Why ‘Good People’ Miss the Kingdom of God

It’s surprising—baffling, really—that religious people are the group that misses Jesus more than any other.

We see this quite clearly in Luke 14, when Jesus tells a parable about a huge party. When the master’s invitation was met with a series of excuses, the master does the unthinkable: He fills his lavish party with the dregs of society. Then, Jesus delivers the punch: “For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet’” (Luke 14:24).

Up until this point, he’s been telling a story, but now he shows it’s personal to him. He’s the Master in this story, and those sitting in front of him are the ones making the excuses.

This parable is Jesus’ summation of Israel’s response to him: God had invited them to his kingdom, and they had (on the surface) accepted, but now they are making excuses as to why they can’t come.

These are really religious people, of course—they had accepted the first invitation and considered themselves God’s people. But now that Jesus is here and inviting them to follow him, they won’t respond.

This parable shows us three reasons religious or “good” people miss the kingdom of God.... Read More