Korea got its first freezing weather last week, as sudden drop in temperature brought icy conditions to Seoul last Tuesday.  According to the Korean Weather Bureau, the winter arrived in Korea much faster than the average due to the El Ni-no phenomenon.  People of Korea will start preparing for winter by stocking up on fuel and making big batches of winter kimchee. 

 For those of us who live in Texas, we don’t worry about winter too much.  For those who live in the northern part of this country, winter can prove to be a big hassle, as snow and freezing temperatures more often than not prove to be a nuisance.  People who live in cold climate have to spend more money on fuel and winter clothing.  Driving on ice and snow is no easy task, either.

 For numerous reasons, those us who live in Texas should be thankful that we don’t experience cold climate like people in Korea and northern part of this country do.  To be able to walk around in short-sleeved shirts in the middle of the winter!  This alone gives us the real taste of living in Texas.

 Despite all this, winter will arrive in Texas as well.  No matter how short its duration, no matter that it does not snow, no matter how temperate the climate may be, winter will arrive in Texas.  We need to prepare for winter.  During winter, we will not be able to do some of those things that we took for granted in summer and spring.  Winter signals the end of a year.  And in winter, we will surely regret the things that we planned to do but failed to do during the warm seasons of the year.

 Among the many fables of Aesop, there is a story called “The Ant and the Grasshopper.”  The ant works hard throughout the scorching summer, shedding much sweat.  It was to prepare for the upcoming winter.  The grasshopper, on the other hand, rests and sings underneath a shade tree, hardly breaking a sweat.  The winter undoubtedly arrived.  The grasshopper, out of food to eat, visits the ant to beg for food.  The ant, which disliked the lazy grasshopper, refused to give him food.  The story ends with the grasshopper starving to death.  The moral of the story is work when you can, before the winter arrives when you can no longer work.

 Take a look at the beginning portion of today’s scripture, which comes from 2 Timothy 4: 21.  “Do your best to come before winter.”  Paul is asking Timothy, who read this letter in Ephesus, to come quickly to Rome, where Paul himself was confined.  The Second Epistle of Timothy is a letter that Paul wrote to Timothy, his son in faith and young brother-in-arms, while imprisoned for the second time in Rome under Emperor Nero’s great persecution of Christians.  While writing this letter, Paul understood that his end was near (see 2 Timothy 1: 8, 16 & 4: 6-8).  In a cold, barren Roman prison cell as the winter approached Paul wrote this letter while preparing himself for the worst.

 Why did Paul ask Timothy to come to him before the winter?

​According to the legend, not long after he sent this letter to Timothy, Paul was martyred near the southern gate of Rome.  He was beheaded at the ‘Tre Fontane,’ or a new spring of underground water.  We can assume that Paul, sensing that his death was near, wanted to see Timothy for the last time.  Furthermore, most of the fellow disciples and colleagues of Paul with the exception of physician Luke abandoned Paul during his darkest hour (see 2 Timothy 4: 11 & 16).  Lonely Paul, facing a certain death and no one to turn to, probably wanted to see his loving prodigy, Timothy.

 But it was very difficult to travel through the ancient Mediterranean during winter.  It was difficult enough to travel over land; yet, traveling through sea proved very perilous.  It was a journey that people risked their lives to make.  According to Acts 28: 11, Paul and his companions once spent over three months at Malta waiting for winter to pass.  Traveling through sea during winter was that dangerous.

 In the fall of 60 A.D, Paul and his group, while traveling through the island of Crete (Acts 27: 8-12) runs into a violent seasonal windstorm called ‘Eurakylon’ (word meaning northeastern wind, from the Greek word ‘euros,’ meaning eastern winds and the Latin word ‘aquilos,’ meaning northern wind).  All of them almost lost their lives because of this wind.  Barely surviving the violent windstorm, the group lands at Malta.  The winter season had already arrived and it was impossible for them to continue their journey.  They ended up staying on Malta for three months, waiting for winter season to pass.

The ancient Mediterranean Sea proved to be too dangerous for seafarers during the winter.  Most people avoided traveling by sea during the winter.  It is because of this danger associated with winter sea travel that Paul asked Timothy to come to him before the arrival of winter season.

 What is the spiritual lesson of today’s scripture?  Before the winter season arrives in our lives, in the twilight of our lives, we must quickly return to Jesus.  Before the winter of our lives where we will not be able to do anything because of old age we must do our Lord’s work.  Some of us, who are young, are still in the spring season of life.  Some of us are in the summer season of life, where sun is bright and weather is hot.  Some of us are in the fall season of life, where leaves already changed and fell to the ground amid a period of loneliness.  Some of us are in late fall.  No matter which season or stage in life you may be in, keep in mind that once the winter sets in, you will not be able to work even if you want to.

 Before winter arrives, meet Jesus!  Before winter arrives, do His work!  No matter how desperately Timothy wants to see Paul his spiritual and lifelong mentor and father in faith he has to do so before the winter sets in.  Once the winter sets in, it would be difficult for Timothy to sail over seas to see Paul.  And Paul was facing a certain and near execution.  That is why Paul was asking Timothy to hurry and come see him.  Today, our Lord is telling us the same thing.  Before the winter sets in, come before our Lord!

 Let’s turn our attention to Luke 14: 15-24.  This portion of the scripture is known as the “Great Supper Parable” among the many parables of Jesus.  A master of an estate threw a great supper celebration and invited many to join.  Regardless of wealth, fame, and power, he invited anyone who wished to attend.  He even invited people twice.  The first invite was to notify people that the celebration would soon be under way.  The second invite was probably the formal invitation, to notify people that all preparations have been completed and the party will start.  Despite the two rounds of invitations, people refuse to come.  And they give the most inexplicable, most silly excuses for their refusal.

 Take a look at verse 18 of today’s scripture.  One of the invitees says, “I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it.  I ask you to have me excused.”  It is highly unlikely for someone to buy land without seeing it beforehand.  He probably already looked at the land several times over and made all sorts of calculations in his head before he bought the land.  Yet, he is giving this sorry excuse because he does not wish to attend the party.

 Another man refuses the invitation in verse 19.  What is his excuse?  “I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them.  I ask you to have me excused.”  This is also a mere excuse.  This man probably bought the oxen to till his field.  It is very unlikely that he bought these oxen without testing them first.  He probably already tested the oxen to see how strong and obedient they were.  But he gives the excuse that he must test the oxen that he just bought.  It is an incredulous excuse, indeed.  It is a mere excuse to make an excuse. 

 Lastly, let’s look at verse 20.  This is a man who already was married.  “I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.”  Compared to the other two, this excuse is a bit more credible.  I cannot leave the house because I am a newly wed!  Those of us who are married can understand this sentiment.  According to the Laws of Moses outlined in Deuteronomy 24: 5, a newly wed man was customarily excused from all societal duties and responsibilities, to include service in the military, for a period of one year.  His main duty during this first year of marriage, according to the law, was to make his wife happy.

 But we must remember the fact that this master invited all people, free man and servants alike, twice!  After the first invite, this man already knew that the party was taking place.  Yet he did not say a word.  However, once the preparations for the party have been completed and a second, formal invitation went out, this man said he couldn’t come because he just got married.  How could he have wed so suddenly, between the two invitations?  Marriage and wedding ceremony are biggest events in one’s life it is not likely that such an important event could be planned and carried out in such a short period of time.  The married man is also merely making a senseless excuse.

 ​We can easily see that all three people mentioned in today’s scripture are giving silly excuses.  Everyone has excuses.  A Korean adage goes, “there isn’t a gravestone without an excuse,” meaning everything under the sky has excuses.  Yet, these people are giving some unbelievable ones in refusing their lord’s invite.  When the servants of this master, who went out to the street to invite people, report this fact back to him, he is angered.  Take a look at verse 21.  “Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’”  He told his servant to bring anyone that was alive!  He tried to fill his house with guests in this manner, but there were still many empty seats.  The master of the house sends his servants to bigger streets and foothills of nearby mountains to bring more people to his party.

 The truth that Jesus wishes to impart on us through this parable is quite simple.  The chosen people of Israel were invited to the supper, the party, in Heaven; yet, they gave some far-fetched excuses and refused to attend.  So, the previous unconsidered people the foreigners, the sinners, the ugly, and the common people will eventually take the place of the Jews in the supper of Heaven.  The truth is that people outside the realm of God’s initial choosing can become residents of Heaven.

God is inviting us, even today.  Yet, we still give some far-fetched excuses and refuse His invitation.  We should rightfully come to church on Sundays; yet, we give many excuses for our absence.  We have to look at the land that we bought, we have to tend to our stores, we have make business trips, we have to go to meetings, we have to receive guests the excuses are many when we do not accept God’s holy invitation.  As it is clearly stated in Matthew 22: 14, many are invited to the celebration in Heaven, yet not many are chosen.  Those who are invited yet are not chosen must remember the fact that this omission is all their own doing it is because of the excuses they make.

 Have you heard of the ‘But-First’ syndrome?  For example, a man is about to do his laundry.  As he walks towards the washing machine, he passes by the kitchen table.  On the table, he sees the scattered newspaper.  He was on his way to do laundry, but first he decides to put the newspaper away.  So he reaches for the paper, but as he does so, he sees a stack of bills that he had not yet taken care of.  He was just about to clean up the newspaper, but first he will take care of the bills that needs to be paid.

 So the man takes out his checkbook to pay his bills.  But he sees his baby’s milk bottle rolling around on the kitchen floor!  He was going to write the check to pay bills, but first he decides to put the bottle in the sink.  As he was walking towards the sink, he sees the TV remote on the floor.  He was about to put the bottle in the sink, but first he decides to put the remote control away.

So as he walks into his living room to put the remote away, he sees his cat.  And his cat is crying because of hunger.  He was about to put the remote control away, but first he decides to feed his cat.  So this vicious cycle of but-first events continue.  What do you think happened to this man?  The laundry is not done, newspaper is still scattered on the kitchen table, the bottle is still not in the sink, the bills are not paid, and the cat is gnawing on the TV remote.  This man was quite busy throughout the day, going back and forth and discovering a chain of things that he needed to do.  But he did not get anything done.  Why?  Because he kept putting off things that needed to be done.  We call this the “But-First” syndrome!

 Before the winter season arrives in the twilight of our lives, we need to go back to our Lord.  We must not procrastinate.  We must not give some far-fetched excuses and delay our return to Jesus.  Just as Paul wanted to see Timothy before winter, Jesus wants us to return from him before the winter sets in.

Making the excuse that our lives are just too busy, we have spend the three most important seasons of our lives spring, summer and fall taking care of and tending to our secular matters and affairs.  The winter is not far away.  It is closer than you think.  The snow, the ice, the freezing temperature, and the scouring winds are right in front of us.  Our Lord wants us to do His work before the winter sets in.  We must all return to our Lord before the winter arrives! 

​Amen.