“Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the highways and the hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.” Luke 14:23
I was blessed with the opportunity to attend an Operation Christmas Child Conference this past weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina. The massive OCC processing center was filled with volunteers from across the country, including individuals from as far away as North Pole, Alaska, Germany, Australia, South Korea, and Africa. Being surrounded by hundreds of Believers in worship and studying the Word under the guidance of gifted and wise leaders is truly one of my happy places. I left feeling refreshed, energized, and incredibly humbled to be a tiny part of the Operation Christmas Child ministry.
At the conference opening, we were encouraged to memorize Luke 14:23 and had numerous opportunities throughout our time together to practice it in unison. In this parable (Luke 14:12-24), a man planned a large banquet and sent out invitations. When the banquet was about to start, the servant contacted each guest, but they all provided absurd and flimsy excuses for not attending. When the master heard these unacceptable excuses, he became outraged and told the servant to “go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame” (vs 21). However, the servant had already gathered the downtrodden townspeople, and there was still room at the table. So, he was sent on a broader search to the highways and the hedges. The word “compel” does not mean to force in this case, but rather to urge or firmly persuade someone to come to the feast. The master is dissatisfied with empty seats and wants every spot at the table to be filled. The master of the house symbolizes God, and the great banquet represents the Kingdom of God. Most theologians agree that the initial invitees were the Jews, who rejected Jesus with laughable and invalid excuses. Thus, the invitation was extended to the downtrodden or “unclean” of the day, and beyond that to the highways and hedges, symbolizing the Gentiles. Christ flung open the doors to the banquet so that all may join and have the opportunity to repent, believe in Him, and be saved. John MacArthur comments on this fact, stating, “God is more willing to save sinners than sinners are to be saved.” And that is where we, as Believers, come in.
We are the servants. We have the honor and privilege of telling everyone why they don’t want to miss the feast. We are called to go to the highways and hedges and be persuasive. Missions and evangelism take many forms, and as long as the ultimate goal is to present Jesus front and center and share the Good News, we remain true to our calling. I listened to adult speakers who, as children, were shoebox recipients, receiving a copy of The Greatest Gift in their language, sharing how the course of their lives changed both here and for eternity. They had never received a gift and had never been shown love. They had never encountered Jesus. As children, they lived on the streets—on the highways—and were the downtrodden. Now, they feast at the King’s table! That’s why we share God’s love. That’s why we tell people about Jesus and share the plan of salvation, so that “those who are called will receive the promised eternal inheritance” (Heb 9:15).
The picture is one of hundreds of photos of shoebox recipients placed in the seats during the conference. This one was at my seat. I know that when the little boy opened the box, he was filled with joy and excitement, but the box was just a pathway to the folded hands of prayer. Jesus is the most precious gift that can ever be received. And that’s your Tuesday Tidbit.