Supper Time

Luke 14:16–24 NKJV

16 Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, 17 and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’ 18 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.’ 19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’ 20 Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21 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.’ 22 And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’ 23 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. 24 For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’ ”

Prayer

Message

In just a few minutes from now I am going to extend an invitation for many of you both in this building and those that are watching social media to come to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your Personal Savior. I do it on sound Bible grounds

On the last page of the Bible it says, And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.

Rev 22:17 (NKJV)

I also do it on the basis of this story which the Lord Jesus told in which He compares the great invitation to salvation as an invitation to come to a great supper.

I'm always glad that Jesus did that. Salvation is a feast. It is not a funeral. The devil has done a pretty good job convincing people that if they give their life to Christ, all of the fun in life is over.

Some Christians don't help it a great deal either. Some Christians walk around with a tombstone under one arm and a casket under the other. But salvation is a banquet feast. It is not a concentration camp.

The Bible says that he invites them to come to a great supper, not just a supper, but a great supper. Think for a moment about the greatest banquet or supper you have ever attended.

We have had some awesome banquets right here in this church. Table clothes, candle lights, very elegant banquets right here.

Our recent Valentine’s Banquet was a great hit! A Big nice Rib eye steak, twice baked potatoes and a salad, desert. Wonderful! But as magnificent as that great supper was, it is like bread and water on a pauper's table compared to the supper the Lord invites us to.

Think about the greatest supper you have ever attended. The Bible says that salvation is like a great supper, and on the table of salvation there is everything your heart could desire. On that table are trays of forgiveness and there are bowls of love and there are platters of joy. Everything the heart could desire is on the great supper table of salvation to which God invites you to come.

In just a few minutes I'm going to issue an invitation for many of you to come and receive this great salvation.

I want to talk about this invitation and I want to do it on the basis of this parable which the Lord Jesus told. In this parable we are told about a man who prepared a great supper, and he sent his servant out to invite people to come to this supper.

Firstly, it is an extended invitation.

I. Extended Invitation

I want you to notice how this invitation is extended. In verse 17 here is the word that they were to use, "Come; for all things are now ready." That's how the invitation is extended. Come.

You will notice in that word that there is simplicity about the invitation of the Lord. We know in the Bible that we are told that salvation is initiated by God. It is God who invites people to come to Him and to be saved. God initiates it, but God also says that you and I are to respond and we are to come.

"Come" is one of the great words in the Bible. It is used first when Noah is getting ready to go into the ark, and God standing at the door of the ark says, "Come into the ark, you and all of your household.”

It is used by Isaiah

Isaiah 1:18 “18 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.”

Jesus picked up the invitation when He said:

Matthew 11:28 “28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

"Come" is one of the great words of the Bible. God invites everybody to come. I think about an acrostic on the word "Come." "C,"let the children come and be saved. "O," let the older people come and be saved. "M,"let the middle aged come and be saved. "E," let everyone come and be saved. There is a simplicity about it.

When sharing Christ with someone, people respond “it’s just that simple.”

A pastor tells of sharing with a man one time who commented about the simplicity of the decision.

I said to him, "Do you have any grandchildren?" He said, "Oh, yes. I have a grandson." I said, "Suppose you had something wonderful in your kitchen that you wanted your grandson to have. What would you do? Would you put up all kinds of obstacles and make it difficult for him to find what you wanted him to have?" He said, "Oh, no. I would just invite him to come on in." I said, "That is exactly how simple God has made it for you to be saved." Tears welled up in his eyes and he said, "Well, it's just too good to be true."

It may be too good to be true but it is true. God says, "Come; for all things are now ready."

There is also an availability to it because he says, "Come; for all things are now ready." This man has prepared a lavish meal. He has sent his servant out to invite people to come. All of the preparations necessary for the meal to be provided have already been done.

You and I know that the great supper of salvation has already been prepared by God. "Come; for all things are now ready."

Salvation does not depend upon anything you do or any preparation you make, but rather, it rests upon the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the cross of Calvary. Salvation is free but it is not cheap. Take all of the tears that Jesus Christ ever shed and all of them say, "Come; for all things are now ready."

Take all of the groans that ever escaped the lips of the Lord Jesus and they all say, "Come; for all things are now ready."

Take all of the blood that ever fell from His head and from His side and from His hands and from His feet and every drop of that blood says, "Come; for all things are now ready."

God invites us to come because He has made the preparations. God provides the appetizers. You provide the appetite. God has provided the meal. You provide the mouth. God has provided the sweet tray. You provide the sweet tooth. God says, "Come; for all things are now ready."

Salvation depends not upon you and me, but upon what Jesus did on the cross. When Jesus died on the cross He said, "It is finished." When He did, it means the work was done. The meal of salvation has been prepared and all you and I have to do is come. All things are now ready.

Did you notice the little word "now?" There is a punctuality about it. In other words, God says, "Come right now. God says, "All things are now ready. You come right now."

Have you ever wondered why God tells people to come to be saved now? God would not say, "Come yesterday," for yesterday is already gone. Yesterday, in your life and in my life, is the world of broken dreams and wasted years. You can't come yesterday.

God does not say to come tomorrow because we do not know what tomorrow may bring. The Bible says, " Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.”

Prov 27:1 (NKJV)

Tomorrow may never come. This may be your only opportunity to be saved. God says, "Come right now."

In II Corinthians 6, verse 2, the Bible says, "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation."

In just a few minutes now, I am going to invite you to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. That's how the invitation is extended.

But notice how the invitation can be evaded.

II. Evaded Invitation

As you unpack this story you will discover secondly how the invitation is evaded.

When I started preaching I had the idea that all I had to do was just stand up and preach and people would come forward. I just thought that this was just such a wonderful message and such a great invitation and such a marvelous opportunity that all I've got to do is just preach and everyone will come. I soon found out that they don't all come.

When the invitation is sent out, the servant goes out, and I can imagine that he goes out with great excitement and he begins to go to the various houses. The Bible says that when he goes to those houses and invites people to come, it says in verse 18 that they all with one consent began to make excuse.

When you look at these excuses, I may say to you that when you read them initially, they look apparently acceptable. For instance, the servant goes to the first house and a man comes to the door and he's got on a three piece business suit and he's got dollar signs for eyes and he's got deposit boxes for hands.

He hears the invitation to come to the great supper and he says, "Oh, no. I've bought a piece of land and I've got to check that out. Have me excused."

Then he goes over to the second house and knocks on the door. A guy comes to the door and the man has his overalls on, his workboots and a large brimmed hat. He’s got that big wad of Levi Garrett in his mouth and can barely talk. He answers the door, “howdy fella, how may I help you.”

He is invited to come but he says, "I've bought some oxen and I cannot come. Have me excused."

Then he goes to the third house and he knocks on the door. A man comes to the door and he's got a tuxedo on and he's got a flower in his lapel. He's combed his hair back so tight that he can't close his mouth. He's been to a wedding, and it's his own.

He says, "I can't come. I've married a wife and I can't come." Think about that for a moment. What wife do you know who wouldn't like to get all dressed up and go to a banquet? Besides that, if you have just married, that might be an opportunity to miss one of those meals while she's learning to cook.

Every one of them makes an excuse. You can almost see them wink when they give you that excuse. They believed that those excuses are perfectly acceptable.

In just a moment I am going to give an invitation for you to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior. Will you come forward this morning to receive Christ as your Savior?

It is altogether possible that you have right now an excuse on the tip of your tongue. If you don't, before it's over, the devil will see that you have one.

People use all kinds of excuses why they don't come to Christ. They say that there are too many hypocrites in the church. They say that there is too much to give up. "I don't have the right feeling." They say that they are afraid that they cannot live it. "I'm busy right now. I will do it later."

Excuses are alibis which keep people from receiving God's offer of salvation. Alibis though, become lullabies which lull people to sleep and give them a false sense of security.

The excuses are apparently acceptable. But I want you to notice, if you will zoom in a little closer on these excuses, I'm going to show you that they are absolutely unreasonable.

For instance, think about the first guy. He said, "I've bought a piece of land and I'm going to check it out." He is a good business man, and he's bought a piece of land and he hasn't even checked it out? If you are one of those kinds, I've got some land down in the Everglades that I would like to sell you really cheap.

Next, take the guy who has bought a team of oxen and he's got to go out and prove them. This is a supper invitation. You tell me that the oxen has got headlights on him and he's going to be able to check him out at night?

Then the third guy has married a wife and he can't come. In other words, he's either so love sick that he can't walk or his wife has tied up his legs and he can't come.

I think about the excuses that people use today. They are absolutely unreasonable. For instance, take the excuse that there are hypocrites in the church. There is somebody sitting here that says, "I'd be saved, but I know some hypocrites that go to Mt Zion Baptist Church." I know that there are hypocrites in our church. I know there are hypocrites.

There are hypocrites in everything. There are some hypocrite preachers. There are some hypocrite doctors. There are some hypocrite lawyers. But the false simply proves the truth. I had rather come to church and sit right in the middle of the two biggest hypocrites in town than die and go to hell and be with all the hypocrites forever.

Then there is somebody else who says, "I'd like to come to Christ, but there is just too much to give up." There is not too much to give up. If you would give your heart and life to Christ today, you don't have to give up a whole lot. In fact, you don't have to give up but one thing if you come to Christ. The only thing you've got to give up is your sin.

That's like a guy who goes to the doctor at the hospital and the doctor says, "We've examined you and you are in good health everywhere except for one thing. We've discovered that there is a tumor under your arm and it's cancerous, and we've got to get it out or you are going to die."

They say, "Doctor, I've known that it's been there all the time. I've been watching it grow. I just want you to know that I am so attached to it that I can't give it up." You don't want to give up your sin? The thing that is causing you the misery and creating turmoil in your family, that which is addicting you in your life, you can't give up?

Somebody else says, "Preacher, when I get a feeling I'm going to be saved. I'm waiting for a feeling. I want chills to run up and down my back. I want to get all shook up. When I get the right feeling I'm going to come."

I have been studying the Bible intently since I was 9 years old, and I am here to tell you that there is not one place in the Bible which tells you that you must have a certain feeling to come to the Lord Jesus Christ. It feels good to be saved. But you are not saved because you feel good.

Then somebody else says, "Preacher, I would give my life to Christ, but I want to be sure I can live it." I'm here to announce to you that I can't live it. There is not a person in this building who can live it.

Think about that for a moment. It's like somebody saying, "I'm not going to get into the water until I learn to swim." Or it's like somebody who says, "I'm not going to touch a piano until I learn to play." It sounds like somebody saying, "I'm not going to a doctor until I get well."

Nobody can live it. I can't live it. No one under the sound of my voice this morning can live it. You live the Christian life not because of what you can do, but because when you receive Christ, He comes into your heart and life and He gives you the power to live it.

Then there is somebody who says, "Preacher, I intend to do that, but I'm really busy right now. I'm running a business and I've got a lot going on, and when things settle down a little bit I'm going to give my life to Christ."

You are not too busy to do a lot of things. You are not too busy to go to work or too busy to watch your favorite television program. You are not too busy to go to your favorite recreation. The truth of the matter is these people did not go, they did not respond to the invitation because they didn't want to. The reason you don't come today is because you don't want to come.

I'm praying the Holy Spirit will give you a burning desire in your heart to say, "I will arise and go to Jesus."

These excuses are absolutely inexcusable. The Bible says that we are all without excuse. Think how inexcusable it is. Here is a man. He's paid the price. Here is a man. He has prepared the meal. Here is a man. He has sent the servant out to invite people to come and they absolutely reject the invitation. How unreasonable, how unexplainable, how inexcusable that is.

In fact, in verse 21 it says, "Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant." He had a right to be angry. It is the anger of wounded love. It is the anger of one who has made great preparation and people use silly and flimsy excuses.

In just a few minutes now I am going to give an invitation for many of you to come to know Christ as your personal Savior.

III. Expanded Invitation

I want you to notice. This parable takes an unbelievable twist. This parable takes a glorious turn. I want you to see how the invitation is expanded.

The man said in verse 21, "Go out quickly into the streets." He says it twice. In verse 23 he says, "Go out into the highways and hedges." He does a wonderful thing. He expands the invitation.

The reason I am preaching and the reason I am inviting you to salvation is based on how this invitation is expanded.

Do you see how lovingly he expands this invitation? He says in verse 21,

'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.'

Luke 14:21 (NKJV)

See how lovingly he expands this invitation. He says, "Go find the poor people." God says to every poor lost sinner in this building, "I'm inviting you to come and be saved."

Then he says to go out and find the maimed. Some of you sitting here have been wounded by sin. God says to you, "Come and be saved."

Then he says to go find the lame. There of those of you that sin has left with a limp. God says, "Though you are limping because of sin, come and be saved."

Then he says to the blind, "Sin has blinded you for so many years of your life. Come and be saved."

How often it is that when we have a banquet we invite the beautiful people. When we have a banquet we want the biggest and the brightest and the rich and the famous to be there.

God has lovingly extended the invitation to "whosoever will" may come. Have you ever thought about the people who are sitting right here this morning at the great banquet table of salvation? There are those in this building this morning who are harlots who have been made pure by the Lord Jesus. There are alcoholics sitting here who have been made sober by the Lord Jesus Christ. There are people sitting in this building that used to be dishonest. You have been made honest by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. There are people sitting in this building that used to be stingy, but Christ has made you a generous person. There are people sitting at the table this morning that were infidels, unbelievers. Now they are humble believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, how lovingly God invites whosoever will to come.

Do you see how generously He does it? The servant goes back and he says, "I've invited people and yet there is still room." He says in verse 23, "Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled." God wants a full heaven.

Jesus took your hell so that you could have His heaven. The Lord Jesus Christ has a generous invitation. His invitation is a "whosoever will." That means that I can say on the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ that anybody in this building who wants to be saved and go to heaven when you die, God says that you can come and be saved.

Did you notice how urgently he sends this invitation? In verse 23 he says, "Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in." Compel is a strong word. It means to go out and constrain them to come in. It means to go out and urgently invite them to come in.

God's invitation is an urgent invitation this morning. You say, "Why is that true, Preacher?" The Bible tells us that if you do not receive the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior and you die in your unsaved condition, then there is only hell awaiting you after death?

God doesn't want anybody to go to hell. The Bible says that we are to pull them from the fire.

If you die without the Lord Jesus Christ, the Bible warns of the dangers of hell fire. That's why God says, "Come. Whosoever will, let him come."

Illustration: Fire that broke out in Walter Bragg Smith Apartments and Dale’s Penthouse Restaurant in 1967. 25 people died. People got stuck in the window trying to get out to the balcony. These people were trying to get out of the fire.

That's why there is an earnestness in my soul today. That's why I want to urge every one of you who have never received the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior to do what you know in your heart to do this morning and give your life to Christ.

Here's what I want you to do right now. In your imagination I want you to tear out an imaginary piece of paper. I want you to put down the excuse you have this morning for why you don't intend to give your life to Christ.

Write down, "Mr. Jesus, on March 10,2024 at Mt Zion Baptist Church in Ramer, Alabama, I heard your servant invite me to come to the great supper. But, Mr. Jesus, I cannot come because." Then just write down whatever it is. Whatever reason you are giving right now for why you don't intend to come, write it down.

Now look at it. Are you satisfied with it? Is that really it? If you are, carry it with you and from now on every time you hear a Gospel preacher invite you to salvation, use it. Every time you hear a sweet Gospel song and you feel a stirring in your heart, use it. Every time some Christian family member or friend talks to you about giving your heart to Christ, use it. Take it all the way to your death, and as you are gasping and struggling for your last breath, use it. When you go to the judgment and you stand before a Holy God, take it and throw it into the face of God.

You say, "Preacher, I'm not willing to do that." Then listen to me carefully. What I want you to do then is to tear out another piece of paper and on that paper I want you to write, "Dear Jesus, on March 10, 2024 at Mt Zion Baptist Church in Ramer, AL, I heard your servant invite me to a great supper of salvation. Dear Jesus, I know I'm not worthy and I deserve to die and go to hell. But, Jesus, You have invited me to come, and as best I know how, O Lamb of God, I come."

Let's bow our heads in prayer.