Hunger pains exist in our lives and can lead to a relevant word for such a time as this. Knowing this information has allowed me to delve into my desire to sit down and enjoy the spiritual food from God's table. Why am I thus if I don't choose to eat from the master chef that teaches all chefs. I am hoping that, by sharing these experiences, someone will be compelled to come and join me and we will be filled together. The book of Luke 14: 16-23:
16Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many:
17And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.
18And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.
19And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused.
20And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.
21So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, 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.
22And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.
23And 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.
After reading these verses, I am mindful that there are times when an invitation is sent that you must not turn down. The invitation is such that it would come from someone so special that every effort is made to attend and all other scheduled events would be rearranged to accommodate this request. For instance, one of the State Dinners hosted by the President, William & Catherine's Royal Wedding, or perhaps something so intimately planned by a spouse that no amount of convincing would change your mind about attending. The thought process is that you understand the amount of resources that would have gone into preparing such an elaborate display of hospitality that will be unmatched by no other existing life event.
However, each invitee in the scripture did exactly what would have caused any sane person to exclaim..."Have you lost your mind?"
Maybe this isn't an understatement if you held onto the logic that they could have gone to the Master's dinner at anytime. And logically, this would be correct. But another thought I have suggests that this wasn't just any event. First, scripture describes that the Master was angry. If I were to go with the logic theory, then it would be logical to say that the master was angry and in an effort not to waste the effort/food the master extends an invitation to those whom he thinks will appreciate the work that was put into this event. A host just doesn't get angry and go to this extent for just anything. For instance, that type of energy would not be wasted if dinner just came from a drive through window. This leads me to believe that the effort was not only monumental but this would have been the master's best work.
Second, this event is in parallel to those who are extended an invite to heaven. One might say, but this is God and God can just speak things into existence. And that's true; however, in Genesis 1:1 the Bible talks about how God created the world in 6 days. After thousands of years and countless people spending lifetimes exploring the world, we still have not explored all their is to know about God's creation. There are still unexamined and unnamed stars, unexplored mountains, unpioneerd and uncharted territories to this very day. We know that if God can create something so awesome in six days then this meal will have to be something to behold, cherish, and remember for the rest of our lives.
Last, scripture says that he bade many. But after replacing those he bade, they were finding that they still had lots of room to accommodate those with their excuses. It is important to note that this behavior begs us to pay attention that the master wanted as many people in attendence as possible. The work would have had to have been worthy of such effort.
I'm convinced that the people would have not understood the magnitude of this event or they would not have turned it down. It is as if their minds were not illuminated to the possibilities; otherwise they would have definitely made the event a priority. I witness a lot of those who don't believe. They will be the ones representing the people who had excuses for why they weren't available during the invitation period. But heaven is a must and in order to go we must be hungry for it, anticipate it's coming, and appreciate the work/effort that went into the preparation. This strong desire to find out what it takes to get there won't go unnoticed by a God who spared no resources to insure it is worth the wait!
