Wedding Garment
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· 16 viewsThe question: "Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment? This is a question that we hope to never face. How can we be ready?
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Transcript
A pastor told the true story of one of his church members, an attorney, who after meditating on several scriptures, decided to cancel the debts of all his clients that had owed him money for more than six months. He drafted a letter explaining his decision and its biblical basis and sent 17 debt-canceling letters via certified mail. One by one, the letters began to return, unsigned and undelivered. Perhaps a couple people had moved away, though not likely. Sixteen of the seventeen letters came back to him because the clients refused to sign for and open the envelopes, fearing that this attorney was suing them for their debts.
Today,
study parable
about invitation from King!
I assure you
this is an invitation
you won’t want to miss.
The Wedding Feast
The Wedding Feast
And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son,
Who is king?
What is wedding feast?
Who is Son?
Like last sermon
differences...
The Invitation
The Invitation
and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.
Who are servants?
What is the invitation?
What is the response of the guests?
Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.” ’
More servant = more prophets
God was so patient.
Son = Jesus
Who is bride?
Quote bible verse about bride of Christ.
Look at the work
Jesus went through
for the wedding supper!
Raluca is gone
I’ve been Mr. Mom.
Cooked
Cleaned
Homeschool
prepared for guests
Lots of work
I miss my wife!
Book of Rev.
talks about final
marriage feast in heaven.
And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”
Jesus did a lot of work.
Paid a lot of money.
Romanian Weddings
Lots of people
Lots of cost
People see investment
They come with gifts
cash.
Jesus invest a lot
for this wedding meal.
The Answer
The Answer
What happens next?
But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.
Other parable
Land ownder
This parable
King
Other parable
people make excuse
servants disregarded.
This parable
King’s authority is rejected
servants are killed!
How did Jews
treat the prophets?
Ridiculed
Abused
Murdered.
In another parable,
story goes on…
After Lord send servants
they are rejected.
He sends more
they are rejected and abused.
Finally, Lord sends His Son,
“surely they will respect him”
What do they do?
kill the Son too!
How does the King feel?
How does He respond?
The Kings Reaction
The Kings Reaction
The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
What does this refer to?
First application:
Jews.
Destruction of Jerusalem.
Second application:
This is clearly talking about
destruction of the wicked.
At times,
evil goes on
God seems not to act.
Some day,
justice will be served!
When He comes
for His saints.
Bible says:
2 Thessalonians 1:7–10 (ESV)
... when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
--
They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might, when he comes on that day to be glorified in his saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed...
and again...
And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.
God will finally
bring justice
upon the wicked.
Invite More People!
Invite More People!
Parable continues:
Matthew 22:8–10 (NKJV)
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.
Who are servants?
Who gives invitation?
we do!
It is our job
to make that great call
to the world.
Just listening to
stories of SDA pioneers
just before 1844
so little time!
We must have
a sense of urgency
for our job
the final call!
Those who were invited =
= the Jews.
New Testaments
Gospel to Gentiles.
Let us not
be arrogant
disregard the invitation.
God will find other
more worthy than us!
Those who they found
“both good and bad.”
The bad
Prostitutes
Tax collectors
Fishermen
Zealots
Gentiles
Samaritans!
The invitation goes to all.
I’m thankful
sinner such as I am
God was gracious enough
to give the invitation.
We are all invited
to the wedding.
Give the invitation
with power!
Be prepared
to step out of
our comfort zone.
Tony Campolo, A Baptist minister, was invited to speak at a college in Valley Forge Penn. He drove to the college and before he spoke several men took him in the back room and began to pray for him, that God would use his speech.
While these men were praying, one man, just off the cuff began praying "And Lord, about Burt Harris. Lord, Burt Harris needs you really badly. Because he lives in that trailer down the street and he is considering leaving his wife and family. And Lord if you could just get through to Burt Harris...that would be great." and then went on with his prayer.
Campolo thought, "that is strange that he should pray that here." He went out and he spoke and finished his message and then he got in his car and was driving home. And he picked up a hitch hiker. He said he knew that he wasn’t supposed to pick up hitch hikers, but he thought, ’being a preacher, anytime I can get a captive audience, I’ll take advantage of it."
So he gets this guy in the car and he is talking to him and he says, "By the way, what is your name?" and the man said, "Burt Harris". Campolo stopped the car, turned it around and immediately headed the opposite direction. The man looked at him and said, "What are you doing?" Campolo said, "I am taking you back to your wife and family whom you are trying to leave."
The man went white! He never said another word, he sat there speechless and Campolo drove him straight up to this guys trailer. And the guy says, "How do you know where I live?" Campolo said, "God told me." (in a way He really had.)
Campolo said "I took this guy inside his home and the family and marriage was restored and God did an exciting thing."
The Missing Wedding Garment
The Missing Wedding Garment
Now parable story changes...
But when the king came in to view the guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed for a wedding. So he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless.
This is figurative.
Wedding = wedding supper of Lamb
Nobody take to heaven
accidentally didn’t belong.
Not possible.
parable told to teach truth.
This concept
prefiguring the judgment.
Great final judgment
all will be judged
Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God;
Nobody escapes that judgment.
Pre-advent judgment.
before 2nd coming.
“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.
At 2nd coming
wicked destroyed
Next,
Wedding Supper.
Nobody accidentally
gets into heaven.
What is the point?
all will be judged.
How are we judged?
Clean Clothes
Clean Clothes
Garment = Clothing
Clothing = Character.
Revelation 3:4–5 (ESV)
Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.
--
The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.
Notice
soiled garments = bad character
white garments = good character
those in the book of life
have white clothes...
In our key passage
parable in Matt.
King provided the
wedding garment for all!
Jesus Christ died,
exchanged our filthy garments
for his.
Isaiah 64:6 (ESV)
We have all become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.
We all fade like a leaf,
and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
Jesus makes great exchange
Zechariah 3:3–4 (ESV)
Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him,
--
“Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.”
We can be clothed
with righteousness of Christ!
Christ’s Object Lessons Chapter 24—Without a Wedding Garment
Only the covering which Christ Himself has provided can make us meet to appear in God’s presence. This covering, the robe of His own righteousness, Christ will put upon every repenting, believing soul.
....
Christ’s Object Lessons Chapter 24—Without a Wedding Garment
This robe, woven in the loom of heaven, has in it not one thread of human devising. Christ in His humanity wrought out a perfect character, and this character He offers to impart to us.
Lived in Nebraska
Ranchers always talking about
Cows dying
Cows with twins
one calf without mother.
Often,
Cow dies
Calf dies
Mother needs calf
visa versa.
Convincing Mother to
take other calve
sometimes hard.
At times,
they do everything
mother knows smell
won’t take other calf.
Finally
cut skin off dead calf
wrap it around living.
Accepted by cow.
Saved by Faith or Judged by Works?
Saved by Faith or Judged by Works?
How does judgment work?
What are we judged by?
faith ?
works?
Yes!
Saved by faith:
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
Judged by works:
And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear;
James connects the two.
But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
We are saved by faith.
by faith we
make the great exchange.
Grab His righteous robe.
Next step.
We choose to wear it.
Notice,
story of Joshua
must take off filthy rags.
Christ’s righteousness
does not just cover
over our wickedness.
It is an exchange.
Christ’s Object Lessons (Chapter 24—Without a Wedding Garment)
Satan had claimed that it was impossible for man to obey God’s commandments; and in our own strength it is true that we cannot obey them.
--
But Christ came in the form of humanity, and by His perfect obedience He proved that humanity and divinity combined can obey every one of God’s precepts.
By wearing
Christ’s righteousness
we choose to live His life.
and die his death.
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
So we are still
judged by works:
Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.
The Book of Rev
makes it very clear
what garments are worn
to the final marriage supper
of the Lamb:
Revelation 19:7–8 (ESV)
Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure”—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
Again,
speaking of
the bride of Christ
and her being ready for
the final wedding
Paul writes:
Ephesians 5:25–27 (ESV)
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
--
so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.
When the bride
is presented to Christ,
they are presented
spotless.
pure.
holy.
Accepting the garment
of Christ’s righteousness
is not just
intellectually accepting
what Jesus did on the cross!
Christ’s Object Lessons Chapter 24—Without a Wedding Garment
Righteousness is right doing, and it is by their deeds that all will be judged. Our characters are revealed by what we do. The works show whether the faith is genuine.
Those who wear
the righteousness of Christ
life in harmony
with Christ’s will.
Christ’s Object Lessons (Chapter 24—Without a Wedding Garment)
By His perfect obedience He has made it possible for every human being to obey God’s commandments. When we submit ourselves to Christ, the heart is united with His heart,
--
the will is merged in His will, the mind becomes one with His mind, the thoughts are brought into captivity to Him; we live His life. This is what it means to be clothed with the garment of His righteousness.
--
Then as the Lord looks upon us He sees, not the fig-leaf garment, not the nakedness and deformity of sin, but His own robe of righteousness, which is perfect obedience to the law of Jehovah.
As D. L. Moody walked down a Chicago street one day, he walked up to a man and asked him if he were a Christian. The fellow raised his fists and angrily exclaimed, “You mind your own business!”
“This is my business,” replied Moody.
“Well, then, you must be Moody,” the man responded.
The Execution of Judgement
The Execution of Judgement
And what happens
to those who
are not found to
be wearing the
righteousness of Christ?
“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him up hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
In this story
the man was
professing to be
a believer in Christ
but wasn’t wear
the garment!
So it is today,
so many Christians...
that believe they are,
“saved by faith”
but that is as far
as their faith went...
Jesus was speaking to
self-righteous Pharisees
sure they were saved.
Greatest danger
in this world
overly confident
when we are not
right with God.
Christ’s Object Lessons (Chapter 24—Without a Wedding Garment)
The man who came to the feast without a wedding garment represents the condition of many in our world today. They profess to be Christians, and lay claim to the blessings and privileges of the gospel;
--
yet they feel no need of a transformation of character. They have never felt true repentance for sin. They do not realize their need of Christ or exercise faith in Him. They have not overcome their hereditary or cultivated tendencies to wrongdoing.
--
Yet they think that they are good enough in themselves, and they rest upon their own merits instead of trusting in Christ. Hearers of the word, they come to the banquet, but they have not put on the robe of Christ’s righteousness.
...
Christ’s Object Lessons Chapter 24—Without a Wedding Garment
The righteousness of Christ will not cover one cherished sin.
CEO for a large company that needed to call one of his employees about an urgent problem. He dialed the employee’s home telephone number and was greeted with a child’s whispered, "Hello?" Irritated at the inconvenience of having to talk to a child, the boss asked, "Is your Daddy home?" "Yes," whispered the small voice. "May I talk with him?" he asked. The small voice whispered, "No." So, the boss asked, "Is your Mommy there?" "Yes," came the answer. "May I talk with her?" Again, the small voice whispered, "No." Knowing that it was not likely that a young child would be left home alone, he asked, "Is there anyone there besides you?" "Yes," whispered the child, "a policeman." Curious, the boss asked, "May I speak with the policeman?" "No, he is busy," whispered the child. "Busy doing what?" asked the boss. "Talking to Daddy and Mommy and the Fireman," came the whispered answer. Growing concerned and even worried as he heard what sounded like a helicopter in the background, the boss asked, "What is going on there?" The child answered, "The search team just landed the hello-copper!" Finally, he demanded. "What are all these people doing at your house?" Still whispering, the little voice replied, "They are looking for me!"
Like the boy
Daddy is Looking for us.
Jesus wants us to
be saved at last.
Let us surrender.
Let us be found by him.
The Chosen
The Chosen
Parable finishes with this
“one-liner”:
“For many are invited, but few are chosen.”
In truth
all are invited.
Few are chosen???
In the parable
everyone was invited.
Who chose?
This is not teaching
Calvinistic idea:
some born saved
some born lost.
predestined
can’t help it.
In this story
they could help it.
They could choose!
“Few are chosen?”
Should say:
“Few Choose.”
It was a cold, winter day. A carcass, on an ice floe, floated slowly down the Niagra River. An Eagle, flying overhead, spied the easy prey below, and descended upon it. He began to eat. As he did, the water of the river began slowly pushing the flow toward the falls. But could not the eagle, stretch forth his great wings and fly? Could he not, at the very brink of the falls, leap the safety of the air? Had he not done so a thousand times before? So slowly, he continued to eat. As he waited, the water of the river began pushing the floe faster and faster and closer and closer to the falls, until the roar of the falls began to echo throughout the canyon. He waited until the very mists of the falls began rising above his head. Finally, he stretched forth his great wings to fly.
Unknown to him, his talents, sunk in the frozen flesh of his prey, and sunk in the ice of the floe, had frozen solid. His fait was sealed. He struggled and he struggled and he tried to get away, but he could not, until at last the floe went over the falls and unto the rocks below. He had waited too long. (Knight’s Master Book of New Illustrations).
From Gene Gregory’s Sermon: The Great Invitation
Appeal
Appeal
As Joshua said:
Joshua 24:15 (ESV)
... choose this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
The invitation is there
choose life
for why should you die?
And if you have
made up your mind.
You have new job,
you are one of the servants.
Your job is to
bring invitation to others
help them decide.
