If the Kingdom of God is like a big feast, who can you invite?

Inviting people into relationship with God can seem intimidating. Evangelism can seem like such a big thing and it’s difficult to know where to start. Sometimes, however, the place to start is right where you are.

When we read about the Great Commission—“go and make disciples of all nations”—we can get focussed on the “all nations” part of it. But Jesus told a story one day while sitting at a dinner table with a group of religious leaders and it’s a reminder that nations are composed of small streets, alleys, roads and country lanes, full of people who need to hear God’s invitation.

The Story of the Great Banquet

There was a man who prepared a banquet and invited many people to attend. But when he sent his servant to bring in the guests, many had excuses for why they couldn’t come: one had just bought a field, another had just purchased oxen and another had just gotten married.

When the servant reported this back to his master, he was upset. He had this amazing feast to share, but those he invited didn’t want to come.

So the master sent his servant out into the city to invite the outcasts of society to the feast: the poor, crippled, blind and lame. When this was done, there was still room for more people at the feast. So the servant was sent out again into the surrounding countryside, to compel more and more people to come, so that the master’s house would be full.

“So the master sent his servant out into the city to invite the outcasts of society to the feast”

A Picture of the Kingdom of God

In this story from the Gospel of Luke, we see a picture of the Kingdom of God: an incredible banquet. We also see a number of people who respond to the invitation to the banquet in different ways.

We see people who are too distracted by their possessions or relationships. We see broken people looking for hope, love and acceptance who receive an unexpected invitation to God’s house. And we see a servant who sees that there is still room for more and goes out to invite even more people to the feast.

The servant is told to “go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town” and later to “go out to the roads and country lanes.” At Power to Change, we see those streets, alleys, roads and country lanes as different areas of the world. It is our mission to go out to each of these areas to invite people to know Jesus and experience His power to change the world.

Each of our ministries goes out to a different road to invite people to know Jesus: Athletes in Action invites athletes and coaches, Connecting Streams invites the marginalized in society, LeaderImpact invites business leaders.

“It is our mission to go out to each of these areas to invite people to know Jesus and experience His power to change the world.”

What is Your Road?
Maybe your road is your workplace and God is calling you to befriend and invite your coworkers. Maybe you have a hobby that connects you to people who would never go to church on their own, but they would if they were invited by a trusted friend. Or maybe it’s a family member that needs to hear about God’s invitation.
Perhaps there is a road that only you can reach, full of people that need to hear God’s invitation from someone with your unique life experiences.

Which street, alley, road or country lane will you reach with God’s invitation?

If you’re not sure how to start sharing God’s invitation, we can help! Get to know our ministries and find out how you can get involved in helping invite people to know Jesus or use our free online resources to invite people in your life.