The Parable of the Wedding Banquet
“1 Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. 4 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.’ 5 But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, 6 while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. 8 Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ 10 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.
11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, 12 and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. 13 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.’ 14 For many are called, but few are chosen” Matthew 22:1-14.
There is much to ponder in this parable, so I will focus for just a moment on the end, especially on the “wedding garment” which symbolizes the Christian life that we “put on.” This language is used in Galatians 3:27 where the community is told, “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” And this image is unpacked in Colossians 3:12: “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.” In other words, there is an expectation that being a Christian, a Jesus-follower, will make a difference and be obvious in the way we live our lives.
We have to be better than just persons who have to tell others that we are Christian. Our faith should show up without words!
This parable, through metaphors and life-and-death consequences, insists that we, like Matthew’s community, need to live lives that do not just prioritize our faith, but reflect our faith to those around us. In other words, the gift of faith should come to us on its way to others. We need to give it away to others.
This parable also should remind us of God’s broad, persistent, and generous invitation. In this parable, God/the king does not desire to party alone. Instead, He keeps extending invitations to everyone around so that the wedding feast will be a rich array of people from every corner of the city. Likewise, the invitation towards faith and faithful living is extended to us, insistently, persistently for us to accept and give away to and share with others.
Today, then, pray that you will be aware of someone God brings into your life every day, someone with whom you will share your faith in God and His love for you. Pray that you won’t walk away from telling someone how deep God’s love is for them.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.
From the Bible:
“And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” Romans 5:5.
“I have loved you with an everlasting love” Jeremiah 31:3.
“In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the sacrificial offering for our sins” 1 John 4:10.
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