The Great Supper

The Great Supper

“Then He [Jesus] said to him, ‘A certain man gave a great supper and invited many, and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’ But they all with one accord began to make excuses.” Read Luke 14:16-20.

You understand quite well what Jesus is trying to say here, but do you understand why they did not want to come to the great supper to which they had been invited? The same thing repeats itself today: people are invited to a life of happiness and joy, a life of rest and peace and blessedness under God’s blessing and goodness. But . . . they are afraid of the way of self-denial; they want to decide for themselves and do their own will. They neither see nor believe that there is something great and wonderful in a life of self-denial and that a heavenly treasure is hidden behind the sufferings of Christ; otherwise they would have sold everything or forsaken everything in order to possess this great treasure that the Lord intended to give them. But it is the same now, as then. People are blind to the value of God’s kingdom, as Jesus Himself said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.” Matt. 11:25-26.

The key here is to have a listening ear and a believing heart. Human prudence and wisdom block the way, but the poor in spirit see and understand. “Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.” 1 Cor. 3:18.

“For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’” Luke 14:28-30.

Before starting, a prudent person calculates whether he is able to finish what he intends to do. What kind of a building does he intend to build? For example: After hearing about the Lord’s invitation to the great supper at a meeting, and being gripped by it, he now wants to have clarity about what it means. It is imprudent to commit yourself to something that is impossible. It is better to face up to the truth and assess your position. When the person has assessed the situation correctly, he will come to the conclusion that it costs everything, for no one can be Jesus’ disciple unless he forsakes everything he has. Luke 14:33.

The next question is: Does he have enough to finish what he started? The real question is whether he is willing to surrender everything it costs; in other words, to surrender to God. Then God makes a covenant with him, a covenant with conditions and promises. If he agrees to give everything and do only God’s will, then the Lord will give him everything that is His, and we understand that everyone would be satisfied with that. So now the matter is clear, and all that is left is to be faithful to the covenant.

When you see brothers or sisters who are unfaithful to the covenant, giving the impression that they will not be able to finish the building, they will find help in the church through the ministry. 1 Cor. 12:23-25. In 1 Thessalonians 2:11-12 it is written: “As you know how we exhorted, and comforted, and charged every one of you, as a father does his own children, that you would have a walk worthy of God, who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.” See also Colossians 1:28-29 and Hebrews 3:13 and 10:25.

“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. . . . And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation.” 2 Pet. 3:9, 15.