The Gospel Supper
Luke 14:22-24: "And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the high-ways, and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say unto you, that none of those men which were bidden, shall taste of my supper."
Though this is a large and solemn assembly, I assume you're all convinced that you won't live in this world forever. Can I not take it for granted that even the most profane among you believe in your hearts what the sacred Scriptures have most clearly revealed: "That as it is appointed for all men once to die, so after death comes the judgment"? Yes, I know you believe that nothing is more certain than that we are to "appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, to be rewarded according to the deeds done in the body, whether they have been good, or whether they have been evil."
And however hard this saying may seem to you at first hearing, I cannot help informing you that I'm thoroughly persuaded that just as many will be driven from that judgment seat with a "Depart ye cursed into everlasting fire" for pursuing things that are in themselves lawful (but out of a wrong motive and with too much intensity) as for drunkenness, adultery, fornication, or any other gross depravity whatsoever.
Base as the world is, thank God, there are still great numbers left among us who, either through the restraints of a religious upbringing or through self-love and concern for their outward reputation, abstain from gross sin themselves and look with disgust and horror on others who indulge in it. But then, through an overly eager pursuit of the things of sense and time, their souls are gradually lulled into a spiritual slumber and by degrees become as dead to God and as deaf to all the gracious invitations of the gospel as the most abandoned prodigals.
It's remarkable, therefore, that our Savior, knowing how desperately wicked and treacherous the heart of man is in this and other respects, after He had cautioned His disciples (and us in them) to "take heed that their hearts were not at any time overcharged with gluttony and drunkenness," immediately adds, "and the cares (the immoderate anxious cares) of this life." For they are of a distracting, intoxicating nature and soon overcharge and weigh down the hearts of the children of men.
To prevent or remedy this evil, our Lord, during the time of His dwelling here below, spoke many parables, but not one more relevant, not one in which the freeness of the gospel call, the frivolous excuses men frame to avoid embracing it, and the dreadful doom they incur by doing so are more displayed or set off in livelier colors than the one to which the words of the text refer: "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: For I say unto you, that none of those that were bidden shall taste of my supper."
To understand the context, purpose, and content of the parable these words belong to, we need to go back to the very beginning of this chapter. "And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread, on the Sabbath day, that they watched him." The person spoken of here, going into this Pharisee's house, is our blessed Savior. Because He came eating and drinking, consistent with His character, He was open, courteous, and friendly to everyone. So even though it was the Sabbath, He accepted an invitation and went to the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat, despite knowing that the Pharisees were His declared enemies and that they were watching Him, hoping to find some reason to criticize either His words or His actions.
If the Pharisee whose house our Lord entered was one of this type, his invitation reveals him to be a very wicked man. This can teach us that great bitterness and deep hostility against Jesus Christ can be hidden and disguised under an impressive and showy profession of religion. Still, our Savior was more than equal to all His enemies. By accepting this invitation, He has given His ministers and disciples permission to accept similar invitations and to speak freely about the things of God, even when those who invite them may not have genuine religion in their hearts. After all, how do you know, friend, whether you might say something that could benefit their souls and make them truly religious?
And suppose they do watch you. Then you should watch yourself in prayer while you're in their company, and that same Jesus, who went into this Pharisee's house and was so faithful and edifying in His conversation there, will enable you to go and do the same.
Jesus didn't engage in trivial conversation. Instead, He spoke in ways that built people up, and He acted among the guests more like a faithful physician than a careless, indifferent companion. This becomes clear in verse 7 of this chapter, where we're told that "he marked how they chose the chief rooms," or to put it in everyday terms, how they wanted to sit at the head of the table. Whether we think about it or not, the Lord Jesus notices our behavior, even when we're simply sitting down for an ordinary meal. I wish everyone who claims to be a genuine Christian would consider this carefully! If they did, religion wouldn't be confined to church or worship services but would be brought into our private homes, and many unnecessary, unchristian formalities would be avoided.
Let me speak frankly: isn't it too true that many professing Christians love the best seats in homes just as much as in synagogues? This is exactly what our Lord criticized in the guests where He was now dining. He observed, He took notice, He looked before He spoke (as we should always do if we want to speak effectively) at how they competed for the best seats. Even though they were wealthy and weren't His guests, He was unwilling to let any sin pass without comment or to miss any opportunity to give instruction.
"When you are invited by anyone to a wedding" (which suggests this was a wedding feast), "don't sit down in the best seat, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited. Then the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, 'Give this man your place,' and you'll begin with shame to take the lowest seat. But when you're invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, 'Friend, move up higher.' Then you'll have honor in the presence of everyone sitting at the table with you."
What a glorious example of faithfulness and love for souls! How ministers especially ought to follow their blessed Master's example and, with simplicity and godly sincerity, gently and appropriately rebuke the faults of the company they're in, even if those people are their social superiors!
Jesus didn't stop there. He noticed that only the rich, powerful, and well-connected had been invited to the feast, and He used this as an opportunity to give His host some valuable advice. "Then He said to the one who had invited Him, 'When you give a lunch or a dinner, don't invite your friends, your brothers, your relatives, or your wealthy neighbors. If you do, they'll just invite you back, and you'll be repaid. Instead, when you host a feast, invite the poor, the disabled, the lame, and the blind. Then you will be blessed, because they can't repay you. You'll be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous!'"
We see an example of this in verse 14: "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." Happy are those who will be rewarded at that resurrection of the just, which you have been talking about. What a fitting remark! It was perfectly appropriate for people sitting down to eat bread on earth, which we should never do without talking about and longing for that time when we will sit down and eat bread in the kingdom of heaven.
It was as if He said to the person who had just spoken, "You're right: blessed indeed are those who will sit down to eat bread in the kingdom of God. But sadly, most people, especially you Pharisees, act as if you don't believe this." And so He said to him, "A certain man made a great supper, and bade many." By the certain man making a great supper, we're meant to understand God the Father, who has made provision for perishing souls through the obedience and death of His beloved Son, Christ Jesus.
This provision is represented here as a supper because the caena, or supper, among the ancients was their main meal. Human beings could never have made such provision for themselves, nor could angels have made it for them. No, our salvation is entirely from God, from beginning to end. He made it, and not we ourselves, and it is completely due to divine wisdom, not our own, that we have become God's people and the sheep of His pasture.
This provision for perishing souls can rightly be called great because there is rich and ample provision made in the gospel for a great many souls. For however small Christ's flock may be when scattered, yet when they all come together, they will be a multitude that no one can number. And it is especially called great because it was purchased at so great a price: the price of Christ's most precious blood.
So if the great God goes to such great expense to prepare such a great feast for perishing creatures, and sends someone as great as His own Son, in the form of a servant, to invite them to come, you would think that everyone who heard this good news would immediately say, "Lord, we're coming." But instead, we're told, "They all" (the majority of the Jews) "with one consent began to make excuses." Conscience told them they should come, and they probably had some faint desire to come. They had nothing to object to, as far as we can tell, either against the person who prepared the feast, or the person who invited them, or the meal itself.
But the excuses they offered only made their refusal more inexcusable. "The first said to him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it." You fool, buy a piece of ground and then go see it! A prudent man would have gone and seen the ground first, and bought it afterward. Why must he go? At least, why must he go now? The land was his own. Couldn't he have accepted the invitation today and gone to see his estate or plantation tomorrow?
The second was even worse. "And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them." One man, it seems, had been buying an estate; another, cattle to stock an estate already bought. Both were equally foolish in making their bargains. For this second man had bought five yoke of oxen, which must have cost him a considerable sum, perhaps everything he had in the world, and now he must go and test them. A wise dealer would have tested the oxen first and bought them afterward.
The excuse the third person makes is the worst of all. "I've married a wife, and therefore I can't come." If he had said, "I won't come," he would have spoken the real feelings of his heart. It's not so much that people lack the ability to come as that they lack the will and desire that keeps them from the gospel feast. But why can't he come? He has "married a wife." Has he? Then by all means he should come. The supper he was invited to appears to have been a wedding supper, which would have saved him the trouble of hosting his own wedding celebration.
This was the reception the servant received, and these were the excuses and answers that came back. What happened next? "So that servant came (no doubt with a sorrowful heart) and showed his Lord these things." However little people may think of it, ministers must show the Lord what success their ministry achieves. We must show it to our Lord here. We must spread the case before Him in prayer. We must show it to our Lord later, before the general assembly of the whole world.
Well, and what does the Lord say? We're told in verse 21 that "the master of the house was angry." Not with the servant, for though Israel may not be gathered, yet Christ will be glorious, and faithful ministers will be rewarded, whether people obey the gospel or not. The master of the house therefore was angry, not with the servant, but with these worldly-minded, pleasure-seeking refusers of his gracious invitation.
And indeed, in one sense, their excuses were accepted. For I don't hear that they were ever invited again. God took them at their word, though they wouldn't take Him at His. They begged to be excused, and they were excused, as we'll see in the rest of this parable. Let us not harden our hearts, as in the day of provocation. "Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation."
But must the feast lack guests? No, if they cannot or will not come, others will, and gladly. The master of the house therefore, being angry, sent the servant on a second errand. "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." Every word expresses a spirit of resentment and urgency. Go out quickly, make no delay, fear no attempt or danger, into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here, not only call them, but bring them in.
The servant returns again, but this time with a more encouraging answer than before: "Lord, it is done as you commanded, and yet there is room." His words reveal that he's filled with joy at the success he's had. Only those who have experienced it can understand the comfort ministers feel when they see their work bearing fruit. "Lord, it is done as you commanded. The poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind have been called, and they've obeyed the summons. I've brought them with me. Yet, Lord, your house and your supper are so great, there is room for more."
"The Lord, therefore, we are told in verse 23, said to his servant (the same servant), 'Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say to you, that none of those who were invited will taste of my supper'" (Luke 14:23-24). What cutting words these are to those who sat at the table, if they had hearts to make the application! But what glad tidings of great joy to the tax collectors, prostitutes, and Gentiles, who were rejected by the proud Pharisees!
With this conviction supporting me, I'm not ashamed to come out today into the highways and back roads to confess that my mission is to call the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind—self-condemned, helpless sinners—to the marriage feast of the Lamb's supper. My message is this: Come, believe in the Lord Jesus. Throw yourselves at the footstool of His mercy, and you will be saved, for all things are now ready.
God the Father is ready, God the Son is ready, God the Holy Spirit is ready. The blessed angels above are ready, and the blessed saints below are ready to welcome you to the gospel feast. A perfect and everlasting righteousness has now been accomplished by Jesus Christ. God can now, on honorable terms, acquit the guilty. God can now be just and yet justify the ungodly.
For Jesus Christ's sake, don't all begin making excuses with one voice. Don't let a piece of land, five yoke of oxen, or even a wife keep you from this great supper. You can enjoy these as gifts from God and use them for the Mediator's glory while still being present at the gospel feast. True and undefiled religion doesn't take away but rather greatly enhances the comforts of life.
Come then, all you lame, poor, maimed, and blind sinners. Take comfort—the Lord Jesus has sent His servant to call you. It's now suppertime, a day of uncommon grace. The day may be far spent. Hurry, therefore, and come to the supper of the Lamb. If you don't come, I know the master will be angry. And who can stand before Him when He's angry?
What do you say, my dear friends? I would put the question to you once more: Will you taste Christ's supper, or will you not? You will all be welcome. There is milk at this feast for babies, as well as meat for strong men and for people of mature years. There is room and provision for high and low, rich and poor, one with another, and our Savior will thank you for coming. Amazing condescension! Astonishing love!
