Fields United Methodist Church

Thoughts Along the Way

Pastor Tom Joyce

February 18, 2022

“Then the owner of the house became angry and said to his slave, ‘go at once into the streets and lanes of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.”

Luke 14:21

In the Parable of the Great Dinner, those who were invited to the party made all sorts of excuses why they could not attend; they all seemed to have better things to do. Those who were invited to take their place did not feel they were in any way entitled and perhaps since society cast them to the margins of society, did not even expect to be invited in the first place.  The Kingdom of God is not interested in pedigree or status; all are welcomed, especially those who may believe they are not worthy of an invitation. The Good News, the really Good News, is that you are welcome to the celebration of God’s grace through Jesus the Christ. God loves you and wants you to be a part of this new life that is built on grace, mercy, joy, and peace. It is a life that casts no one to the margins and treats all people as the beloved of God, called by name to the party with a theme of loving God with your whole heart, mind, soul and strength and your neighbor as yourself.  You received an invitation long before you were born and all that is required is to “seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33) You have been blessed today with an invitation written by the very hand of God that is waiting to be accepted by you.