The Parable of the Great Banquet

The Parable of the Great Banquet

We are also reminded of God's mercy and grace. Like the poor, crippled and lame, we are unworthy to feast in God's kingdom, yet he has invited us and we have been saved by Him.

What is the Relevance of the Parable to the People of our time?

What is the Relevance of the Parable to the People of Jesus' time?

Today, we don't have as many problems with people who are different from us. But, as always, we often find that we are busy doing work or are at school and getting tons of homework we often forget about God. Unlike the people in the parable who made excuses, we need to be like the others, the poor, crippled and lame, and make time for God in our lives.

The story starts off when a man says "Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God." This man would likely have been one of the many people who believed that only Jews could be part of the kingdom, and that he could expect to be one of them. Jesus takes this as an opportunity to teach that anyone and everyone is invited to the kingdom and to oppose the popular beliefs. He is making it clear to the people of his time, that all should be accepted and the kingdom is open to everyone, not just the Jews.

• Make time for God in our lives, remember to pray to Him and attend mass every week
• Accept everyone and make them feel that way (e.g. inviting others to sit with you at lunch)
• Help others (e.g. putting up chairs for the teacher)

How can we improve this in our everyday lives?

Thanks for Watching

How have the teachings in the parable affected me?

Society of St Vincent de Paul

The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul (SVdP) have shown a good example in their work that reflects the teachings of Jesus in this parable. They show this because they have accepted God's invitation into His kingdom and extend their own invitation of help to others by providing families with their spiritual and material needs (e.g. food parcels) and make time to volunteer their help. They accept and respect people as they are, striving to reach out to others and help them grow and flourish and always make time for God.

Jesus' teachings in this parable have given me a better understanding of him and have affected my life. As a student I know God wants to save everyone, including me, and because of this, I also know that he loves me and is watching over me. I try to always make time for God so that I may grow closer to him, by praying to him as grace before dinner and before bed, attending mass on Sundays and sometimes at school on Wednesdays. I also try to open myself up more to my school and the rest of the world and see the needs of others all over the world. I can send them my own invitation of help, even if is very simple - e.g. donating money at coin trail. It has also helped me because in school I have many fantastic friends, that treat me equally as I do to them, despite our differences in cultures, appearances, opinions and abilities.

Luke 14:15-24

When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one 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.’

“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.’

“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 compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”

Another message from the parable is that we ourselves must accept and help everyone, no matter how different they are.

In this parable, the master of the house represents God and the banquet represents the kingdom of God. When the invited guests made excuses not to come, it would have been very insulting, especially as they would of accepted the invitation originally (it was a custom to send our the invitations first so you knew how much food to prepare) and the excuses made were very bad - in the Middle East, no one buys land without first examining it, and that is the same with the oxen, and there is no reason why you can't go to a feast because you just got married.

The master then extends his invitation to people that would have been considered 'unclean'. Jesus is telling us that the Kingdom is available to even the 'unclean', not just the 'pure'. When there is still room at the banquet, the master wants every place to be taken so he tells his servant to go to everyone and invite them, telling us that God is willing to save everyone and give us a place in His kingdom.

Message of the Parable