Whom Will You Invite?
It is easy to take for granted our place at the great banquet the Lord is providing for us and to judge those who decline his invitation. The blessings of the kingdom are available to all who will come to Christ by faith. This parable calls us to love everyone – especially the poor and those who are in need of help.
The Parable of THE GREAT BANQUET (Luke 14:15-24)
15 One of the dinner guests, on hearing this, said to him, ‘Blessed is anyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!’ 16 Then Jesus[a] said to him, ‘Someone gave a great dinner and invited many. 17 At the time for the dinner he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, “Come; for everything is ready now.” 18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, “I have bought a piece of land, and I must go out and see it; please accept my apologies.” 19 Another said, “I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please accept my apologies.” 20 Another said, “I have just been married, and therefore I cannot come.” 21 So the slave returned and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and said to his slave, “Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.” 22 And the slave said, “Sir, what you ordered has been done, and there is still room.” 23 Then the master said to the slave, “Go out into the roads and lanes, and compel people to come in, so that my house may be filled. 24 For I tell you,[b] none of those who were invited will taste my dinner.”’
REFLECT
- If the Kingdom of God is a banquet, who are you inviting?
- What things stand in your way (money, responsibilities, relationships) of accepting God’s invitation every day?
- Can you list some things you could do on a regular basis to be more open to showing God’s love to others who cannot give you anything in return? Perhaps buy a meal for a homeless person?
RESPOND
Parents, invite your kids to make an invitation using paper and markers, crayons, stickers, and anything they want. They are inviting EVERYONE to join the Kingdom of Heaven. They can include their favorite memory verse on it - maybe even from Luke 14:15, "Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the Kingdom of God."
Here's the bonus: give the invitation to someone to remind them that Jesus loves them and is inviting them into His Kingdom.