Come to the wedding banquet

Matthew 22:1-14

Key Verse 22:4

"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.'"

This passage teaches us the importance of a Christian inviting people to Jesus Christ, and the importance of each person responding to such an invitation positively if one gets invited. 

1. Read v. 1. Jesus addressed this "third" parable to those who persistently rejected what he came to offer. What can we learn from Jesus? 

** Jesus does not give up on anyone.

2. Read v. 2. Whom do you think Jesus means by: 1) a 'king'; and 2) his 'son'? What does this allegory tell us about the way in which one can secure the kingdom of heaven (John 3:29; 2Co 11:2; Rev 3:20; 19:7; 21:2,9)? 

** The Father God.

** Jesus Christ.

** We must repent and believe in Jesus as the Lord and Savior and accept Him as the only source of hope.

The allegory of the marriage relationship between Jesus and his believer(s) indicates that it is only through committing oneself to Jesus Christ (as in a marriage relationship between a husband and a wife) that one can secure salvation from the tyranny of sin and death and enter into the joy of salvation in God's kingdom. 

Jesus is described as the bridegroom/husband in that all the blessings necessary for life flow from God the Father into the body of Christ. (1Co 11:3; Eph 5:23,32). 

3. Read vs. 3-7. Why do you think the king kept inviting even when the invitees kept refusing to come? What can we learn from the failures of the people described in this passage (1Jo 2:15; Acts 26:18; Phi 1:9-11)? 

** It is more because of the need of the invitees than the need of the king. The king does not need a thing. But we fallen men are in bad need of His salvation. The stakes are absolutely high, that is, the invitee's eternal destiny is at stake. The stakes are so high that no one (the king included) can afford to neither leave any stone unturned nor ignore any possibility to save any one untried. 

** We should not fail to give attention to the things of this world like businesses, but rather pay closer attention to the word of invitation, and be ready for the occasion, i.e., the fellowship with Him. 

Consider also: 1) negatively, we should not harden our hearts. If we harden our hearts, very soon our hearts will go harder. The reason it gets hard is because of our love of creations rather than the Creator. We should not let anything or anyone disturb our love for the Creator. Our heart remains soft only when it attaches itself to what is of God. This means that we need to cultivate our hearts daily with the word of God and through daily repentance. It is just like how we need to brush our teeth three times a day to keep our teeth clean. 

2) Positively, we must pay attention to God's word of invitation, and cherish it. Then we need to make preparations for the occasion daily! 

4. Read vs. 8-10 and describe the "new" direction from the king to the servants. In what respect is this so unusual? Yet, how did the servants obey? What can we learn from the servants?

** To go to the street corner and catch anyone they can find, and invite them. It is to invite the uninvited/unprepared/unplanned.

** Coming to a wedding requires a lot of preparations like buying cards, getting suits ready, making travel arrangements, etc. Plus, a wedding is the beginning of shaping a family relationship, so it requires a lot of preparations, for this (spiritual) family relationship constitutes the spiritual environment in which one is to spend eternity. Note that all believers are members of the same family. We are all closely knit together like one whole garment. 

** The direction sounds unreasonable and burdensome, yet they absolutely obeyed without questioning. This is what the Holy Spirit (and those who are filled with the Holy Spirit) did and is still doing. 

5. Read vs. 11-12. What does the king's question to the man indicate about the condition for each guest to satisfy before getting into the wedding hall? What do "the wedding clothes" represent (Rm 3:22; 13:14)? What does this passage teach us about the preparations that each guest must make? 

** Apparently it is at the entrance that they distributed the wedding clothes. In other words, the wedding clothes were given out. The fact that they were invited from street corners seems to support this conclusion. This indicates that salvation is given not earned. In other words it comes to us thanks to Jesus’ merit, not ours. All we do is accept what he offers, with thanks. This is called the doctrine of imputation, that is, just as Adam’s sins are imputed to us, so also our sins are imputed to Jesus, and thereafter Jesus’ righteousness is imputed to us, so we would all stand before God “fully qualified.”

** Christ's righteousness. 

** Each of us must believe in the gospel as it is stated in 1Co 15:3,4. This faith sets man free from a sense of condemnation. It then offers God the opportunity to work in a believer through the Holy Spirit, so that each believer would be cleansed of their sins. 

6. Read v. 13. What does this passage suggest to us about the nature of the fellowship enjoyed by the people "inside" as compared with the one experienced by the people "outside"? What warning is there for us to heed here? 

** 1) light vs. darkness; 2) joyful sound with many thanks rather than weeping or gnashing of teeth.

** Once the door is closed it is closed for good. So while there is still the opportunity we need to repent and grab the offer.

7. Memorize v. 14. How did the "invited" fail to be "chosen" (3)? How did the "chosen" get to be "chosen" (9)? What does this passage teach us about the importance of: 1) "inviting"; and 2) "choosing"? What practical lesson is there for us to learn from the disparity between "many" and "few"?

** Not because God did not call them, but because they "refused" to respond to God's call. 

** Not because they were special, but rather despite their status as unqualified, they opened their hearts, and accepted the invitation.

** Both are necessary. Of course God works. But we also need to work together with God, by asking God for help, by meditating on God's word, by humbling ourselves, and giving thanks to God for his grace.

** Statistics tell us that unless we make very positive efforts, it is very likely that even against our will, we will lose salvation. The end. 

---