St. Paul Lutheran Church
The 2nd Sunday after Trinity
June 8/9, 2013+
St. Luke 14:16-24
The Rev. BT Ball
In Nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.
I was invited to attend a party yesterday afternoon, but I had a very good excuse – I had to officiate at a wedding. Duty called. Pastors get invited to parties all the time, and if at all possible the Pastor, and his wife and his children will show up. Wedding receptions, graduations, baptisms, confirmations, anniversaries and so forth. It is an honor to be invited to such, but one can’t make them all, especially if some other pastoral care need has to be addressed, unexpected things like illness or even death. You might get invited to parties too and have to decline from time to time, life’s more pressing matters can interfere and your presence, is missed. And when the things of life happen, those who do the inviting to the party understand. All of us have declined invitations without having a good excuse, other than we really didn’t want to go. This is really shows what a sad state we are in. You receive a gracious invitation (let’s assume you aren’t related to the person and they have to invite you so grandma won’t get mad) and you just plain don’t want it. Maybe because you just would rather sit on the couch, or you don’t want to be around the people that you know will be there. Isn’t it interesting when you get invited to a party, the first thing you want to know is who else is going? Or when you go to the wedding reception, you check out the other name cards on the table to see who you will be sitting with? Never mind the gracious invitation of the one wants you to be their guest. You either don’t want to go because you have something better to do or even when you have nothing better to do. Or when you do show up, you are overly concerned with who else will be there and who you will be spending time with. You will be spending time with people who are the objects of friendly grace, that is shown by the invitation. But friendly grace isn’t enough. We just out say no, and oftentimes have to think up some kind of ridiculous excuse to get out of the whole deal.How ridiculous are the excuses are given to get out of the whole deal in the Gospel. The whole deal is not simply a deal, it is the very blessing of the kingdom of God, eating bread with the one who is bread of life. The invitation to receive freely by grace alone all that the Father has to give – His Son. Union with Him and his Bride the Church. The Father says, everything is ready, come. But everyone is making excuses, and see how ridiculous they are, silly really. I bought a field, I have to go see it. So the excuse is a field watching? The next, I just bought five yoke of oxen, I have to go examine them. Wouldn’t one have done that before the purchase? Stupid excuse. Finally, I have married a wife. Presumably should would be welcome too. But all of it, every excuse was real and true, even if a field, and oxen were purchased and wife gained, none of these are reasons to stay away.And the Master is enraged and rightly he should be. God is enraged and rightly he should be. The children of Israel had a feast prepared in the person of Jesus; a feast of deliverance greater than the Passover itself, the soon to be eating of bread in the kingdom of God. The revealed reign of Jesus in the Sacrament of the Altar. All things now revealed and fulfilled - and they would turn aside from it. So the master sends out his servants to go after the weak ones, who can’t make it in, poor, crippled, blind and lame. That doesn’t make for a good group on the cards at the wedding reception. Probably pretty stinky, and weak and needing grace and guidance and help to make it. That would be you. And still more room, the highways and the hedges, the Gentiles and all of it by grace. That would be you. All of it by Jesus. He is the preparer of the feast and the feast itself. He is the Passover lamb sacrificed once for us to eat now and the wine is his blood for us to drink – pointing to even more the eating of the bread of the kingdom which has no end. The meal was prepared by His death, His Body given for you. His blood shed for you. Sins forgiven now, so that you can get there, then. Here in the Church of Jesus Christ, consider this; here forgiveness and salvation come daily by Jesus merit. And now consider every flimsy excuse you have made over the years to get yourself away from the great feast of Christ - vacation, too busy, family, or tired, or hungover, or how about just plain laziness. And your Father in heaven should be enraged. Do you think your Father in heaven doesn’t mind? Still He keeps after each and every one, by His grace, calling you, inviting you, forgiving you in Jesus Christ. To come to the feast, by His grace to receive Jesus’s life and salvation and the kingdom.
And whose name in on the cards at this table that you join in with, sinners like you, smelly, weak, frail, crippled, blind, lame. Forgiven, Holy, Righteous, Perfect in Jesus alone. So come now, you’ve been invited. The kingdom’s feast of eating the bread of life is now, Christ’s body, His blood. By His grace. And to all of this, we say yes. Amen.
