Great Supper

He has:

- Healed a man against the approval of the religious leaders.

- Dealt with the guest who had a manner problem.

- Corrected the host.

This passage of Scripture shows us a situation that the old farmers used to have a saying for. They would have said, “The Lord had ‘cleaned their plow,’ three times.” In that very tense moment, they were afraid to protest.

Finally, in the midst of that tense moment (Imagine the setting!), out of almost complete silence, one fellow decided to speak out. Look at verse 15. We read, “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.”

That is one of the most pious clichés that you will ever hear. In that very tense moment, when the Lord had nailed them three times, the man says, “Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.” That did not even make sense, but it sounded good so he broke the silence with that pious platitude.

You can check commentary after commentary and no one has any idea what that man meant when he stated, “Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God.” He probably said it because he thought it sounded good, and for no other reason. Some have speculated and said the man said that because the Lord had mentioned the resurrection in verse 14, so out of joy and excitement he said it in reference to the Messianic feast that God will give His people when He sets up His kingdom on earth.

Illus: Probably most of us would have done what the late Dr. J. Vernon McGee said he would have done had he been there. He stated that he would have said to the man, “What do you mean by that?” Dr. McGee said, “I doubt that he could have told me what he really meant...His statement was nothing but a pious cliché."

You hear many people these days say things because they sound good and sound religious, but they have no idea what they mean. It just sounds good.

Illus: For example. We hear folks say, “Praise the Lord!” To many, this has become a cliché. They do not really mean to direct praise to the Lord. It is just a very pious sounding phrase. It sounds good. It makes the speaker appear to be religious. It is good when men PRAISE THE LORD from the heart, but God is NOT IMPRESSED WITH LIP SERVICE!

God is impressed when men and women will worship Him from the heart, and speak forth sincere and meaningful praises.

The Lord was not going to let that man get away with using a meaningless cliché. He told them a parable. Look at verses 16-17. We read, “Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.”

Notice two things in verses 16-17.

(1) THE GREAT SUPPER. (Verse 16) “...A certain man made a great supper, and bade many.”

God is using all kinds of ways today to get the invitation out. He uses the Church, pastors, evangelists, missionaries, the witness of lay Christians, radio, television, the printed page, and even man’s conscience. No one in America can say, “No one has ever tried to invite me to this great Feast.”

God has a great feast and He is inviting all to come.

(2) THE GREAT SURPRISE.

(Verse 17) “And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now READY.” The time had come. Those who had been invited, and had accepted the invitation were told that it was time. The Bible says, verse 18, “And they all with one consent began to make excuse...”

God has issued an invitation to ALL MANKIND to accept His salvation. What people do with that invitation is their decision. This is a “feast” that God Himself has prepared and the only way you can be saved is to accept the invitation that has been extended to you. You can not:

- Force your entrance into Heaven.

- Buy your way into Heaven.

- Work your way into Heaven.

Certainly you can not hide behind some trumped up excuse, thinking He would be foolish enough to believe it.

You simply must receive the invitation that He extends to you, or just admit that you refuse it.

The ungodly person will hide behind excuses like a child who has been bad will hide behind a bush and think no one, not even God Himself, knows he was bad.