Parable or the Wedding Feast

Bread is a lot like the sun it rises in the yeast and sets in the waist

Its been months since i bought the book how to scam people online It still hasnt arrived

Tough passage… this parable makes any scholars knees weak… Let me tell you stories that make you question everything you know and change the way you think about everything… and he is going to say all the people you thought were out are in… but the opposite too

Not let me tell you how to go to heaven when you die… but how to live under the kingdom of God today… you aren’t just coming to the kingdom of heaven in the future but the present...

English Standard Version Chapter 22

22 And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, 2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, 3 and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. 4 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.” ’ 5 But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, 6 while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. 7 The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.

They would not come… he sent it out but they didn’t want to come/// and this next verse is the tough one...

He’s looking at Israel and saying I am changing the way you think this is supposed to go… its not what you thought. the religious works to get closer to God is over… you just have to accept me… and if you reject the son… God is going to send an army.... and 40 years after Jesus an army came in and destroyed the temple.... and we cant think that our religious acts get us favor with God we do it because we love him, but it doesn’t garner us favor.

English Standard Version Chapter 22

8 Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ 10 And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.

This is great, everyone is invited....

English Standard Version Chapter 22

11 “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. 12 And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless.

He’s speechless… he doesn’t come up with an excuse…

English Standard Version Chapter 22

13 Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 For many are called, but few are chosen.”

This is tough.. how do we deal with this, when we reject him we aren’t doing it as innocent children fumbling our way around, we do it as adults saying we don’t want to live life in the kingdom or repent of sin… its an act of war against God, we want to be our own God. This story is telling us that is not as it seems… that happens in life all the time.

Im presenting to you something that looks like God is a mean guy or cruel, but you have a bad idea of what God is, we cant choose to not live under God anymore… because that is utter darkness… He’s the one that gives us water so of course when we don’t choose him we wont have water and are thirsty… What this story looks like on the surface is that God is so mean… but look at verse 1-5 a god so gracious he gives everyone a shot.. he says here is what mercy looks like

43% nervous after death that God will not forgive me. Gallup poll

He gives everyone a shot… they all agreed that they’d come but then they dont. they’re too busy… and this parable is told against religious people…

Look at the end of chapter 21....

English Standard Version Chapter 21

43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. 44 And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking about them. 46 And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.

Then look at the end of this parable

English Standard Version Chapter 22

15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words.

Its the religious people that Jesus is preaching against them… and he is saying look you said you would come to the party, but when the time came you were too busy… here is the warning for you and me… you said when you got baptized that you were a follower… thats you saying you would come to the party… but have you come.... have you shown up… you said you would… but are you at the party… you said that was your god and you’d do anything… but have you… and the crazy thing is there are people that say they will show up but they are too busy… they said they’d do something, but did they. The invitation goes out and says make good on what you said but people don’t and that is what is scary… are you actually following this

You can say you will be somewhere the question is will you show up… the invitation goes out and the question is are you going to commune with God at all, or is this just religion and checking boxes off...

Sometimes its just a chore to show up to a party… and the question is when you think about God or Jesus are you actually excited to be with him in the now… you want to be with the God of the universe or you just want to be with him to get his stuff… and he says I know what is best for you… you may not think so.. but I do...

Matthew 22:3 ESV

3 and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.

That is the question of your life right now… what about those people in the country that never hear… he sends people out and some respond and some don’t.... He is going to judge them on the level of their exposure.... this story is saying things are not as they seem that God is so good he actually gives us a call and to cut through the nonsense of our life and commune with you to ask you to believe in his son.

Here is the dangerous part about this story, we think we have all the time in the world, we can just consider it for a little while longer… but the truth is we don’t… there may come a time that the invitation stops for you… .come over to dinner… I’ll come down when Im ready… nope.... I’ll be down tomorrow… let me consider it for a bit… then i will be there… no then it turns to garbage… he may not invite you down a week from now… you may not have it… you have to do it now… the meal is being offered to you RIGHT NOW.... you have to think about your life and decide if this si what you want to do right now....

The beautiful thing is he has a call but he has people out to invite… how do people hear about what Jesus has done… but hearing servants… thats me and you....

This story is built around people that go out and tell some people… and you should want to do that… think about my friend group… what does my week look like.... because most of us aren’t here unless someone had invited us… we cant just think someone else will do that for us.... or think if I am nice to people people will figure it out… we don’t want to say the invitation, we just want them to figure it out....

Here is the need of all this....

This isn’t just about pagans being invited to the party its the church people being invited… the scandal is you think you know him but you might not know him at all… who is this guy sitting there in the wrong garments.... the other people didn’t have time to go home.... where did they get their garments… the king… but here they find this guy....God had to sacrifice his own son, God had to give you clothes for his party… it cost him his own son so you could have clothes to show up for the party. Take a garment like everyone else… psht… Im unique its all about me and my own life… and now you are at a party not wanting to be like everyone else and you are rejecting the way God has asked you to get in… to rely on his sacrifice… put your pride aside… you have to come in the way I told you… thats the scandal of the gospel… but don’t think it didn't cost him anything