Luke 14
16 Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: 17 And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. 18 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.
19 And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. 20 And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. 21 So that servant came, and shewed 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.
22 And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. 23 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. 24 For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper. 25 And there went great multitudes with him: and he turned, and said unto them.
The Lord Jesus invites every one to have fellowship with Him and dine with Him. If we call ourselves Christians then we have to live accordingly, follow in His footsteps and be obedient to Him. He prepares a dinner for us and a place in Heaven. We must not be slaves of sin. The Lord Jesus has to show us the way out; lead us out of Egypt to the promised land. When every thing was ready, He sent out invitations but the people did not come; they had excuses.
The first person had just bought a piece of land and said excused himself. We are so often earth bound. The Lord Jesus has done everything for us but we make excuses. When He convicts us, we make an excuse rather than listen to Him. If the Lord Jesus invites us a war starts in our hearts because we want to do other things.
There is a story of an eagle brought up with chickens. It acted like a chicken and did not want to fly. But when the owner held the eagle’s head to the sun and threw it into the wind, it took flight and the owner didn’t see it again.
The second person had a team of oxen symbolising wealth. When one has wealth one is still not satisfied and thirsts for more. In Genesis 31:1, Laban’s sons were jealous of Jacob gaining so much wealth and in families today it is the same. They fight over money. So he too had an excuse not to go to the banquet.
The third person had just got married. If a wife or husband takes the place of the Lord Jesus then you are damned. Young people preach and as soon as they marry it comes to an end. We do not hunger and thirst for Him intensely but are a bunch of satisfied Christians. So this man also had an excuse.
Then the Lord said call the poor, lame, crippled and blind and those that were invited were left behind. We must thirst for the Lord Jesus for He has invited us to the feast.