No Excuses
Luke 14:15-24
In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
St. Luke 14:16-19 “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’ But they all with one accord began to make excuses.
Dear fellow redeemed in Christ our Lord… When people make excuses, it is often because they don’t really want to take part in the thing they’re being asked to do. You’re invited to a party, but there are people there that you don’t really know or don’t like, and so you come up with an excuse for why you can’t go. A guy asks a girl out on a date, but she comes up with all these reasons why this evening or that evening won’t work. If she really wanted to spend time with him, she would rearrange her schedule or offer a time that would work. But the excuses are a sure sign to him that she’s not interested.
It’s the same way with church; people come up with all sorts of excuses and rationalizations. If a famous celebrity or a beloved friend or a family member were to be here that they hadn’t seen for a long time, they’d rearrange the schedule and be sure to be here early. But it’s just Jesus and His words and supper. Boy, I’m really busy right now. Maybe next week. Carving out time for church isn’t important enough.
In today’s Gospel Jesus speaks about people making excuses. He begins, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many.” This man is God the Father. His supper is the banquet of salvation, the heavenly meal of forgiveness and life. This meal was purchased by Jesus through His death for sin and His victory over the grave on Easter. In fact, Jesus Himself is the meal, He is the very Bread of Life given in the Scriptures and in the holy supper of His body and blood. God has sent out His Holy Spirit to invite many through the preaching of the Gospel to come to the feast. All things have been prepared by God; there is no cost, no strings attached.
But, “They all with one accord began to make excuses.” The invitees were looking for ways to get out of this Gospel invitation. Other things were more important. Honoring the Giver of the feast, being with Him and sharing in the joy of His meal just wasn’t interesting enough. It’s the old brush off: “God, you’re really sweet and all, but maybe some other time.”
The first said, “I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.” This man is caught up in his property. He seeks to gain the world and, in the process, forfeits his soul. He sees the value of land but does not desire the priceless land of the new creation. He elects to go and see his piece of ground, almost like a burial plot, showing his destiny to return to the ground in death. Property and possessions often lure us away from the Gospel feast. But we dare never treasure what we have paid for above that which God has freely given in Christ.
The second said, “I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.” This man prefers his own work to the work of Christ, who said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Mt 11:29-30). This man is like those who want to produce their own righteousness before God, rather than trusting in the righteousness of Christ. But in the end, they will find no rest. Their labor and struggle will be in vain. The temptation for us is to value our own efforts at good living over and above the grace of Christ. Whenever we think we can do without the banquet of Jesus serving us His Word and Sacraments, even for one week, we are by definition trusting in our own service and works.
The third said, “I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.” This man prized his earthly marriage over the heavenly wedding of Christ and His Churchly Bride. He loved union with his wife more than communion with his Creator. When death parts him from his wife, there will be nothing to restore him to life. So also, we must guard against turning the good blessings of marriage and sexuality against the God who created them, or putting our spouse or family before the Lord. For He said, “Whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of Me.” (Mt 10:37)
Jesus spoke this parable against the unbelieving Jews of His day. They had Him in their midst. They heard Him preach and teach. But most of Israel rejected Jesus as the Messiah and the Savior. They saw no need for the salvation He came to bring. They didn’t think of themselves as poor, miserable sinners; just people with a few minor imperfections. Often it was only the lowly and the outcast of society who believed in Jesus and trusted His words of life.
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Here’s the deal: God will have His house full on the Last Day for His feast. And if those who should come don’t, then many whom we might not expect will – not only the poor and the lame and the blind, but also even many from among the heathen nations – will be brought to believe and be saved. In the parable the servant said, “‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’ Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.’” For this meal is given not on the credentials of the invitees but on the graciousness of the Host.
This parable is given by Jesus, then, as a warning to all against being complacent and apathetic about the Gospel and losing our hunger for the feast. It is a warning not to think of the gifts of God given in the Divine Service as something optional or, worse, unimportant. “Well, I can go without those things for a few weeks; I will be fine.” “I will go to church some other time, but right now my life is full enough.” You don’t know that. And, in fact, what you don’t know can and indeed may hurt you eternally.
Does it even need to be said that this world around us is falling apart? Are we not paying attention to the news and world events? This world HATES you for being here; it hates God and it hates Christ. And it hates any idea of legitimate church. The restrictions for churches these past few months, whether or not they were well-intentioned, are certainly now being used by the devil to keep people away from church. If any of us thinks for a minute that we can do without the Divine Service; if any of us thinks for a minute that we can do without preaching, liturgy, remembering our Baptism, the Absolution, and Christ’s Supper; if any of us thinks that these things are optional, then we have already been picked off by the devil…and he is more than fine with that.
Why would the writer to the Hebrews say in chapter 10 (24-25), “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.” The “day” referred to here is the day of our Lord’s return. And it is as imminent now as it ever has been. We do not know when He will return, but He will; you can take that to the bank. And unless we are constantly being fed with our Lord’s Word and sacraments, we may not be able to stand on that day.
God knows that He and His gifts are eternally good for us. He made us and He knows how to keep us alive spiritually as well as physically. How long would your body last if you stopped eating and drinking? Not long. So also, how long would someone last spiritually if they stopped eating and drinking Christ’s body and blood, stopped hearing the Gospel, stopped assembling together as God has commanded us to do? Not long. So why would any of us think it’s OK not to gather to receive the only things that will keep us spiritually alive and well? Why would any of us think it’s OK to settle for online church for any length of time?
In and of our sinful nature we are like a starving man in a third world country with flies landing on our face that we don’t even have the strength to brush away. We must be brought by God to see that of ourselves we are spiritually empty, with nowhere else to turn but to Him. The divine Law exposes our desperate need so that we will crave the Bread of Life. Only then will the great supper be not just one of many other things to do; it will be the one thing that we cannot do without, for it is the very source of our life.
For the meal is Christ, and He said, “Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. . . He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in Him” (Jn 6). And if Christ dwells in you, then the sin and death which trouble you ultimately cannot harm you. His presence gives you real life that even conquers the grave.
So take to heart what our Lord’s invitation is saying to you. Do not be afraid. Do not think yourself unworthy or dwell upon your past sins, for Christ paid for them by dying on the cross in your place. He took your punishment so that you wouldn’t have to. Believe by God-given faith that He paid for all your sins by His innocent suffering and death. He defeated death and hell for you, and He has made it possible for you to attend His eternal banquet.
If you are weary, heartbroken, lonely, worried, frantic, wracked with guilt or uncertainty, hear the words of Your Lord when he says to you, “Come to the feast!” Leave behind the love of temporary things. Christ has loved you to death and back to life again. He has brought you here this day to His House and to His Feast. You have rest, strength, hope, and true joy in Him.
In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
