Collected Sermons, great banquet
A SERMON OF D. MARTIN LVTHER, CONCERNING THE BIDDING OF GVESTS TO THE great ſupper.
Luke 14.
Verſe 16. A Certaine man made a great ſupper, and bad many.
17. And ſent his ſeruaunt at ſupper time to ſay to them that were bidden: Come, for all things are now ready.
18. But they all with one mind began to make excuſe: The firſt ſayd vntounto him, I hauehave bought a farme, and I muſt needes goe out and ſee it: I pray thee hauehave me excuſed.
19. And an other ſayd, I hauehave bought fiue yoke of oxen, and I go to proue them: I pray thee hauehave me excuſed.
20. And an other ſayd, I hauehave maried a wife, and therefore I can not come.
21. So that ſeruaunt returned, & ſhewed his maiſter theſe things: Then was the good man of the houſe angry, and ſayd to his ſeruaunt: Go out quickly into the ſtreetes & lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poore, & the maymed, and the halt, and the blinde.
22. And the ſeruaunt ſayd, Lord it is done as thou haſt commaunded, and yet there is roome.
23. Then the maiſter ſayd to the ſeruaunt: Go out into the hie wayes & hedges, & compel them to come in, that mine houſe may be filled.
24. For I ſaye vntounto you, that none of thoſe men which were bidden, ſhall taſt of my ſupper.
AS in the whole Scripture, ſo in this text alſo we muſt endeuour, that according to our abilitie (as ye hauehave often tymes hearde heretofore) we may vnderſtande the true and ſimple meaninge, and thereupon ſettle our harte and conſcience. For he that ſhall encounter with Satan, muſt not wauer and ſtagger this way and that way, but muſt be certayne of his cauſe, and inſtructed with manifeſt places of Scripture, otherwiſe when the Deuill ſhall by an vncertaine place of Scripture drawe him to his forke, he will toſſe him this way and that way, as the wynde dothe a drye leafe. Wherefore out of this text we muſt gather a certayne meaning, wherby we may perſiſt and ſtand ſure. Howbeit it is not to be vnderſtood of the reuerend Euchariſtie, or the bread of the Lordes table, although our Papiſtes hauehave miſerably wreſted it, as they hauehave done many other authorities of Scripture.The ſumme of the text. But this is the ſcope, this is ye ſumme of this text: that the Goſpell is preached and publiſhed through the whole world, but few receiue and embrace it. And it is therefore here called a ſupper, for that ye Goſpel muſt be the laſt word, which ſhall continue to the ende of the world. Wherfore the ſupper here is nothing els, but a very rich & ſumptuous feaſt, which God hath made through Chriſt by the Goſpell, which ſetteth before vsus great good things and rich treaſures. And he ſent his ſeruaunt to byd men to this ſumptuous ſupper. That is: The Apoſtles were altogither ſent with one word into ye whole world, that they might byd and call men to this ſupper, with one voyce, with one Goſpell, with one ambaſſade: after ſuch ſort, that if S. Peter had come, and preached the Goſpell of God in that place where Paule had preached it before, yet had it bene one worde, and the ſame preaching, that the hearers ſhould hauehave bene compelled to ſay: Behold he preacheth the ſame that we heard before of the other, they wholy conſent and agree, & the thinge that they publiſh is all one. That the Euangeliſt might inſinuate this conſent and agreement in preaching, he ſayth: He ſent his ſeruaunt, he ſayth not, his ſeruaunts, as of many. Nowe this meſſage the ſeruaunt muſt doe to the bidden gueſts:The meſſage which the ſeruaūt doth to the gueſts bidden to the great ſupper. Come, for all things are now ready. For Chriſt had ſuffered death, & in his death had ſlaine ſinne and death, alſo was riſen againe from death, the holy Ghoſt was giuen: & briefly all thinges were prepared which pertained vntounto that great ſupper. All things were ready without al our coſt. For the Father by Chriſt hath payd the price of all things, that without all our merit and labour we might enioy his goodnes, and be nouriſhed and enriched. He ſendeth his ſeruaunt therefore firſt to the Iewes, to byd them to this great ſupper, vntounto whom the promiſe was made of God. For the lawe and all the Prophets were directed hereunto, that they might prepare the people of God. As the Angel Gabriel declared of Iohn the Baptiſt to his father Zacharias Luke 1: He shall be filled with the holy Ghoſt euen from his mothers wombe, and many of the children of Iſraell shall he turne to their Lord God. For he shall goe before him in the ſpirit and power of Elias, to turne the harts of the fathers to the children, & the diſobedient to the wiſedom of the iuſt men, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord. But what did the gueſts aunſwere to the meſſage of the ſeruaunt? the text following declareth.
But they all with one minde began to make excuſe. This is that whereof the Lord ſpeaketh Matth. 10: He that loueth father or mother more then me, is not worthy of me. And he that loueth ſonne or daughter more then me, is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his croſſe, & followeth after me, What they muſt do that will be partakers of this great ſupper.is not worthy of me. For he that will be partaker of this ſupper, muſt put all thinges into daunger for the Goſpells ſake, body, goods, wife, children, frendes, &c. Moreouer he muſt leaue all thinges whatſoeuer they be, that ſeparate him from the Goſpell, albeit they ſeeme good, iuſt, right, & holy. Neither thinke ye that theſe mē which here excuſe them ſelues, were gilty of grieuous ſinnes, or occupied about vniuſt matters and works. For it is not vniuſt to bie, to vſe trade of marchandize, to maintaine him ſelfe honeſtly, to marie a wife, to be ioyned in matrimonie. But therefore can they not come to this ſupper, for that they will not forſake theſe thinges, but will rather cleaue to them in their hart. Nowe they muſt be vtterly forſaken and left, when the Goſpell ſo requireth. Thou wilt perhaps ſay: I would in deede willingly follow the Goſpell, I would cleaue vntounto it, & doe all other things whatſoeuer, but to forſake goods, houſes, familie, wife, children, &c: ſurely this is a hard matter. God hath commaūded me to labour, to maintaine my wife and children, &c. Beholde therefore this is the ſcope and ſumme, that the Goſpell is the worde of faith and offence, becauſe of which eueryevery faithfull man doth beare offence willingly. In deede God hath willed thee to doe theſe thinges, howbeit he hath alſo commaunded, that thou preferre him before all creatures, and louelove him aboue all thinges, and thinke him higher then all thinges which thou canſt know, euen as the chiefe and greateſt commaundement giueth vsus to vnderſtande: Thou shalt louelove the Lord thy God with all thy hart, with all thy ſoule, with all thy minde, Deut. 6. Wherefore thou muſt forſake all thinges before thou ſuffer thy ſelfe to be pluckt away from the louelove of him, or his worde: although in deede he loſeth nothing, which forſaketh any thinge for the Goſpells ſake. If for the Goſpells ſake thou loſe this temporall life, God will giuegive thee an other farre better, to wit, eternall life, as Chriſt ſayth Matth. 10: He that will finde his life, shall loſe it, and he that loſeth his life for my ſake, shall finde it. If thou be compelled to forſake thy wife togither with thy children, remember that God hath a care of them, he will be a better father vntounto them then thy ſelfe, which vndoutedly commeth to paſſe, if ſo be thou beleeue. For we hauehave very great & rich promiſes that he wil not ſuffer his word to fail, but will alwayes fulfill it, if we can freely and confidently truſt in him, and commit our ſelues wholy vntounto him. Chriſt ſayth after this ſort Matth. 19: VVhoſoeuer shall forſake houſes, or brethren, or ſiſters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or landes, for my names ſake, he shall receiue an hundreth folde more, and shall inherit euerlaſting life. We hauehave here his words and promiſe: what would we hauehave more? or what can we deſire more? wherein therefore doe we fayle? onelyonly in our faith. Wherfore no man commeth to this ſupper,A ſound faith required in the gueſts of this ſupper. but he that bringeth with him a ſincere faith, which God preferreth and loueth aboue all creatures. But how doth the Lord recompenſe them which excuſed them ſelues that they could not come to the ſupper? The text it ſelfe declareth.
Then vvas the good man of the houſe angry, and ſayd to his ſeruaunt: Goe out quickly into the ſtreetes and lanes of the citie, and bring in hither the poore, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. The Goſpell was firſt to be preached to the Iewes who becauſe they refuſed it, the Apoſtles turned to the Gentiles.To goe into the ſtreetes and lanes is nothing elſe, but that whereas the Iewes made themſelues vnworthy of the Goſpell, and did refuſe it, the Diſciples turned to the Gentiles. For it was enioyned them of Chriſt, that they ſhoulde not turne them ſelues to the Gentiles, nor preach the kingdom of God in the cities of the Samaritanes, but ſhould goe onelyonly to the ſheepe of the houſe of Iſraell, and ſhould feede them onelyonly, as they did. Now the Iewes ſtriuing againſt this worde, and by no meanes receiuing it, the Diſciples ſayd, Act. 13: It was neceſſary that the word of God should firſt hauehave bin ſpoken vntounto you: but ſeeing ye put it from you and iudge your ſelues vnworthy of euerlaſting life, lo, we turne to the Gentiles: for ſo hath the Lord cō maunded vsus, ſaying: I hauehave made thee a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldeſt be the ſaluation vntounto the ende of the world. But what meaneth that which he ſayth moreouer to ye ſeruaunt?
Goe out into the hie wayes and hedges, and compell them to come in, that myne houſe may be filled. This is to be vnderſtood of deſperat and weake conſciences, which alſo pertaine vntounto this ſupper, and are compelled vntounto it,What it is to compell to come in. but this compulſion is not outward, but inward and ſpirituall, and is done after this ſort. When the law is preached, ſinne is ſet before our eyes and reuealed, that a man may come to knowledge of him ſelfe, ſo that to compel, to enter or come in, doth rightly ſignifie, to driue ſinne into the conſcience, wherby a man may know that he is nothing, that all his workes are ſinnes, and ſubiect to damnation, and ſo ſodainly his conſcience may become deſperate, and his hart faint and terrified, that all that confidence and opinion of helpe may depart, and man him ſelfe be able no where to comfort him ſelfe in any thinge, and at the laſt be driuen to deſpeire of him ſelfe. If ſo be that one be once after this ſort compelled, then doe not long delay to let him come in, but deliuer the man out of deſperation. That commeth to paſſe, when thou comforteſt him by the Goſpell, and declareſt that he is deliuered from his ſinnes, ſaying: Beleeue in Chriſt, that he hath made thee free from thy ſinnes, then ſhalt thou be deliuered and free from ſinne. And this is the meaning of that which he ſayth: Compell them to come in. It is not to be vnderſtoode of outwarde compulſion, as ſome interprete it, that wicked and vngodly ones ſhoulde be violently driuen to the ſupper, for this preuayleth nothing, neyther is it ſo meant in this place. Wherefore it is to be referred onelyonly to the conſcience, and is inwarde and ſpirituall. Nowe he goeth on to ſpeake to the ſeruaunte and the reſt.
For I ſay vntounto you, that none of thoſe men which were bidden, shall taſt of my ſupper. This is the concluſion, that they which thinke themſelues moſt certaine that they ſhall come to the ſupper, and taſt of it, ſhall not taſt of it: The reaſon ye hauehave heard. Now briefly the gueſts that are bidden and do not come, are they, which thinke that they ſhall obtaine the ſupper by their owne workes, verie much wearying themſelues, thinking aſſuredly, that they ſhall taſt of it.Why they that were bidden ſhall not taſt of the ſupper. But the Lord mightely concludeth and ſayth: Not one of theſe men ſhall taſt of my ſupper. Wherefore moſt gentle Lord? They hauehave cōmitted no wicked thinge, neither hauehave bin occupied about vniuſt matters. Behold, this is the reaſon, for that they hauehave forſaken fayth, and hauehave not confeſſed it freely before euerie one, neither hauehave preferred that rich and ſumptuous ſupper before all creatures. For ſeeing it is ſumptuous, it requireth thoſe men that do iudge it to be ſo, and do put any thinge in daunger, what ſoeuer it be, that they may be partakers of it. Thus ye hauehave the compendious meaning of this text, which I hauehave onelyonly briefly runne ouer, if any will expound it more at large, I am well content he ſo do.