Title is more important
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Luke 14:15-24 More important
When I was young, when someone got married or celebrated their 60th birthday in the neighborhood, it was a local feast. At that time, even the beggars came to the feast to eat and drink, but no one prevented or abused the beggars. That's how compassionate it was. Of course, no invitations were sent, and there was no notice of attendance or non-attendance.
At the banquet house, we ate enough food for the whole neighborhood to eat, and no matter how bad our relationship was in general, we went to celebrate and ate as much as we wanted on the day of the banquet. That was Dory. By the way, the custom of feasting in Korea is very evangelical. Anyone, young or old, rich or poor, could attend there. There were no restrictions.
However, Jewish feast customs were a little different from ours. If a house holds a party, that house decides who to invite long in advance, and notifies them of whether they will attend or not. Also, the date was set, but the time was not set in advance, and when the preparations were completed on the day of the feast, the servants were sent to notify them to come to the feast.
It would be a great insult to the owner of the banquet if he said he would attend but did not attend on the same day. Today's text is a story in which Jesus is talking about what is more important, using the parable of the likely events at the banquet house. Today's parable is: A man arranged a feast and invited many.
But when it was time for the feast, he sent his servants to say, "Come now that you are ready. When I said that, they all refused. In today's text, the reasons for those who reject the invitation are given. Although this story is from 2000 years ago, you can see that the reason has not changed in the slightest between then and now. Moreover, it was said that the invited people 'rejected all in agreement'. Why?
The first person said that he had to go see the field because he had bought it. The field is important. It is a place of living. Without land, people cannot live. We can only eat and live by plowing the ground and sowing seeds to produce crops. People must first establish a place for this life. You can only survive by making this foundation at the expense of anything else.
Whether it's your home, your job, or your business. The most basic living ground that can solve human food, clothing and shelter, it is the most important for anyone. Even now, I do not know how many people are anxious and anxious because they do not have a place to live. On the other hand, providing a place to live gives people peace of mind. The same is true here in Canada. It is very important to establish a place to live in a foreign land.
What did the second man say that he couldn't go to the feast? He said it was because he had to buy a cow and test it. Man cannot live without cattle. Humans are by nature tool-using animals. So I have been making and using tools since ancient times. From hoes, mortars and forks to telephones, electricity, automobiles and computers, we have created all kinds of means of life. Also, not only the visible tools but also the invisible ones were used as tools and passed down until now.
At that time, the conch was a very important tool. If land is an indispensable source of life, cattle are indispensable tools. As people's land expands and expands as their living quarters expand, people need more cattle, i.e. tools. To go far, you need a car, and to go further, you need a plane. We cannot live without these things while living on this earth. Therefore, it is very important for modern people to buy a cow as a tool, and to try it, that is, to have a better tool.
The third person said he couldn't attend because he was married. Unlike the previous two, this person can be seen decisively announcing that he will not be able to attend without saying he is sorry for not being able to attend. Marriage is the greatest joy in life. Especially in Judea, marriage was the golden hour of life. As a Jewish man living under colonial rule, if I got married, I was exempted from all military service and military service, so I could spend the most comfortable days of the year.
Having a place to live and tools, the next thing inevitably is people who go out to find pleasure. Life should be a means to enjoy. They need leisure and hobbies, pleasure and enjoyment. Without it, people cannot survive. There must be a cultural life. How much you enjoy cultural life is a measure of your abundance and leisure. So people travel, play golf and hike. There are times when such abundance feels like a class.
To us, whether it is the field that we live in, the cow that is our tool of life, or a marriage that gives us the joy of life, everything is necessary and important. It's never bad. These are the things people need. But what does the Bible text say today? That's why people give up on something more important. What is it? I refuse God's invitation. I give up on the road to eternal life.
That's right. They were more important to see. Moments are more precious than eternity. The body was more precious than eternity. We know that entering the kingdom of heaven is blessed and precious, but it shows us how difficult it is to actually make a decision for it. They turned down the precious invitation for the sake of the fields, for the cattle, and for the joy of marriage.
The same is true of people living in modern times. They turn away from God's call for business, to provide for a better way of life, and to mingle with one another for leisure and pleasure. They give up that beautiful and precious feast in heaven. Today, there are many who have lost their souls and spirits among those who live in convenient housing, convenient facilities, and convenient environments. They sell their souls and enjoy these things.
For them, the problem of heaven and eternal life is secondary. It has long been abandoned. It's a matter of out of interest. In a word, they are completely indifferent to the matters of heaven. Their interests are only the land, the technology, the tools of civilization, and the hobbies and pleasures of life. They struggle to get the things of the earth. However, they reject the most important thing, eternal life and heaven.
We know well what the fate of these people will be. It is the reality of a vicious circle of dissatisfaction, insatiable emptiness, frustration and anxiety, and even more thirsty even in pursuit of pleasure. In fact, everything we run from dawn to night in our lives is for these three things. But think about it. Shouldn't we rather sacrifice everything in this world to get a more important place in heaven? Shouldn't we live first? Shouldn't the death row inmate be saved from being executed before having a good house, a good car, or the pursuit of pleasure?
Listen to what the servants have to say today. "Come. Everything is ready." When the Lord invites us, He calls us with perfect preparation. Go back and talk to the servants again? "I'd rather have a seat." There is still room for us. Today's feast is Jesus' message to the Jews. Jesus looked after the perfect banquet table and invited the people.
However, the Jews were expecting the Messiah to come, but when Jesus came as the Messiah, they rejected it. So Jesus lamented toward Jerusalem. ?쏪erusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how many times have I sought to gather your children together as a hen gathers her young under her wings, but you did not want it??(Matthew 23:37). )
Today's story is all from 2000 years ago. But even now, this lamentation and sorrow of Jesus continues. History is not advancing at all. On the contrary, the fields, cattle, and pleasures have grown to infinity, but on the contrary, people's souls are much more polluted than they were then. We need to find something more important. First of all, you have to live.
God is still inviting us. He is waiting for us, setting a perfect feast table with nothing lacking. We are invited. And it was a feast day. The servants have come to call us. What would you do? "I'm sorry. I can't go to the feast. I have to go to the fields, buy cattle, and marry." Would you like to answer that? Let's remember If we do not have the kingdom of heaven when we can have it, we will not have it when we want to possess it later.
So, find the most important first. Please accept the invitation of the Lord. Choose heavenly things over earthly things, and choose to live forever rather than temporarily. I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that you will no longer stand in front of the banquet door, but enter the banquet house that the Lord is waiting for, bravely and proudly, and enjoy and taste the heavenly banquet.