Unreasonable Invitation Part 1

Message Review

Main points and scriptures from this week's message. 

The Bible says it’s impossible to please god without faith. But faith, many times, seems so unreasonable. It means to believe before we see, and that seems unreasonable.

The reality is we are following God's lead, for he has been so unreasonable with us. There is a parable that brings God's unreasonable love to life. It is called the parable of the great banquet. Jesus is having a meal and hanging out with Pharisees and lawyers and one of the lead Pharisee's home on the Sabbath when he told them this story.  

Luke 4:16–23 (NIV)
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.”

This seems like an unreasonable invitation. Have you ever been invited over to someone's hour for dinner? Imagine being invited to a really prominent person's house. (Bill Gates, Oprah, Justin Bieber, Bono, Taylor Swift, Pastor Kevin) The point that Jesus is making is that we have all been invited to God's house, but yet people make excuses, maybe not seeing the full greatness and opportunity of that invitation.

God leads the way by sharing his unreasonable invitation with us through Jesus, but he also is calling us to extend that unreasonable invitation to others. 

82% of unchurched people say they are likely to come to church if they were invited. 70% of unchurch people say they have never been invited by anyone to come to church. 

So here is the challenge to you: INVITE PEOPLE TO CHURCH!

4 aspects of the unreasonable invitation from the master:

1.) Don’t base your invitations on what seems reasonable.

Luke 4:21 (NIV)
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.”

2.) Don’t base your invitations on past experiences.

Luke 4:22 (NIV)
“Sir,” the servant said, “what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.”

3.) Stay committed to taking action in fresh ways. You never know how god will use a simple invitation.

Luke 4:23 (NIV)
Then the master told his servant, go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in . . .

4.) Never give up on the idea that the master wants to use your life story so that his house might be full.

Luke 4:23 (NIV)
. . . So that my house will be full.