The party was “lame.” The event planners couldn’t organize their pocket change! I think the party-goers were looking for the exit before their arrival. Have you “been there?” I have! The next time that I’m invited to such a party, I will cringe and secretly hope my dentist calls for my annual cleaning! But he won’t and I will grudgingly plan on attending. But what makes matters worse is when the “inviters” ask me to invite! “Tell everybody you know!” they say with great enthusiasm. My bubble bursts and my shoulders droop –I have no desire to invite anybody. Why? Because I feel that the blame falls on me if the guests that I invite do not have a good time.

I think that sometimes this is the line of thinking when it comes to inviting our friends and acquaintances to church. I’m not saying that church is a party, but I think we hesitate to invite because we are not sure they will accept. Oh, they may accept our invitation, but will they accept the church service? We have many reasons why we don’t invite people but in reality none of our reasons hold any validity. For this reason alone, I want you to realize that we are not just inviting people to a church service. We are (or should be) inviting them to Jesus Christ and to a relationship with Him. We are inviting them to eternal life! The Bible is full of invitations and every one of them ultimately leads to Heaven. That, my friend, will be a party you don’t want to miss! Jesus invites with a promise for rest. God invites with a promise to wipe away every tear. The Spirit invites free of charge. No matter how you look at it, the invitation to party in Heaven is greatly to be desired and God has commanded that we invite others as well. Many times we hesitate to do this. But think about this: if we truly believe what God has testified about eternity, we wouldn’t think His command to be burdensome. Paul says that the love of Christ compels us. Since we believe, and know what it means to fear God, we should try to persuade men and women to accept Christ’s invitation to eternal life. I am inviting people to go bowling with us next Friday because I believe that those who come will have an opportunity for a great time. I would even expect people to come up to me afterwards and thank me for the invitation. Think about it; wouldn’t you want people to come up to you in Heaven and thank you for your invitation? Wouldn’t it be great if while they were thanking you, your eyes meet with the Savior’s as He gives you an affirming nod and an appreciating smile? Oh, Saints of the Most High God, let us be about our Father’s business. The party is going to be the greatest!