The Invited

Imagine making all the arrangements for a fancy dinner and nobody comes.

Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’ But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests. “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.” - Matthew 22:1-14

The parable is meant to be shocking.  First we are shocked to think the King would be ignored by his subjects.  Then we are shocked to hear the invited mistreat and kill the slaves who sent to tell them the feast has started.

Then the original guests are killed by the king, and finally, when others are invited instead, one who disrespects the king is thrown out.

We know this parable refers to the prophets who went out to invite the people to come back to God.  They were ignored, tortured and murdered.  God's grace was offered to them and they rejected it.

The part where the king destroys the murders and burns their city could refer to actual events, and that is scary.  We don't like to think that God will punish us here, in this life, but Jesus makes it sound like He can and will.

But if we come to the party and fail to show respect we are no longer welcome.  

For us, in our relationship with God, what does that mean?

I think it means we need to truly believe.  God's grace is freely offered, but we have to accept it.  We cannot reap the rewards of eternal life without showing God we really appreciate His love and love Him back.

It is all we have to do, and yet, that can be too hard for some.

So, if we are invited, we should go.  And if we go, we should show up with a gift.  That gift should be us.

More to come...