Luke 14: The Parable of the Banquet
Sermon by Pastor Mark Driscoll
http://www.marshillchurch.org/media/luke
- Throw a party driven by generosity, not by greed: invite the poor, not just friends; be generous with the menu and the guest list!
- Fellowship is when we hang out with fellow Christians. Hospitality is when we invite strangers to join us.
- People come up with lame excuses to not go to the party, as told in Luke 14:18-20
This is Jesus explaining that not every Christian will enter Heaven.
Jesus died on the cross for us so that we may all be able to return to Heaven. Hence, Jesus has extended an invitation to ALL people to enter the greatest party of all times: Feast in Heaven. No matter how rich, how poor, how educated, how unintelligent--as long as we are human, Jesus died for us to offer this great invitation.
In this parable, Jesus says that many accepted His invitation, but on the day of the Feast, many find excuses not to attend. This is a frightening message. Jesus is saying, there are many people who claim to be Christians, who claim to know Christ (those who "accepted" the invitation), yet when the time comes to head for the Feast, not all those Christians will go. Why not? Pastor Mark sums it up as "lame excuses".
It may seem ridiculous how anyone would give up the biggest feast/party of the world over lame excuses, but it's not that hard to imagine how it happens. We may get caught up with our lives and neglect our growth as Christians. We may say to ourselves, I'm working hard for a promotion right now, so I don't have time for Jesus. Or, I need to cram for this very important exam; Jesus can wait. Or, I'm still single and want to enjoy all the fun while I can. This is my selfish time. Leave me alone for now.
Jesus has told us that only the Father knows the exact time that Jesus will return for His people. And if we want to be caught up with Jesus to Heaven, then we must be diligent Christians and continuously grow with our faith. Jesus also told us not to be tied down by worldly desires, because those who are will miss the entrance to Heaven. And so, no matter how important we may think of getting that promotion, or passing that exam, or getting that car/house/yacht/etc., continuing to culture our faith in Jesus must remain our top priority.
The parable of the banquet, along with the parable of the ten virgins, are not a warning for the non-Christians. It is a warning to the Christians, to remind us that if we let our faith wither, we will not be ready when Jesus returns.
As Pastor Mark said, choosing to become a Christian is not a one-time decision. It's a lifetime pursuit. It's not just a decision. It's a decision that leads to a lifestyle.
And in closing, Pastor Mark asks us, are you walking toward the party or waiting for the party to come to you?
And my thought is, if we are just waiting for the party to come to us, we will for sure miss it, because we know not the time. And so, we must remain diligent and continue to walk and grow as Christians.
8 comments:
Hi,
After reading post, I was wondering if you and Pastor Mark believe you can lose your salvation?
Hi, I cannot speak for Pastor Mark, and so I will limit the following to just my own thoughts.
The short response is, yes, we can lose our salvation.
Here's why I think this way:
Salvation is granted to ALL people by God's Grace. The death and blood of Jesus Christ made our salvation possible. And it is ONLY through Jesus Christ that we can be washed of our sins and enter the Kingdom of God.
However, God stresses free will. Each one of us MUST CHOOSE to enter God's covenant. Salvation may be "out for grabs," but we must go and grab it.
And so, as opposed to saying "losing" our salvation, our decision to stray from God's Word is more like turning our backs on our salvation, because at the end of the day, we CHOSE to do so!
We will always come to a time when we are very despaired and feel extreme hopelessness. We will feel that God does not care about us and has turned His back. But read the Bible. Remember Isaiah's prophecies. Think of Job's sufferings. Savor the Psalms. We will see that God is always with us. We may not often understand why things happen the way they do, but we can always trust in the Lord that He is with us in the present, and He will certainly be with us in the end.
And so, in those dark, dark times, it is so easy to give up. But we must not. We need to remember that Satan and his demons are also working hard to take our souls. And especially in such dark times, he will work harder and instill disbelief. But we have a CHOICE to make. We can either give in, or we can stand strong. Either way, it is our own personal choice to make.
And when we choose to walk away from God, we choose to ignore the salvation that is freely granted to us by God's grace. And so, in that sense, we can't "lose" salvation, because it was never ours to begin with! It never "belonged" to us! Rather, it was gifted to us by God through the sacrifice of His one and only Son, Jesus Christ! But just because salvation is freely available to all does not mean we will all be saved. Each one of us must make the conscious decision to enter God's covenant and remain vigilant in God.
It's not a question of God saving us. God has made it clear that He wants all of us to be saved.
The real question is, do we want to be saved?
And I believe that is the most important decision we make during our time here on earth.
And just as an afterthought, what I "believe" about salvation is not nearly as important as what is stated by the Bible, the Word of God.
There are many parables within the Gospels, such as The Parable of the Ten Virgins, where Jesus Himself taught us about how not all will be saved.
Jesus makes it very clear that unless we continue to actively follow God, we will indeed miss the "wedding."
While I disagree with your conclusion, wholly based on the indwelling Spirit's work within, I appreciate your argument and your logic.
Thank you for hosting this site and being a "bsf" focused discussion online.
If you are willing, I would most appreciate an elaboration of your thoughts on this issue.
The paradox is rooted in your comment, "do we want to be saved" and in the heart's true desire. Once saved always saved vs. loss of salvation are like a dance linking our wills with God's love and determination for each one, purifying us with each test we pass (or fail).
Have you ever read the poem, "The Hound of Heaven"?
It is a good reflection for the work of the Holy Spirit upon the believer's heart and life.
Anonymous 1: Thanks for your brief elaboration, though I'm confused how it explains why you do not believe we can lose our salvation. (Sorry, I can be slow. Thanks for bearing with me!)
Anonymous 2: Thank you for sharing the poem! It will take at least a dozen more re-reads for me to digest it. Poems are like Psalms for me--it takes me extra readings to feel them in my heart.
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