Matthew 22:1-14 The Parable of the Wedding Feast
“And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: “The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. Again, he sent out other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding.”’ But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.’ So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests.
“But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
“For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Jesus is still telling stories aimed at the religious elite-why? It’s not just that Jesus is vicious and is trying to make these men appear as foolish as possible. Jesus knows his time is short and he is trying by any means possible to wake these men up to spiritual realities. As Messiah, Jesus has a trifold ministry-prophet, priest, and king. Prior to the crucifixion, Jesus functions mainly as a prophet and occasionally as a priest and king while that kingship is unarguably confirmed by his death and resurrection.
As a prophet, Jesus can clearly see the fate looming over Jerusalem and its inhabitants. For example, Jesus prophesies that the gorgeous temple built by Herod will be so thoroughly destroyed that there will not be one stone left standing on another. Jesus wants the religious leaders to change their minds and hearts while they still can, before the Romans level the city.
Every story Jesus tells works at several different levels. Look at the basics of this story. A wealthy ruler is celebrating the marriage of his son, a major social event in any culture. Most people would be thrilled to be invited to such an event, but not the prominent people the ruler invites. Not only do these people find all kinds of ridiculous excuses for refusing to come, but they even go so far as to kill some of the messengers. The murder of these messengers tells the king that these men have no regard for his authority or power, nor do they realize that their lives depend on the answers they give. When the invited guests scorn the invitation and slaughter the messengers, the ruler retaliates by annihilating them and their city.
Now the ruler invites everyone available to the banquet, both bad and good. As these last-minute guests arrive, each one of them is given lovely new wedding garments to wear, covering their old clothes and rendering them acceptable to take part in the banquet. Notice the wedding garments are distributed without any prior requirements. But one fellow evidently is so self-satisfied and certain that his clothing is acceptable that he refuses to don the brand-new garments the host provides. This man’s refusal to fully participate by exchanging his clothing for wedding clothes results in his being cast out into utter darkness and torment.
Through this story, Jesus is pleading with the religious leaders to humble themselves and join the Kingdom of Heaven. Sadly, most of these people are like the one man who refuses to exchange his old clothes for brand new wedding clothes because he is so certain that his clothing is adequate. While those the religious leaders consider sinners are flocking into the Kingdom of Heaven, they are remaining outside sneering at the rabble who are pressing in, exchanging their robes of sin for robes of righteousness.
As Jesus tells this story, he may be looking at his disciples. After all, the disciples have been with him for three years and by now they might be feeling pretty cocky. Jesus has sent these men out to preach about the Kingdom of Heaven and has empowered them to heal the sick, raise the dead, and to cast out demons. This is very heady stuff for a bunch of fishermen and small businessmen. Not only is Jesus warning the scribes and Pharisees but he is also trying to warn his own followers as well.
Face it, folks, by ourselves, none of us is righteous enough to earn a spot in heaven. Without the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ, we are all like that wedding guest who refused to put on the wedding outfit provided by the host. Romans 3:23 tells us that “all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.” Jesus had to die on that cross at Calvary for all of us, not merely for some of us. And those of us who claim to be disciples but who fail to appreciate our own sinful natures can find ourselves shut out of the Kingdom because we have trusted in our own righteousness rather than in the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins.
As we bear witness to the eternal life Jesus has bought for us through his blood sacrifice, let us remember that God loves every one of our critics. Let us remember that none of us is righteous; each one of us needs the wedding garment that only God can provide. And let us check our own hearts, lest we find we have become religious hypocrites, prone to judging rather than to correcting in love.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to speak the truth in love and not in self-righteousness or bitterness. Search our hearts, Lord, and tell us where we are falling short so that we can confess our sins before attempting to guide anyone else. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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