为何没有更多人得救？
路加福音十四章15至24节
15同席的有一人听见这话，就对耶稣说：在神国里吃饭的有福了！
16耶稣对他说：有一人摆设大筵席，请了许多客。
17到了坐席的时候，打发仆人去对所请的人说：请来罢！样样都齐备了。
18众人一口同音的推辞。头一个说：我买了一块地，必须去看看。请你准我辞了。
19又有一个说：我买了五对牛，要去试一试。请你准我辞了。
20又有一个说：我才娶了妻，所以不能去。
21那仆人回来，把这事都告诉了主人。家主就动怒，对仆人说：快出去，到城里大街小巷，领那贫穷的、残废的、瞎眼的、瘸腿的来。
22仆人说：主阿，你所吩咐的已经办了，还有空座。
23主人对仆人说，你出去到路上和篱笆那里，勉强人进来，坐满我的屋子。
24我告诉你们，先前所请的人，没有一个得尝我的筵席。
信息分享
这一句话，触发耶稣讲了一个比喻作为回应。耶稣的比喻可以这样总括地说：能够永远与神在一起确实是好得无比；可惜，那些获得邀请去参加神的筵席的人，却总是用各种借口去推辞，实在非常可悲。
怎么有人连神的筵席都拒绝参加？我们实在感到万分费解。他们究竟有甚么重要理由，要推辞赴会呢？
我要赶着去看一件珍贵的东西(18节)。
我要赶着去办一件要事(19节)。
我要首先享受人生(20节)。
今天，当我们邀请人去接受基督的时候，岂不经常听到他们用类似的借口来推辞吗？经过了二千多年，人性始终没有多大分别，你说是吗？
摆设筵席的主人怎么说呢？他吩咐他的仆人说：「快出去，到城里的大街小巷，领人来享受我的筵席」。他的仆人立即出去，积极地邀请人来。
当人拒绝去接受基督时，我们会怎样做呢？我们是否放弃，不再尝试邀请其他人呢？抑或，我们会说：「没关系，我会再去邀请其他人，我相信始终有人会接受的。」然后便再接再励地去出去邀请人赴会？
基督期望我们出去邀请任何人和所有人。谁有此荣幸，可以代表主人出去邀请人赴席呢？就是你和我了。我们究竟有没有听从主人的吩咐，四处向人发出邀请呢？神已摆设了救恩的筵席，等候人前来分享；让我们加紧努力去邀请所有人去享受这筵席吧！
牢记：神不愿意一人沉沦，祂只愿人人悔改得救。
WHY AREN'T MORE PEOPLE SAVED?
Luke 14: 15 - 24
15 Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
16 Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many,
17 and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’
18 But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’
19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’
20 Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’
21 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.’
22 And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’
23 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.
24 For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’”
Message
At the beginning of this chapter we find Jesus in the home of one of the Pharisees. (They were leaders of the Jewish people.) There had been quite a lot of teaching as well as a miracle (v.4). At the end of the meal one man spoke up and said, 'Well I think it would be wonderful to have the privilege of being with you for ever'.
Jesus replied with another parable which could be summered up like this. Yes it would be wonderful to be with God forever, but the tragedy is that those who are invited to God's table don't always accept the invitation.
In the story Jesus told it seems hard to believe that those invited would not come to the feast. What were their excuses?
1. I've got something else I want to see (v.18).
2. I've got something else I want to do (v.19).
3. I've got something else I want to enjoy (v.20).
Aren't those some of the excuses people use today when they are invited to accept Christ? Human nature hasn't changed very much in 2,000 years, has it?
What did the man giving the feast say? 'I want people to come and enjoy my feast … Go out and get them wherever you can.' And that is what they did.
When people refuse to accept Christ, what do we do? Do we give up trying to invite anyone else? Or do we say, 'All right, there are others who will accept' and go after them?
Christ wants us to invite anyone, everyone. Who has the privilege of inviting them? You and I do. Are we really doing it? The feast of salvation is waiting for all those who are willing to come. Let's do our part in inviting them.
REMEMBER:
God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.