Having enough time with God in 2017

Luke 14:12 – 24

I. Wise Inviter (12 – 14)

In Luke 14:12 – 14, Jesus teaches us to be a wise inviter.

See v12.

¹² Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid.

Then who should we invite?

Jesus asks us “invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind” (13).

The reason is written in v14.

¹⁴ and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

II. The Parable of the Great Banquet (15 – 24)

Here the Great Banquet represents the feast in the Kingdom of God (15).

Interestingly, the parable in Luke 14:15-24 shows how the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame were invited to & attended a great banquet. It was because originally invited guests rejected the invitation.

Why did they reject the invitation? They had different excuses.

One have just bought a field (18).

One have just bought five yoke of oxen (19).

One have just got married (20).

Here, they didn’t say they would be late, but they wouldn’t come at all. They look like good & practical reasons. But the field, oxen, and marriage would be still there after first attending the banquet! They were excuses!! The world mattered so much to them and they rejected the salvation from God.

By rejecting the invitation,

First of all, they rejected God’s gracious Salvation.

It is greater value than anything in the world. It was God who invites them. But people’s priority was in the world, all their resource was spent and then, they said no time with God. It is the greatest mistake to refuse God and His Salvation (21).

Second, they disqualified themselves to attend the great banquet (24).

They all implied they would attend if they were not as busy (18 – 20). In their point of view, they would get other chances to attend a great banquet. But the Bible says,

²⁴ I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”

How terrible warning is this! Many people in the world would belong to this category due to excuses and delay originated from their wrong priority in life.

SUMMARY & CONCLUSION

People may have many reasons to refuse invitation from God as shown in verses 18 – 20.  But the Bible says they are “excuses”.

As for students, they are busy for assignments, tests, exams or part-time works. Depending on universities, they could be too busy, especially if they are taking full-time work load.

But, “I do not have enough time for God” is merely an “EXCUSE”.

Really what they do not have enough is “God’s love between them”. They are naughty and unfair in group projects. Basically, they are not truly helping each other. Also, they tend to help each other only between people from the same nation. God’s love can break the barriers between nations. And we should break them with God’s love.

Imagine a person who is not saved is busy and gets no time to think of God and His Salvation for him. How miserable and how terrible situation it is!

To create more time with God, students got to help each other with God’s true love. They can create study group and sincerely help each other in each course. Otherwise no one could get the best possible mark for each course because they don’t have enough time basically. In highly demanding universities, students need 8 days of study per week to complete 4 courses in a semester, but they have only 7 days per week. They are tested indirectly on their team work, group study and cooperation. Good team work, group study and cooperation will be only successful if with God’s love to each other. Therefore, in universities, students need to learn “God’s love” the most. If then, should they say “I don’t have enough time to study the Bible”? God’s love is written in the Bible and they need the Bible study the most rather than challenging 8 days of study load to do in 7 days weekly alone.

In reality, students are experiencing naughtiness, evil, and unfairness at school. They find themselves in situations far, far from God’s love. And again, schools need God’s love. When they experience such things, they can project how their life in future in the society after school would be like. And again, the world needs God’s love. There are good people sown by the Son of God and bad people sown by the devil in the world (Matthew 13:24-30, 13:36-43). So, bad people will be bad and haters will hate. I would prefer to form a group with good people rather than trying to change bad people after joining any group.

It would be an option to study 3 courses per semester or part-time to solve the problem of “Not enough time with God”, if this option is available. If this option is not available, and group study or team work in God’s love can’t be assumed, too many hours of study may be required. It could affect the health (Ecclesiastes 12:12b). And, also similar things could happen, that Simon (Peter) worked extraordinarily hard to catch fish all night, he caught none (Luke 5:5). And life is unpredictable (Ecclesiastes 9:11, 12) because it is up to God’s hand, which humans cannot truly comprehend (Ecclesiastes 8:17).

Let us not neglect our God-given values (life, innocence, salvation, …) while pursuing world-promising values. Uni graduators may certainly live better lives in the world. But the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame could be better off due to their humility (to accept God’s gracious offer of Salvation).