Shelly Nyo

Today, my daily Bible reading brought me to the following passage:

Matthew 22:1-14

The Parable of the Wedding Banquet

22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: ² “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. ³ He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

⁴ “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

⁵ “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. ⁶ The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. ⁷ The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

⁸ “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. ⁹ So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ ¹⁰ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and 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 wedding clothes. ¹² He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.

¹³ “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

¹⁴ “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

There are so many ways in which God has spoken to me through this passage. I believe the king in Jesus’s parable is God, the king’s son is Jesus Christ, and the banquet is the kingdom of Heaven. Sometimes it is easy to feel that the only people who can approach God are the perfect. Those who look a certain way, or meet a certain standard of conduct or holiness. However, I believe that this passage tells a different story. Verses 8-10 tell us, ⁸ “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. ⁹ So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ ¹⁰ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.” God chooses common, everyday people to be his children, if they are willing. As the passage says, he brought in “the bad as well as the good” – and enough of such people to fill his wedding hall. Shockingly enough, none of these people, neither bad, nor good, were disqualified from partaking in this amazing banquet. For those of us who may feel inadequate for God’s love, this is profound.

However, there was one guest who was not qualified, and it was something that he lacked that made him so. The passage says, ¹¹ “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. ¹² He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.” So here we have it: something that did not have to do with being “good” or “bad” can disqualify us from the kingdom of Heaven. The passage continues to say,

¹³ “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

¹⁴ “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

Why was this one guy – not based on his actions (being “good” or “bad”) but based on his attire – thrown out? Belonging in the kingdom of God means that you operate on the currency of the kingdom of God. Hebrews 11:6 (NIV) “⁶ And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” I believe that the attire that all the other guests had that this man did not have was the attire of faith.

I think back to Abraham, who believed God’s promise of offspring as numerous as the stars in the sky. Genesis 15:6 says “⁶ Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (NIV) So here we have it – faith is the attire that must be worn to be a true guest of the banquet.

Romans 4:4-8 says,

⁴ Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. ⁵ However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. ⁶ David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

⁷ “Blessed are those
    whose transgressions are forgiven,
    whose sins are covered.
⁸ Blessed is the one
    whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”^[b]

There is faith – that is, faith in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross for us. God placed the sin that we should have died for on the shoulders of his very own Son – the banquet’s Guest of Honor. Jesus died for our sins, his blood paying the price – a price that none of us can pay. Believing in Christs’ resurrection means that we have faith in God, and we take Him at his word. Romans 10:9-11 says, “⁹ If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. ¹¹ As Scripture says, ‘Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.^‘ “ (NIV)

So here we have it. For anyone reading this post, know that God loves you, and He wants you to have a seat at his Son’s banquet. Your price has been paid, and there is a place for you. Will you accept His invitation?

I hope you enjoyed my post. Would you like to turn your life to God? If so, there is a simple prayer, often called the Sinner’s Prayer, that emphasizes repentance, salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, and making Christ the Lord of your life – i.e., inviting Christ into your heart, and letting Him guide you everyday. One rendition of the Sinner’s prayer, from Crosswalk.com, is given by Dr. Ray Pritchard:

The Sinner’s Prayer (by Dr. Ray Pritchard)

Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your words are true. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus, and be my Savior. Amen.

Making these confessions before God is the first step of walking with Christ. It is a personal decision, one that only you can make. I can attest, it is the best decision you will ever make! If you have said the Sinner’s prayer and would like next steps, feel free to leave me a message. Until next time, by God’s grace, have a good one!