is inviting us all into something new: A new relationship with Him and new way of welcoming others into our lives.

Yes, it will be weird and different, but we are invited in.

There are no other parties that satisfy.

People today make the same mistake the first listeners of this parable made. They delay the invitation.

They wait for stars to align, to make things work, and they miss the invitation until it’s too late.

Jesus is inviting us in, and He is the invitation.

Nothing is as important as accepting this invitation this gift of saying “Yes I want to come in” I didn’t earn it, I didn’t deserve it, but I accept it.

The Christian life is not a funeral, it is a feast. If you need to hear that invitation, come in.

If you are sure, you have accepted the invitation don’t miss your invitation now.

We believers are to welcome each other in, not just to church but to life.

Our lives, our ways, and our relationships. Mess and all.

God wants to invite others in.

An easy place to begin is who in this church or in workplaces, neighborhoods, is God asking you to invite in?

While it’s good to focus on unchurched people, it’s also good to focus on each other, to step into something new with unfamiliar people.

Join a Life Group, go to Youth Group, Men’s ministry, or just invite someone to coffee.

Invite people into our lives.

In the end, we went into the restaurant. We sat and talked with a wonderful Japanese family who was visiting their daughter. We connected, laughed, and had a great time.

We worked past our excuse of the uncomfortable and opened our lives to try something new in a place we didn’t know and with a people we had no control over.

We got a great feast out of it.

If we find our excuses of busy or wrong family focus, get rid of them.

Nobody is fooled by flimsy excuses and God most of all.

Come into the banquet, be a part of the feast, and go to all places and welcome people in.

Invite them into the Kingdom, invite them into your lives, and invite them into a true party.

Jesus is inviting you in to be a part of His Kingdom as a guest and servant, what do you say?