Excuses, Excuses

Series on Luke

IV The Imperatives of the Kingdom

B Instruction in Rejection

13 Servants Sent

Text: 14:15-24

Introduction

Have you ever asked yourself how many times you have made excuses? Does your introspection ever reach the point where you say to yourself, “Why did I make an excuse? Why didn’t I just say I blew it?” It’s a common problem. There is a sentence in this text that has always stuck to my mind like glue, verse 18, But they all alike began to make excuses. It begins very early in life. You tell a 3 or 4 year old child not to get into the mud. Pretty soon they come to you covered with mud and tracking it across the floor. You say, “i thought i told you not to get into the mud,” and what do you hear? It isn’t, “Sorry Mommy i disobeyed.” Instead you hear this complicated tale about how the muddiness was unavoidable. Excuses, excuses. They wear thin. Take somebody who’s habitually late. They always have a list of emergencies which prompted their lateness. After a while even they begin to realize that the problem may be with them and with a lack of motivation or preparation. “But they all alike began to make excuses.” It’s part of life. But as Jesus speaks here the great tragedy is that when it comes to the kingdom of God, we cannot afford to make excuses. Our Lord gives three reasons why we must not make excuses with regard to the kingdom of God. First it is immediate, second it is important, and thirdly it is inclusive.

I Immediate

This parable is introduced by a comment from an anonymous individual sitting at the table with Jesus in verses 15-17, When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ The Jewish people of Jesus time awaited a conquering Messiah who would defeat all their enemies and usher in a kingdom where they would sit on top of the heap. This would occur when Messiah revealed his great power according to God’s timetable. There is a problem here. The man making the statement is already sitting at the banquet table with the Messiah and he didn’t know it. The the kingdom is future in their thinking, maybe near maybe far, but future! Jesus says its here now, right among you. This is it. I am the king, this is my kingdom. Follow me now, come for all things are now ready. The first problem with these excuses is that they postpone the decision. Jesus says there isn’t time. Maybe you’ve been procrastinating on a decision to follow Jesus. Maybe you’ve been postponing turning over an area of your life to him. Maybe you’re going to be a better husband or wife, maybe you’re going to tithe, maybe you’re going to study your Bible, but so far you’ve resisted the temptation to change. Dear people, the most important feature of this parable is Jesus’ emphasis on the fact that the kingdom is now and now is when you need to respond.

II Important

You probably didn’t laugh to yourself when this Scripture was read because you realize how serious the issue is. However, our Lord is in fact satirizing here in verses 18-20, “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ He creates a humorous caricature of our foibles and our folly. The correct response to these excuses is, “you can’t be serious!” The first man says I have bought a field and I must go and see it. Have you ever seen these ads to buy land in Arizona? They show you a beautiful community with lakes, golf courses, and clubhouse. The only problem is if you drive to Arizona you will find you bought a patch of sand and cactus surrounded by more sand and cactus, lots more. You deserve what you get. You bought it without looking at it. So did this man. His excuse is worse than flimsy, its ridiculous. The second man says I bought five yoke of oxen and I’m on my way to try them out. I would love a chance to sell this man the Brooklyn Bridge. you shouldn’t buy one ox without trying it out, but this man bought five yoke of oxen. It was a huge purchase and it was a pig in a poke. You may not look a gift horse in the mouth, but you certainly look at a horse you’re buying. Again the excuse is absurd and foolish. The last man says, I just got married so I can’t come. Marriage isn’t supposed to be the end of your life although some people treat it that way. It is intended to improve your life. He wasn’t being asked to go to war, just attend a banquet. Why didn’t he just bring his wife? No wonder the owner of the house became angry. These people just didn’t want to come, but they made up silly excuses. Jesus is saying to these people if you think about the importance of God’s kingdom then all of our excuses are silly and absurd. What is more important than eternal life? What is more important than obeying and glorifying God. We’re talking here about our homes, our jobs, our families, real estate, commerce and marriage. These things need to take a back seat to Jesus’ calling. The other night I saw part of the NBA championships. Michael Jordan set a new record for points scored in one half in a championship game. As the commentators raved about his prowess, they said he was the best. Whoever is second best is definitely a distant second. Watching him I could believe it. That’s what Jesus is saying about the kingdom here. Everything else is a distant second. No excuses are permitted.

III Inclusive

Jesus brings out the historical significance in verses 21-24, “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ ”‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’” The kingdom in the Old Testament included the Jews, almost exclusively. But now that they were rejecting their Messiah, the kingdom would be opened to the rest of the world, the Gentiles. However this also has a broader application, namely that the kingdom includes those who respond to the invitation, who accept the Lordship of Christ and it excludes those who think other things are more important. This is true of Jews and Gentiles alike. The man who got married and the men who bought the oxen and the field were consumed with their own importance and the importance of what they had to do. But the poor and the lame and the crippled and the blind had time to listen and attend the banquet. In fact what poor, disabled, or needy person would not be delighted to be invited to this affair? So the invitation was spurned by those who were too good, too proud and too busy, but not by the needy. Now Jesus tells this parable because he was being rejected.

Conclusion

These people refused to allow his words to penetrate their lifestyle. The warning to everyone today is that we have not only the danger that we’re too busy to hear, but once we have heard we tend to get reabsorbed in the affairs of this life. The only solution is to become poor and lame and crippled and blind again. When we let the light of God’s holiness shine on our lives this is not hard to do. Then we will once again appreciate a crucified Savior. We will once again see that his mercy is the most important thing in life. His atoning death on the cross will take on renewed meaning. We may have many plans and schemes, many ideas and devices for making the kingdom of God grow, but in the end repentance is the way, the only way.