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Sharing the Banquet by Peter L. DeGroote |
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Notes for Bible Talk: October 19, 2005 Please read: Matthew 20: 1-13; Luke
14: 16-23 |
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Bible Talk is an informal discussion of
biblical passages, ideas, and related material. The discussions are on Wednesday evenings
at 7:30 pm, following the Service of Word and Table. Occasionally, they will
not be held due to special events. These Notes are intended to assist
participants in thinking about the passages and some of their implications
prior to the gathering. Usually, the Notes are prepared and the
discussion is led by Rev. Peter L. DeGroote The sources for biblical quotations are labeled as
follows: NRSV: The New Revised Standard Version, Copyright
©1989, The National Council of Churches of Christ in the SV: The Scholar’s
Version; i.e., The Five Gospels, The
Search for the Authentic Words of Jesus, Robert W. Funk and Roy W.
Hoover, and The Jesus Seminar, Copyright © 1993 by
Polebridge Press. TM: The Message, The New Testament in
Contemporary Language, Copyright © Eugene H. Peterson 1993. navpress, M: My paraphrase. |
1. The two
versions of this parable that we find in the gospels are much different, both
as to story and the way it is used. So, too, with another account that can be
found in early Christian sources that were not included in the Bible. Sorting
through the differences, the basic story seems to go as follows: A man prepared an elaborate
dinner party to which he had previously invited his friends and, according to
custom, when the food was nearly ready, sent a servant to tell them it was
time to eat. All of them canceled at the last minute saying they had
something more important to do. When the servant returned he told his master
that none of the guests could come. The master told the servant to go into
the streets and invite anyone he came across until his house was full. 2. From the
beginning, the interpretations of this parable have generally fallen into one
of three related categories. A. First, it is said that it
demonstrates God's rejection of any who reject Jesus, a variant adding that
those who did would be punished. B. A second is that it is
criticism of the wealthy; i.e., rich people had other things to do and were
unwilling to accept Jesus' invitation. C. A third was its use as a
criticism of those Jews who failed to accept Jesus' invitation to "God's
banquet." This too involved the threat of ultimate punishment. Each of
these interpretations is incorporated in one of the versions of the parable
we find in scripture and other sources, reflecting how different points of
view worked their way into the writing of the gospels. 3. Parables
are interpreted in relation to the circumstances and events of the time. The
three general interpretations described above reflect the difficulty early
Christians experienced in sharing their faith and the oppression experienced
by the early church. There has been a tendency to continue these defensive
interpretations because they claim Christian superiority over others;
sometimes over people of other faiths, sometimes over people of other
Christian denominations, and sometimes over those who have no religion at
all. 4. It would
be well to keep in mind the circumstances and events of Jesus' own time to
understand the significance of the parable. The society of his day was in
turmoil. Among those who hated the dominance of 5. Within
this cacophony of voices, Jesus did two things. A. First, he chose to be baptized
by John the Baptist, thus identifying himself with the long prophetic
tradition. B. Second, he went beyond
John the Baptist. Agreeing with John the Baptist that repentance or changing
our ways of living was necessary, he added that the kingdom every one was
speaking about was already here—that it was possible to live in harmony with
God under any circumstance. 6. In light
of these teachings, the parable has a more subtle meaning. We might put
ourselves into the place of the man having the dinner. The dinner represents
the table around which Jesus invited all to share in God's kingdom or
community. Having discovered this great "feast" of living in
harmony with God, we want to share it with others, particularly with our
friends and people of influence who can help spread the message. Much to our
surprise and chagrin, they are not interested. What to do? We share the
message with those who will hear, we invite anyone who will come to gather
around the "banquet" table. When you think about it, doesn’t that
seem to be the way Jesus lived? Peter L. DeGroote |
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