Confirmation of Gracen Lee Dunn
Proverbs 9:1-10/Ephesians 2:13-22/St Luke 14:15-24
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
There is a dark side to the Gospel. Everyone is invited, but not everyone comes. Some, mainly in ignorance, love darkness. They insist on going their own way. But for all that, it rarely seems as though they love darkness. It seems as though they love fields and cattle and wives. They don’t claim to be hostile toward God, but they aren’t joiners. Sunday is their only day to sleep in. They had a bad experience once with a pushy lady in a church, someone was rude to them, and now they can never go back. They prefer to worship god in their own way at their own convenience. Ah, the wisdom of the world! Don’t be fooled, it is love of darkness.
But it’s hard to know just how to respond to such excuses. In the parable we see the Law in full force: the Master of the House, that is, the Lord, God the Father, is angry. None of those who rejected the invitation will every taste the banquet. They will be cast into the abyss where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.
We ought to note that our Lord told another version of this parable, recorded by St Matthew. It is not just a banquet, but a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. And the invitation is extended more than once. So to here for St Luke, though more hidden. The man first invited many. Then sent out his servant to tell those invited, Come, for everything is now ready. That’s the second invitation. They had already RSVP’d they’d be there. But when the time came, they all had excuses.
For us, we do sometimes keep trying to talk people into faith, repeatedly sharing the Gospel with them, inviting them; but usually we just accept their excuses. We act as though there is a legitimacy to what they say. As if other things - vacation or work or family - really do matter more than the Banquet of God’s Son. The First Commandment is still binding; but its just easier and more comfortable to let it go. There is a danger here, though. To refuse the invitation is to love darkness. It sounds harsh and negative, but table fellowship with Jesus is a two-edged sword of blessing and judgment.
Anyway, its not the main point of the parable. After all, in a sense, it seems obvious that those with options will reject the Kingdom. How difficult it is for those with wealth to enter the Kingdom of God! The invitation goes out to the poor, the crippled, the blind and lame. Only not in their homes, but out on the streets, in the by-ways. It goes out to those who were far off and those who were near. It goes out to beggars. They can’t turn down a free meal. They truly need what the Lord offers.
And the servant said, “Lord, what You commanded has been done, and still there is room.” And thanks be to God for that! That after the poor and crippled and blind and lame, after the dregs and outcastes, there is still room in the Kingdom at the banquet Table for the likes of us!
We are all beggars. We bring nothing to the Kingdom. The party is not more interesting for your arrival. In a sense, we are a drain on the Kingdom’s resources. To be sure they are never depleted! But we aren’t soldiers. We aren’t landowners. We aren’t wise. We are neither morally nor ceremonially pure. We are not ethically clean. We weren’t born of the right mother. We don’t belong in any king’s house, let alone the King of the Universe and the God of Abraham. We are beggars, the poor, the lame, the blind.
But we are invited. Come to Me, ye who are weary, and I shall give you rest. Whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.
The Father delights in you. He has fattened up His own Son to die for you. Roasted Him on the fire of His wrath. Forsaken Him in order to have you. Now, in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility. And the Spirit Himself has interceded on your behalf, found you in your mother’s arms, naked and helpless, screaming in selfish absorption, and at the Baptismal font named you as His own.
Or else He found you in some other place. On a university campus full of despair and loneliness, at a summer youth camp, wherever you were, He came and took you by the ear to Baptism. He scoured the world, the highways and by-ways, for the disenfranchised, the weary, the sinful. He brought us, beggars all, to the King. But not to be slaves or entertainment. Ugly and dirty as we were, He brought us to be the Bride. He has prepared this feast for our salvation. Many will come from east and west and sit with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. You are His beloved, His Church, His Bride. He is gentle and lowly in heart. He does not force Himself on anyone or use them for His pleasure. He loves you and finds you lovely. Thus does His cry go out; though some reject and hate Him and love the darkness, foolishly professing a wisdom that is not wise.
But the foolishness of the Kingdom is wiser than the wisdom of men. And true Wisdom has built her house, founded upon the apostles and prophets, Christ crucified Himself being the Cornerstone. As it is written, To those who are called, Christ the Wisdom of God.
For the glory of the Kingdom is grace. It is wasted on those who think they deserve it. Only the sick need a Physician. Jesus receives and eats with sinners only. No holy people are allowed. God’s majesty will not be robbed. He will not share with other gods, being merely the best or the highest god in a pantheon. He is the only God and He is jealous.
So also He will not share His power. He saves by His power alone, even Jesus Christ and Him crucified, the Kingdom of heaven in the flesh of man, breaking into this sin-darkened world to call beggars to Himself. Thus does the invitation continue to go out. And we rejoice today with all beggars at the feast over His dear child Gracen, welcomed to the Banquet of the Son. She is blessed in the here and now in the eating of the Bread of Life; the Father having given her His Spirit so that by His grace she believes His holy Word and lead a godly life here in time and there in eternity.
So it is for all who have heeded the invitation. Beggars declared children. Outcasts given a seat at the table. He eats only with fools and sinners. What is wrong with out fallen ears that that sound like damning law to us? It is pride. We want our part. We want control. We want honor. But here is our hope and confidence: By grace you have been saved, through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is a gift of God, not the result of works, so that no one may boast (Eph 2:8-9). And elsewhere, Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord (1 Cor 1:31).
To be a beggar before God, to have nothing and receive everything by His fatherly hand, is the greatest joy on earth and in heaven. Indeed, fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. May God in His mercy preserve this doctrine and joy among us. Come, eat of His Bread and drink of His Wine, everything is now ready.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Proverbs 9:1-10/Ephesians 2:13-22/St Luke 14:15-24
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
There is a dark side to the Gospel. Everyone is invited, but not everyone comes. Some, mainly in ignorance, love darkness. They insist on going their own way. But for all that, it rarely seems as though they love darkness. It seems as though they love fields and cattle and wives. They don’t claim to be hostile toward God, but they aren’t joiners. Sunday is their only day to sleep in. They had a bad experience once with a pushy lady in a church, someone was rude to them, and now they can never go back. They prefer to worship god in their own way at their own convenience. Ah, the wisdom of the world! Don’t be fooled, it is love of darkness.
But it’s hard to know just how to respond to such excuses. In the parable we see the Law in full force: the Master of the House, that is, the Lord, God the Father, is angry. None of those who rejected the invitation will every taste the banquet. They will be cast into the abyss where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.
We ought to note that our Lord told another version of this parable, recorded by St Matthew. It is not just a banquet, but a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. And the invitation is extended more than once. So to here for St Luke, though more hidden. The man first invited many. Then sent out his servant to tell those invited, Come, for everything is now ready. That’s the second invitation. They had already RSVP’d they’d be there. But when the time came, they all had excuses.
For us, we do sometimes keep trying to talk people into faith, repeatedly sharing the Gospel with them, inviting them; but usually we just accept their excuses. We act as though there is a legitimacy to what they say. As if other things - vacation or work or family - really do matter more than the Banquet of God’s Son. The First Commandment is still binding; but its just easier and more comfortable to let it go. There is a danger here, though. To refuse the invitation is to love darkness. It sounds harsh and negative, but table fellowship with Jesus is a two-edged sword of blessing and judgment.
Anyway, its not the main point of the parable. After all, in a sense, it seems obvious that those with options will reject the Kingdom. How difficult it is for those with wealth to enter the Kingdom of God! The invitation goes out to the poor, the crippled, the blind and lame. Only not in their homes, but out on the streets, in the by-ways. It goes out to those who were far off and those who were near. It goes out to beggars. They can’t turn down a free meal. They truly need what the Lord offers.
And the servant said, “Lord, what You commanded has been done, and still there is room.” And thanks be to God for that! That after the poor and crippled and blind and lame, after the dregs and outcastes, there is still room in the Kingdom at the banquet Table for the likes of us!
We are all beggars. We bring nothing to the Kingdom. The party is not more interesting for your arrival. In a sense, we are a drain on the Kingdom’s resources. To be sure they are never depleted! But we aren’t soldiers. We aren’t landowners. We aren’t wise. We are neither morally nor ceremonially pure. We are not ethically clean. We weren’t born of the right mother. We don’t belong in any king’s house, let alone the King of the Universe and the God of Abraham. We are beggars, the poor, the lame, the blind.
But we are invited. Come to Me, ye who are weary, and I shall give you rest. Whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.
The Father delights in you. He has fattened up His own Son to die for you. Roasted Him on the fire of His wrath. Forsaken Him in order to have you. Now, in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in His flesh the dividing wall of hostility. And the Spirit Himself has interceded on your behalf, found you in your mother’s arms, naked and helpless, screaming in selfish absorption, and at the Baptismal font named you as His own.
Or else He found you in some other place. On a university campus full of despair and loneliness, at a summer youth camp, wherever you were, He came and took you by the ear to Baptism. He scoured the world, the highways and by-ways, for the disenfranchised, the weary, the sinful. He brought us, beggars all, to the King. But not to be slaves or entertainment. Ugly and dirty as we were, He brought us to be the Bride. He has prepared this feast for our salvation. Many will come from east and west and sit with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. You are His beloved, His Church, His Bride. He is gentle and lowly in heart. He does not force Himself on anyone or use them for His pleasure. He loves you and finds you lovely. Thus does His cry go out; though some reject and hate Him and love the darkness, foolishly professing a wisdom that is not wise.
But the foolishness of the Kingdom is wiser than the wisdom of men. And true Wisdom has built her house, founded upon the apostles and prophets, Christ crucified Himself being the Cornerstone. As it is written, To those who are called, Christ the Wisdom of God.
For the glory of the Kingdom is grace. It is wasted on those who think they deserve it. Only the sick need a Physician. Jesus receives and eats with sinners only. No holy people are allowed. God’s majesty will not be robbed. He will not share with other gods, being merely the best or the highest god in a pantheon. He is the only God and He is jealous.
So also He will not share His power. He saves by His power alone, even Jesus Christ and Him crucified, the Kingdom of heaven in the flesh of man, breaking into this sin-darkened world to call beggars to Himself. Thus does the invitation continue to go out. And we rejoice today with all beggars at the feast over His dear child Gracen, welcomed to the Banquet of the Son. She is blessed in the here and now in the eating of the Bread of Life; the Father having given her His Spirit so that by His grace she believes His holy Word and lead a godly life here in time and there in eternity.
So it is for all who have heeded the invitation. Beggars declared children. Outcasts given a seat at the table. He eats only with fools and sinners. What is wrong with out fallen ears that that sound like damning law to us? It is pride. We want our part. We want control. We want honor. But here is our hope and confidence: By grace you have been saved, through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is a gift of God, not the result of works, so that no one may boast (Eph 2:8-9). And elsewhere, Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord (1 Cor 1:31).
To be a beggar before God, to have nothing and receive everything by His fatherly hand, is the greatest joy on earth and in heaven. Indeed, fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. May God in His mercy preserve this doctrine and joy among us. Come, eat of His Bread and drink of His Wine, everything is now ready.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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