FEASTS OM JESUS' DAY
Most of Luke 14 deals with the subject of giving and going to a feast - the biggest and best time of partying known to the 1st Century. This is especially true for a time where only wealthy people (less than 5%) could afford meat on a regular basis.
I think Jesus' hearers were amazed that anyone would turn down the opportunity of getting good food. But Jesus told a parable of a bunch of people who did just that. Today it would be like people turning down a free-no strings attached-vacation to anywhere in the world. Jesus said there is this fantastic once in a lifetime opportunity to go to a feast that everybody in real life would not think twice in going to, and those who were invited all made up excuses to get out of it.
THE LESSON
Jesus used this as an illustration of God's invitation for us to enter into and serve in the kingdom of God. But like those who gave excuses to skip out of the feast, people today (as in Jesus' day) allow life's responsibilities to keep them from entering into God's invitation.
Jesus saw that when we buy things, we become responsible for their upkeep and for using those things. Jesus also knew that when we get married, we bring in new responsibilities that also distract us from God's call. These distractions keep people out of following Him and out of eternity.
They are not evil in and of themselves, but the distraction can be.
Jesus' followers were poor and landless people, who were either single or were willing to step away from their families long enough to walk with him. His followers had few if any committments that kept them from following him. Those who had commitments to land or family could not or would not follow him.
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