A certain man lived in a small town, a long way from any large city. One day, the Lord told this man that He wanted him to prepare a glorious barbecue that would feed everyone in that town. “Shall I send out invitations?” the man asked. “The smell of the meat cooking will be the only invitation necessary,” was the answer.
From this the man assumed that everyone in town would be happy to come, but he soon learned his mistake. On the appointed day, the smell of the cooking filled the whole community, and almost instantly, the town was divided into two factions.
Of course, many of the neighbors came over immediately. Their questions were, “Can I help? What can I bring? My cousin is visiting from out of town. May I bring him?” Because of this, the man’s back yard, which was very large, was soon filled with happy people, and the barbecue promised to become a great event.
But sadly, the same aroma affected some others in the town quite differently. Some of them went down to the courthouse to see if anything could be done legally about the stench that was filling the town. Others circulated flyers speculating wildly about how animals had been cruelly tortured before they were killed and butchered. Still others came by the house and said they would be willing to come if the menu were changed to barbecued tofu.
The host shook his head sadly. “That is not what I was told to serve,” he said. “And besides, tofu doesn’t smell nearly as good.”