“So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’ And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’ Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’” Luke 14:21-24
Who were the ones that the master said would never taste his supper? It was those who, when bidden to come, began to make excuses. One said he had bought some land and needed to see it. Another had some new oxen he said he needed to work. And one said he had married a wife and couldn’t come. I remember a comment I read on that last excuse one time. The wife told her husband, “I don’t have anything to wear!” I’m not sure that was the reason, but the fact is that all of them were invited to come but they made excuses.
People are still making excuses today and spurn the invitations that the Lord extends to come and worship him and serve in his kingdom. I saw an article this week with the headline: “Religious ‘Nones’ Are Now the Single Largest Group in the U.S.” According to recent surveys: “When Americans are asked to check a box indicating their religious affiliation, 28% now check ‘none.’ A new study from Pew Research finds that the religiously unaffiliated – a group comprised of atheists, agnostic and those who say their religion is ‘nothing in particular’ – is now the largest cohort in the U.S. They’re more prevalent among American adults than Catholics (23%) or evangelical Protestants (24%).”
Back in 2007, Nones made up just 16% of Americans, but the new survey of more than 3,300 U.S. adults shows that number has now risen dramatically. When asked what – if anything – they believe researchers found that Nones are not a uniform group. While most Nones believe in God or another higher power, very few attend any kind of religious service. They aren’t all anti-religious. Most Nones say religion does some harm, but many also think it does some good. Most have more positive views of science than those who are religiously affiliated; however, they reject the idea that science can explain everything.
Over the years I have heard various excuses that Nones have made. One of excuses that is often heard is that there are too many hypocrites in the church. The glaring fact is that there are hypocrites everywhere, at church, in the little league, in community service organizations, at work, and countless other places. When we boil it all down, it is just an excuse. We are still buying land, testing oxen, and marrying wives. But do we believe what the master said? “None of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.”
In the context of this story, the ones who had been invited represented the Jewish people and the ones from the streets and lanes represented the Gentiles. However, the basic principles in this story are still valid no matter what our ethnic, social, or economic status. While excuses may salve our consciences to some degree, they are still just rationalizations for ignoring God’s claims on our lives. Our prayer is that many of the Nones will turn into the Somes who hear the word of God and do it (Matt. 7:21-28).
L Scott Gage