Party Over Here, Party Over

There Luke 14:15-24

Luke 14: 15-24 (NLT)

Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’ But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I now have a wife, so I can’t come.’

Luke 14: 15-24 (NLT)

“The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’ So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’

The Rejected Invitation

•Reasons for rejecting the invitation• Land• The yoke of oxen •New marriage

Jesus’ Second Invitation

•He made an urgent plea;• The plea indicated God’s desire to fill his house and that no soul should perish; •He compelled them to come not because they were rebellious but because they wanderers and outcasts who needed to be convinced that they welcomed and loved by God; • There was still room in the house after the when the blind, the maimed and the lame were reached.

Jesus’ Third Invitation

• The call was for the whole city to be searched for guests.•God is calling us to search the entire city and our neighborhoods.

Remember

•Do you remember who invited you?• Do you remember the day you answered the invitation?• Do you see how powerful an invitation can be ? •New life can start from an invitation.

Rewards For Inviting Others

• Today millions are dying without the hope of the gospel.•Millions are waiting to hear the gospel. •Millions are waiting for an invitation. • There is a blessing for inviting others to the great banquet of the gospel. • Those that lead many to righteousness shall shine as the stars forever and ever (Daniel 12:3).

The Harvest

Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. (John 4:35)

The Harvest

• Lift up your eyes – stop focusing all of your attention on your needs. • Look upon the fields – start focusing your concern on others.• The fields are white and ready for harvest –people are ready for an invitation. • The only thing that separates you and I from being an inviter is selfishness.

Selfishness

• Fear of rejection; • Refusal be inconvenienced; • Shame; • Too full of self – preoccupation to love others or to see others’ pain; • Self-absorption; • Refusal to give freely give without some form of reciprocation; • Refusal to bear the weaknesses of others.