The Story of the Great Feast of Heaven
The Story of the Great Feast of Heaven
Jesus taught of a great feast (a banquet) to illustrate how wide and far the invitation to enter heaven extends. But the story does not go as we might expect. The gospel recounts:
One of those at the table with Jesus heard these things and said to him, "Blessed are the people who will share in the meal in God's kingdom."
16 Jesus said to him, "A man gave a big banquet and invited many people. 17 When it was time to eat, the man sent his servant to tell the guests, 'Come. Everything is ready.'
18 "But all the guests made excuses. The first one said, 'I have just bought a field, and I must go look at it. Please excuse me.' 19 Another said, 'I have just bought five pairs of oxen; I must go and try them. Please excuse me.' 20 A third person said, 'I just got married; I can't come.' 21 So the servant returned and told his master what had happened. Then the master became angry and said, 'Go at once into the streets and alleys of the town, and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.' 22 Later the servant said to him, 'Master, I did what you commanded, but we still have room.' 23 The master said to the servant, 'Go out to the roads and country lanes, and urge the people there to come so my house will be full. 24 I tell you, none of those whom I invited first will eat with me.'"
Luke14:15-24
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Our accepted understandings are turned upside down – many times – in this story. First, we might assume that God does not invite people into heaven (the Feast) because he invites only worthy people, but that is wrong. The invitation to the feast goes to many, many people. The master (God) wants the feast to be full.
But there is an unexpected twist. Very few of the invited guests actually want to come. Instead they make excuses so they do not have to! And think how unreasonable the excuses are. Who would buy oxen without first having tried them out before he bought them? Who would buy a field without first already looking it over? No, these excuses revealed the true intentions of the invited guests' hearts – they were not interested in Heaven, having other interests instead.
Just when we think that perhaps the master will be frustrated with so few coming to the feast there is another twist. Now the 'unlikely' people, those who we would not invite to our own celebrations, those living in "streets and alleys" and far-away "roads and country lanes", who are "poor, crippled, blind and lame" – those we often stay away from – they get invitations to the feast. The invitations to this feast go much further, and cover more people than you and I could imagine. The master wants people at his feast and invites those we ourselves would not invite into our own house.
And these people come! They have no other competing interests like fields or oxen to distract their love so they come to the feast. Heaven is full and the master's will is accomplished!
Jesus told this story to get us to ask a question: "Would I accept an invitation to Heaven if I got one?" Or would a competing interest or love cause you to make an excuse and decline the invitation? The truth is that you are invited to this feast of heaven, but the reality is that most of us will decline the invitation for one reason or another.
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