By David Brenneman
But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many; and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because everything is ready now.’ And yet they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I purchased a field and I need to go out to look at it; please consider me excused.’ And another one said, ‘I bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’ And another one said, ‘I took a woman as my wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’ And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here those who are poor, those with disabilities, those who are blind, and those who are limping.’ And later the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the roads and the hedges and press upon them to come in, so that my house will be filled. For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my dinner.’” Luke 14:16-24 NASB
We live in a world of excuses. Everyone, like opinions, has many at their disposal.
People tell those sharing Jesus Christ with them come up with both serious and joking excuses. The truth of life is Jesus Christ and He's not joking about the seriousness of anyone's future.
Look, if you weren't feeling well, you would likely seek professional help and would expect a certain level of professionalism and decorum. You would expect the one you speak with to be knowledgeable about those kinds of matters. The worst kind of people are those living in denial of their physical problems. They jump from Doctor to Doctor to find one willing to tell them what they want to hear.
The people who feel nothing wrong who are told there's something wrong by Doctors with react with wanting a second opinion, they believe the Doctor or they live in denial of what was revealed.
You are being told that your Spiritual condition isn't well. By the Great Physician Himself. Jesus has said that everyone, to gain admission to His Heaven must receive treatment. It must be through the shed blood of Jesus Christ alone. Salvation comes no other way. Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
You can either live in denial of this truth or you can come to the conclusion that He's right.
You have been invited. Read that beginning part of this passage. There's an invitation. It's not coercion. It's an invitation. Like those in the realm of the physical world there's a time limit on how long that invitation is open for.
My Dear Reader are you still clinging to excuses for not taking Him seriously?
Are you so caught up in thinking your joys or happiness you seek in this world are more important?
What will you do when you too will stand before Christ to answer for your rejection of His invitation? Jesus didn't give this parable for no reason. He showed the hearts of man and woman in it. People who believed that they didn't need to take Him seriously. People who thought more of this temporary life than their eternal life. You DO have an eternal life to consider. Where you spend it is up to you.
You're going to spend this life in all sorts of joys and pain. You will have ups and downs. You will have success and failure. When you leave this world you start living your eternity.
I don't need to promise you anything.
I am not going to promise you anything.
In regards to Jesus being the Great Physician, He has told you what you must do to be saved. I am a messenger.
Jesus promised that those who reject what He has said and done will spend eternity in torment and eternal judgment.
No party with others who also rejected. Jesus gave a graphic representation of Hell in another story.
"Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, enjoying himself in splendor every day. And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, and longing to be fed from the scraps which fell from the rich man’s table; not only that, the dogs also were coming and licking his sores. Now it happened that the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s arms; and the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades he raised his eyes, being in torment, and *saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his arms. And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus, so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set, so that those who want to go over from here to you will not be able, nor will any people cross over from there to us.’ And he said, ‘Then I request of you, father, that you send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not come to this place of torment as well.’ But Abraham *said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’” Luke 16:19-31
You only have a choice while you breathe air.
You only will be able to receive His free gift of Salvation while your heart beats.
Your possessions can't save you.
Your family can't save you.
Your friends can't save you.
Strangers can't save you.
Is what you are holding onto in this world really more important than where you will spend eternity? You choose.
My heart's desire is that somehow through this ministry that at least 1 would get real and come to Christ to be saved. I am not a polished writer. What you read is what I am to write by His direction.
Jesus loved you enough to die for you. The only way the Great Physician could heal you was to take your place. But you must choose it. You must come to Christ to ask. The invitation will soon expire. Either at your death or His return. He will not allow anyone to enter into Heaven that is not saved by His shed blood. Nobody will sweet talk their way in. Nobody will get in any other way than through Christ.
What's worse for everyone is He will separate those who did say yes from those who didn't...all without...saying...a...word.
There's no fooling Jesus.
You can fool yourself or others but never Jesus.
My friend get serious for once and think about this. You wouldn't have come this far in reading this if He wasn't talking to you.
Every single second otherwise healthy people are dying. No warning of any kind.
Do you really want to risk it?
When the excuses run out, will you be left behind realizing that you have forever missed out?
Change that today and act on your invitation while it's still in YOUR hands.
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