Title: Invitation and Rejection (Luke 14:16-24)
Contents
There are many stories of feasts in the Bible. The place where Jesus first performed miracles was also at the wedding banquet house. Even in Jesus' parables, there are many stories of feasting. The story of the ten virgins also tells the story of the feast, and in the story of the prodigal son, the conclusion also says that the feast was celebrated with the joy of the son's return. Those banquets obviously have elements that explain the kingdom of heaven, and in reality they mean the church.
In Luke 14, there are three stories about a feast. The first in verses 7 to 11 tells us not to try to sit at the top at the feast, and the second in verses 12 to 14, in verses 12 to 14, when we invite guests to the feast, invite those who have nothing to repay. Third, in verses 16 to 24, guests were invited to the feast, but those invited did not come to the feast. Instead, go out to the road and hillside and invite the poor and the blind to the feast.
If we summarize the lessons about the three feasts, we are saying that the Lord's feast is definitely different from the feast of the world. The first lesson of the banquet in heaven is that the banquet in heaven is not a place to be served, but a place to serve. It means that those who are served anywhere do not know the joy of the heavenly feast. The Lord said that the feast of the world is a feast for those who sit in high places, but the feast of heaven is a feast for those who sit in low places.
So the Lord said this as a conclusion to the first banquet. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. If you look at the world feast, everything is prepared for those who sit in high places. The one who sits in the highest position is the most precious guest of the feast. However, from a spiritual point of view, it was said that the person who sat in the lowest position was the most valuable guest.
It is said that Jesus humbled himself when he came into the world. He humbled himself to the point of death, but in the kingdom of heaven, God exalted him so much that he put the knees of all people before him. The Lord humbled Himself, and heaven is a feast for Him. However, it is said that the devil was cast out of the kingdom of God and was cast out while trying to exalt himself.
In today's modern society, there are many parties. There is a party called the world. There is a party called politics. In the feast of the world, everyone wants to be served. The person being served is a successful person, and the person being served is the master. But in the Church of God, it is a feast that everyone serves. A place where the person who is served is not the master, but the person who serves is the true master.
The Lord said in Mark 10:45 that the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Therefore, those who serve the lowly and the weak in the world serve the Lord. The Bible says that he who serves the poor serves the God who made him. If we truly want to taste the feast of the kingdom of God, we must be able to stand a little lower.
According to the Bible, those who served experienced God's feast. No one can learn Jesus until they learn to serve. You cannot experience the joy of heaven until you learn to serve. You cannot be like Jesus until you learn to serve. You cannot obey God's Word until you learn to serve. You cannot participate in the heavenly feast until you learn to serve. The church is the model of the heavenly feast. In other words, it is a place where you learn to serve. If he does not learn to serve in the church, he is a person who lives independently of the kingdom of God.
The lesson for the second banquet was to invite people to my banquet who have nothing to pay me back. He told me to be afraid of the sacrifices for which I can get a refund. There are two targets here. There are people who can repay me and there are people who can't. He said that this is the content that distinguishes the worldly feast from the heavenly feast.
There is a saying that all the feasts of the world are to repay one another. The world feast is conscience and character to give as much as I have received from others. You can also give with what you will receive. For this reason, many people come to the party of people with high social capabilities, and fewer people come to those with low social capabilities. It is a blessing to be able to give in the world we live in. Furthermore, giving to someone who does not have the ability to repay me is the same as opening a feast in heaven.
Jesus said that when people are gathered before him on the last day of judgment, it will be like separating the sheep from the goats. Then the Lord said something very important. He said to the sheep to inherit the kingdom prepared, and to the goats to leave me and enter the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Then, the sheep is who you are talking about. A sheep is the one who invited the smallest little boy to his place of life. What kind of a goat is it? I'm talking about a person who didn't invite people in need into his life.
Saints should be wise in giving rather than in enjoying. Instead of doing your best for yourself, you should do your best for others. A life lived only for oneself while living in the world is bound to be regretted. The Bible condemns those who are rich to themselves and stingy with others. Our lives can be a feast in heaven or a feast in the world. If we live by helping people who are having a hard time in our lives, he can be seen as a person who opens the heavenly feast in this world as well.
The Bible says that God is a God who helps when He speaks. God is the one who helps and protects all creatures living on this earth. But God is doing it through people. Therefore, those who invite the weak into their lives are God working through them. Conversely, to turn away from the weak and live is to reject what God wants to do through him.
The lesson for the third banquet is that there are those who reject God's invitation. When we think about it, it is a question of why humans reject God's banquet. The Lord is very simple here. Some refused the invitation because they bought a field, some rejected the invitation because they bought cattle, and some refused because they married.
The feast here is broadly speaking of the heavenly feast, and it can be applied to the church in our lives. There are people who have rejected God's invitation through the church. When we look at the reasons for rejecting God's invitation, we learn that they are all very important to our lives. Life requires possession. To buy a field means to own it. And in life, work is important. Buying a cow means work. And life needs the joy of life. It means that you are married.
He is saying that a life whose purpose is work, a life whose purpose is possessions, and a life whose purpose is pleasure are people who refuse the heavenly feast. Important and purpose are two different things. It is a tool to achieve an end, not an end in itself. If you think of something as a purpose that is not a purpose, no matter how important, you are misleading your life. Everything that believers have is a tool for glorifying God, not the purpose. The Bible says that whether we eat or drink or whatever we do, do it all for the glory of God. We need to know that our job and happiness in life are also tools for the glory of God. You need to know this.