Anchor My Faith

Previous Lesson
Next Lesson
Author: Stephen Weller
555 words, 3 minutes read time

They Began To Make Excuses

Scripture: Luke 14:17-20

In the previous lesson Jesus began teaching about who would attend the great banquet. In this lesson we will continue with that teaching.

^{Lk 14:17} “And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ ¹⁸ But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ ¹⁹ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ ²⁰ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’”

The great banquet given by the man refers to the arrival of the kingdom in the ministry of Jesus. The present taste of the joyful fellowship with God, initiated by Jesus would be fully realized in time. This parable points out two invitations. The first would have concerned reservations for the banquet and given in advance so people could mark their calendars. The second invitation would be given on the day of the banquet, announcing that everything was ready, and it was time to come.

The time for holding the banquet had come and the man “sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ If you were one who had been invited how would you have responded? How do you respond when it is time to go to church on Sunday or to a Bible study on Wednesday evening? Do you some of the time, or even often, allow something of interest to draw you away and you don’t go? With that in mind, let us see what kind of response the servant got from those invited. If you are not a believer, what prevents you from becoming one?

One by one those invited, when reminded, gave an excuse why they were not coming. The first two had just made a purchase and wanted to spend time with it. Have you purchased things that you prefer to spend time with instead of coming together to worship, praise and learn from God? Another said he had married a wife and couldn’t come. How often do you or your spouse interfere with the family going to church?

Even though people were invited well in advance, many made excuses why they would not be coming. There are many today who are invited by God to come to his kingdom, initiated by Jesus, to participate in its great blessing, but many put the business of everyday life ahead of the claims of God and his kingdom and as a result they disqualify themselves as being worthy to enter.

Conclusion

In our western culture of affluence, it is easy to be drawn to its things and find sufficient pleasure in what the world has to offer that we are not willing to seek the things of God and invest in them and enjoy God and his blessings. Even believers tend to dilute their relationship with God with the idols of the world and as a result become a stumbling block for those who need salvation.