Illus: There was a young Scottish boy called Angus, who decided to try life in Australia. He found an apartment in a small block and settled in.
After a week or two, his mother called from Aberdeen to see how her son was doing in his new life.
Angus said, “I'm fine! But there are some really strange people living in these apartments.
• One woman cries all day long,
• Another lies on her floor moaning,
• And there is a guy next door to me who bangs his head on the wall all the time.”
His mother said, “Well, ma laddie, I suggest you don't associate with people like that.”
Angus said, “Oh, I don't, Mama, I don't. No, I just stay inside my apartment all day and all night, playing my bagpipes.”
Isn’t it amazing how we think that other people are strange, but that we are normal.
The Lord Jesus met some strange people when He was here on earth. In this passage, I have read to you about some strange people.
Notice two things in verses 16-17.
(1) THE GREAT SUPPER
In verse 16, we read, “...A certain man made a great supper, and bade many.”
What this verse is teaching us is that God has a great feast and He is inviting all to come. This seems to be something that everyone would want to take advantage of.
We see THE GREAT SUPPER, and -
(2) THE GREAT SURPRISE
Look at verse 17, we read, “And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now READY.” Then we read in verse 18, “And they ALL WITH ONE CONSENT BEGAN TO MAKE EXCUSE...”
What a shock this must have been when ALL began to make excuses. There is a difference between a REASON and an EXCUSE.
• A reason is something that comes up that keeps us from doing something we would like to do.
• An excuse is something that we give for something we do not want to do.
Someone has said an excuse is, "The skin of a reason stuffed with a lie."
Illus: The excuses of the ungodly are as ridiculous as those of the lad that the farmer caught crouching in the branches of his apple tree.
• The farmer asked, “What are you doing up there?”
• The lad said, “Er--uh, I saw one of your apples fall from this branch and I am trying to put it back.”
Do you think any farmer would be foolish enough to believe a story like that? I do not think so!
Illus: Here are some ridiculous excuses for not exercising:
• It is well documented that for every mile you jog, you add 1 minute to your life. This enables you at 95 years old...to spend an additional 5 months in a nursing home at $5,000 per month.
• My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was 60. She's 97 now and we don't know where she is.
• I joined a health club last year, spent about 400 bucks. Have NOT lost a pound. Apparently you have to show up.
• I have to exercise early in the morning before my brain figures out what I'm doing.
• I don't exercise at all. If God meant us to touch our toes, he would have put them further up our body.
• I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.
• I have flabby thighs, but fortunately my stomach covers them.
• The advantage of exercising every day is that you die healthier.
• If I jog, it makes the ice jump right out of my glass.
Notice in our text that the Lord shows us three men who came up with three of the most ridiculous excuses we have ever heard.
These three men did not say they WOULD NOT COME. They simply gave excuses to try to cover up the fact they did not WANT to attend.
I. THE FIRST MAN WAS A “FIBBER”
Look at Verse 18, we read, “...The first man said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.”
When I think of FIBBERS, I think of politicians. They will tell you anything you want to hear.
Illus: I remember when George Herbert Bush stood before the American people and stated, “NO NEW TAXES!” Many went to the polls and voted for him. After he was in office HE RAISED OUR TAXES! He lied to us!
Illus: I remember another politician by the name of Bill Clinton, that looked into the television camera and told the American people, “I DID NOT HAVE SEX WITH THAT WOMAN!” But when some evidence came out on Monica Lewinski’s dress, he admitted he had LIED TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE!
Illus: They said during this time that President Clinton was distraught and did not know how to handle this sex scandal.
He could not talk to anyone because he did not know who he could trust. They said, he decided to walk through Washington looking for any kind of advice he could get. Since he could not trust anyone alive he decided he would turn to the dead.
He went to the Lincoln Memorial for guidance from the President who met his untimely death by being shot in a theater after winning the Civil War and keeping the country unified.
He said, “Honest Abe, I need your help. People are losing confidence in me and they no longer trust me. What should I do?"
After a substantial pause as strange as it may be Abe responds, "TAKE THE DAY OFF AND GO TO THE THEATER."
Any time you talk to a FIBBER, they are out to fool someone.
We can not imagine someone giving the idiotic excuse he gave. He said, “I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs to and see it: I pray thee have me excused.”
The first man was a FIBBER! Only a foolish person would buy land without seeing it first. Also, he says he already bought the land. It was his. That land was not going anywhere. He could go to the feast and the land would be there when he got back!
Illus: A pastor moved from the north to the south. He was surprised to find the southern lifestyle was not as fast paced as he had been used to up north. He was also surprised at how friendly the southern people were. He got out and began to knock on doors. He was inviting people to his church. The following Sunday he was sure his church would be full because many had said they would be there. If only half as many would have come as had said they would, his church would have been filled. However, he experienced another surprise. The people who had led him to believe they would be at church were not there.
A native southern pastor explained to the pastor from up north the difference between the people of the two areas.
• He explained, “You may ask a northerner to church and he will rudely tell you he is not going to attend.”
• He explained that southerners are not that way. They will not be rude, so they tell you they are coming. THEY WILL TELL YOU THEY ARE COMING and then they DO NOT COME! And when you confront them for not keeping their promise, they will give you an excuse.
This man sounds like a good man, as he said that he would love to come BUT had bought a piece of land and needed to go see it during that time.
We see THE FIRST MAN WAS A ‘FIBBER’ and -
II. THE SECOND MAN WAS A FOOL
Have you ever noticed how foolish some people are when they talk?
Illus: A man was at the airport checking in at the gate when an airport employee asked, "Has anyone put anything in your baggage without your knowledge?" To which the man replied, "If it was without my knowledge, how would I know?"
When people talk, they say some very foolish things.
Look at Verse 19, we read, “And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused.”
This excuse is as ridiculous as the first man. He stated that he had already bought the oxen. If he wanted to see how they would perform, he could have done that at another time.
Illus: Isn’t it amazing what people claim they have to do when they do not want to do something?
God gives people six days to do all they need to do, still they have to do something on Sunday, and during the two hours during Wednesday evening Bible study.
• I have seen retired people who had six days to take a trip out of town, but they will wait until Sunday to go
• I have seen people go on vacations and they wait and go on Sunday
• I have seen people who always had family reunions on Sunday
• I have seen people take a job that God gave them and use that as an excuse not to do what God wants them to do
• I have seen people who wanted to play golf, or go fishing but they waited until Sunday to do these things
The excuses that man gives today are just as ridiculous as this man that said, “I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them...”
There are a lot of folks trying to FOOL people. And the second man was a FOOL trying to fool someone.
We see THE FIRST MAN WAS A FIBBER, THE SECOND MAN WAS A FOOL and -
III. THE THIRD MAN WAS A FAKE
Look at verse 20, “And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.”
This man had no intention of accepting the invitation. He was a FAKE. But notice, this man is shameless! He used THE INSTITUTION OF HOLY MARRIAGE as an excuse to get out of doing what he did not want to do.
The man said he would come, but he just got married. Men often take their wives with them when they go somewhere. Why didn’t this man just take his wife with him?
God never gave us jobs, family, health, etc., as things to come between us and God. People will use something that God gives us as an excuse not to serve Him.
Illus: I have seen parents that did not want to obey the Lord and attend church, that would use a helpless infant as an excuse not to attend.
Illus: Some people say, “I can not go to church because Sunday is the only day I can be with my family.” Hey, guess what? If you bring your family to church you can sit with them here as well as somewhere else.
Illus: Some will say, they could not come to church because they had company drop in! Listen, I guarantee you that if they were going to a ball game or something they really wanted to do, they would meet them at the door and say, “We were just leaving to go to the ball game!”
Why couldn’t they say, “We are leaving to go to church, why don’t you come with us!”
Conclusion:
Men are SAVED BY RESPONDING TO THE INVITATION TO COME TO CHRIST,
They are lost BECAUSE they make silly excuses for not responding.
Verse 21 states that when the Lord heard the excuses he was “angry.”
Psalm 7:11 says that, “God is angry with the wicked every day.”
Notice in verse 24, that not a single person who gave an excuse, rejecting the invitation, was allowed to taste of the supper. They chose to LEAVE HIM OUT OF THEIR LIVES, SO HE LEFT THEM OUT OF HIS!
One day they will see what their flimsy excuses brought them--eternal separation from God.
Illus: If you were sitting on the railroad tracks and a train was coming, you could make one of three decisions.
1. You could totally ignore the train and act like it was not coming – until it hit you.
2. You could say, “It’s a long way off. I still have time. I’ll just wait until it gets closer.” – The problem is, you are still sitting on the track.
3. You could heed the warning and get off the track and be saved.
Only one of these responses will save your life. Which one have you made?
It is one thing to have a reason, but an excuse, most of the time, is no more than a LIE!
We see that -
I. THE FIRST MAN WAS A FIBBER
II. THE SECOND MAN WAS A FOOL
III. THE THIRD MAN WAS A FAKE
