PARABLE 27 — LUKE 14:15-24 — THE GREAT BANQUET
15 And when one of them that sat at meat with him heard these things, he said unto him, Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.
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.
When one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!” But He (Jesus) said to him, “A certain man made a great supper, and he invited many people. He then sent out his servant at supper time to tell those who were invited, ‘Come, for everything is ready now.’
They all as one began to make excuses. “The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please have me excused.’ “Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I must go prove them. Please have me excused.’ “And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I can’t come.’
“So the servant came, and told 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 the poor, maimed, blind, and lame.’ “The servant said, ‘Lord, it is done as you commanded, and there is still room.’
“The lord said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I tell you that none of those men who were invited shall taste of my supper.’” (Paraphrased by me)
Discussion Questions – Parable 27
PARABLE 27 — LUKE 14:15-24 — THE GREAT BANQUET
1. In Jesus’ days, it was customary to send two invitations to a banquet—the first to announce it and the second to tell the guests that everything was ready. How does the parable of this banquet fit into Israel’s history? How did the character of the banquet change given the new guest list?
"At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, 'Come, for everything is now ready.' " (14:17)
While it may seem strange in light of invitation practices in the Twenty-First Century, in the First Century world the invitation was two-fold: (1) the initial invitation was sent some time ahead, and (2) the actual summons to the meal when it is ready. This was the custom in both Jewish and Roman settings.
Effectively, the Jews were invited by Moses and the prophets to the banquet. Then, the second invitation came from Jesus. It was this second invitation that they rejected. Thus, gentiles (and the whole world) will be invited instead. So the kingdom was given to the Gentiles and the outcasts of Israel who would accept it.
2. What did the pious guest in 14:15 believe about the feast in the Kingdom of God?
The guest commented that those who eat bread in the kingdom would be blessed. Who is it that will eat bread in the kingdom of God? The Pharisees thought that only they would make it into the kingdom and certainly not the outcasts of society. The outcasts were not at this dinner, nor would they be at the dinner table of the kingdom.
3. How credible are the invited guests' excuses for not coming? (14:18-20) Do we in the 21st century still give the same excuses when Jesus sends an invitation?
God graciously invites all to come to Him (1), but many are self-satisfied and preoccupied with their own lives and miss out on the invitation (2), and only those who are aware of their inadequacy will accept the invitation (3).
In this parable Jesus tells, all the invitees now begin to make excuses. The Greek phrase used, apo mias pantes, means "from the first, all ..." The rejection was unanimous. But the excuses are lame, and the three Jesus mentions are representative of the rest.
The first has just bought a field and must inspect it. But surely no one buys a field sight unseen. The second has just bought five pairs of oxen and must try them out. But no one buys five pairs of oxen without testing them first. These two excuses are flimsy on the surface. Both indicate men of wealth. Purchasing property is a wealthy man's luxury. Five yoke of oxen are for an estate, one or two pairs of oxen would be adequate for a small farm.
The third excuse, that the guest has just been married, also is lame. When he accepted the invitation he would have known of his wedding plans. That was the time to politely decline. But to back out at the last minute is an act of calculated rudeness.
Yes, the same excuses are still given today when God sends out an invitation to come to the Great Feast. (1) The first bought a field and had to go see it – Today that would be a person more concerned about financial investments. (2) The second just bought five oxen and wanted to prove them – Today this would be a person more preoccupied with his business. (3) The third guest had just gotten married – Today this would be a person more concerned or preoccupied with family matters.
It is not sin or rejection of the Gospel, which is so much to be feared. It is that procrastinating, excuse-making spirit, which is always ready with a reason why Christ cannot be served today. Let the words of Jesus on this subject sink down into our hearts. Theft, infidelity and immorality, no doubt, slay their thousands. But decent, plausible, smooth-spoken excuses slay tens of thousands. No excuse can justify a man in refusing God’s invitation, and not coming to Christ. More-over, this parable tells us that the time will come when God will withdraw his invitation and offer it to others—then it will be too late to get into the banquet.
4. Why is the host angry? (14:21) Who does he tell his servant to go invite? Who do these two groups represent?
You can't blame the host for being angry when he hears of this rude affront and unanimous rejection by his social peers. He is livid! So he tells his servant to invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame. The host will NOT have an empty house at his feast. He will have guests!
The list of guests to be invited is identical to the list Jesus had suggested to his Pharisee host in verse 13 -- those who could not repay him by inviting him in return -- the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.
The first sweep was in the town, and included "broad, main streets or public squares" (Greek plateiai) and "narrow streets, lanes, alleys" (Greek rume). The second sweep was outside the town in the rural areas, the, "road, highway" (Greek hodos) and "fences, hedges" (Greek phragmos). Inside the town would be the poor, the beggars, the indigent. But outside the town would be the vagabonds and sojourners, those who were shunned and unwelcome in the towns.
The basic message of the Parable of the Great Banquet could be stated this way: “The tragedy of the Jewish rejection of Christ has opened the door of salvation to the Gentiles. The blessings of the kingdom are available to all who will come to Christ by faith.”
5. What is the fine line between "compelling" people to come to the Lord, and gently leading them, fully respecting their own free will? How can we have both urgency and respect at the same time?
The Greek word used is anagkazo, which means “compel, force, of inner and outer compulsion, and then weakened, strongly urge/invite, urge upon, press.” The rich man hasn't sent out soldiers to sweep the area, round up everyone, and march them to his house. But he has instructed his servants not to take "No" for an answer. To encourage and strongly urge everyone they meet to accept this invitation.
6. If God invites you and me to dinner, what does that say about us?
We are outcasts. We don’t need to worry about being good enough to be there. No one is. Principle: Just as the replacement guests could not reciprocate and were the recipients of grace, so we also are recipients of the grace of God.
The theme I see is one of grace and mercy. Those who are not worthy to come to the host's table -- the poor, lame, crippled, blind -- are now invited. That is you and that is me. We are unworthy to eat at our Host's table, but we have been invited and cleansed. How true it is: "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God" (14:15).
7. How does this parable illustrate the Father's judgment and his mercy?
The Master is not satisfied with a partially full banquet hall; He wants every place at the table to be filled. John MacArthur’s comment on this fact is that “God is more willing to save sinners than sinners are to be saved.”
Those who ignored the invitation to the banquet chose their own punishment—they missed out. The master respects their choice by making it permanent: they would not “taste of my banquet.” So it will be with God’s judgment on those who choose to reject Christ: they will have their choice confirmed, and they will never taste the joys of heaven.
8. How about you? Will you accept God’s invitation or have you got other things to do?
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