A Celebration of Luke 14:7-24
When Jesus throws a party, he'd rather celebrate His creative genius through honoring His guests than being in the limelight himself. As a matter of fact, every person He sees carries enough unique potential in his or her being worthy of a real celebration. He is totally excited about spotlighting you at his party and anyone who may have been missed. Yes, the people who are most important to Him are usually at the fringe of the crowd or camouflaged in the shadows. He's just itching to show off His brilliant creativity through each one of them and to enjoy the warm smile of the Father over their lives. His best celebration is you! Why do you think He endures all the mess on this globe? Because He knows our potential and where we are headed. He knows our spiritual DNA, the genetic imprint of the divine upon us. It’s more than spectacular!
But I wonder if Jesus did throw a big shebang of a party, would we really show up? Remember, the party is all about enjoying Him through us and us because of Him! But might'nt we squabble for the best spots or, even worse, be too busy to realize we are already highly honored guests? It’s even more likely we'd forget to invite a few who attend the local children's outreach because their parents are drunks. Or, what about the lady down the street who has been divorced for three years because her husband used to beat her? She's still not very friendly, and frankly her frown is all we know about her. Those very folks may be our high dollar ticket to all the fun and feasting. Bringing the "unlikely" with us is a sure sign we understand what kind of party we are showing up to in the first place: it's about celebrating the Father's love over others. The more we do that, the more we get celebrated ourselves! That's why Jesus, who is putting on all the festivities, doesn't mind being the best servant to every guest there. The more He celebrates others, the more wild joy about who He is rocks the entire crowd. Have we ever considered a drug-addicted killer from a cartel in Mexico may be on God's Top 10 "Rescue and Love" list in Heaven? Let’s bring someone like that with us and watch the raging celebration erupt!
A Kingdom MLM works something like this: the more unlikely people you invite, the more God is able to highlight the work of His Most Famous Son in them. As we celebrate them, essentially honoring Jesus in them, it elevates our status as guests of honor. Then, all those folks bring their friends, and the party grows to be huge and the joy becomes massive. Because the Father’s palace is extremely spacious, the saying, “the more the merrier” fits well. And for every new reveler, some of their gladness and heaven's increase comes back to you! All of us introverts don't need to worry at the thought of crowds and noise…there are plenty of nooks and crannies and hidden garden alcoves if you'd rather have some quiet moments with a few friends. Papa God does His parties right.
Guests of honor are like Jesus: they celebrate others first. They come to serve, not to be served. They see the Father in the most unlikely. They live in a raging current of heaven's gladness!!
