The Great Invitation
Today we are going to be in the book of Matthew chapter 22. Jesus was in the temple teaching the people. Some of the leading priests and elders of the temple came to Jesus to challenge Him. Jesus responds with a few parables that spoke against them. A parable is an earthly story that reveals a heavenly truth. A parable reveals the truth to those who want to know and conceals from those who refuse to know. This made them angry and they wanted revenge. They were wanting to arrest Him at that moment. Jesus then shares another parable about a great feast.
Matthew 22:1-5
“And again Jesus spoke to them 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…”
So let’s review:
Let’s take a look at some types and shadows for this parable…
King = God
Son = Jesus
Banquet = Kingdom of God
Original Guests = Jews who rejected Jesus
In the first part of this parable, Jesus is speaking out against these priests and elders; along with the other pharisees who opposed Him. The kingdom of God had been revealed to them but they couldn’t see it because of their own hypocrisy. Now, it is important to note that the Israelites received another invitation. It would reveal that this was going to be a banquet of “fine dining” Not many people would have the opportunity to dine like this. Yet, they still rejected the invitation.Therefore they did not accept His invitation. Let’s keep reading.
Matthew 22:9-10
9 Now go out to the street corners and invite everyone you see.’ 10 So the servants brought in everyone they could find, good and bad alike, and the banquet hall was filled with guests.
It is important for us to note who the king in this parable is speaking to. It says that the king sent out “more servants” to the first group of people to extend another invitation. Once they rejected the king’s invitation again, he tells those same servants to go out to the “street corners” and to invite everyone they see.
Servants = Followers of Christ
Street Corners = The World
New Guests = Anyone who accepts His invitation
Invitation = The Good News
Jesus’ parable is clear: God has called you and I as believers to go into the world to invite as many people to this great banquet as possible. That is, we are called to share the good news with as many people as possible so that they can join us in heaven with God.
There are a few things in this parable that are worth taking note of:
God’s focus is on the great banquet. From His prospective, this is what all His efforts are working toward. This is what His attention is on. This is what He cares about. Ultimately, what God is focused on is what we should be focused on. If the banquet is what God is focused on, then that is what we should be focused on as well.
Not only is God focused on the banquet, He is also focused on ensuring His banquet hall is full. In other words, He wants as many people to go to heaven as possible. The Bible tells us that God desires that no man would perish. He desires that all men would be saved and come to the shaving knowledge of the truth. Ultimately, God cares about souls. While God rejoices with all of heaven that your name is written in the lamb’s book of life, He is also burdened with those in your life whose names have not been added yet.
One of the reasons I believe Jesus shared this parable is because He wanted people to know that the door to heaven is still open! God is wanting people from all over the world, from the highways to the street corners to be born again. They simply only have to accept His invitation: that is to trust in Jesus as their lord and savior. Maybe you are here this morning and you have not accepted God’s free gift of salvation. Today is your day! You may think you are here simply because someone invited you or because you chose to be here, but I would beckon that you are here because the Spirit of God has drawn you here. God’s desire is that you would be saved and have your eternity settled, TODAY! However, it begins with receiving Jesus as Lord of your life and the savior of your soul. You can make that decision today!
If the door is still open, then it means that we as believers still have a job to do. The parable says that the king sent his servants out to every street corner to invite as many people to the banquet as possible. That was their one task. Since we are those servants, we have one goal and one task, to invite as many people to receive God’s invitation for eternal life.
The question is, how are we doing with that? What are we doing with the time that God has given us? Are we fulfilling the task at hand? Or have we gotten sidetracked? There are a lot of important things in life that require our attention. Family, work, school, our finances, etc. These are important and they need our attention. However, we cannot allow important things to distract us from our purpose, that is inviting as many people to this banquet as possible.
Matthew 22:11-13
“11 “But when the king came in to meet the guests, he noticed a man who wasn’t wearing the proper clothes for a wedding. 12 ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how is it that you are here without wedding clothes?’ But the man had no reply. 13 Then the king said to his aides, ‘Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
This may sound a little out of place when you first read this part of the parable. But the man dressed improperly for the wedding banquet is a representation of so many people around us. He represents people who think they are on their way to heaven, but in actuality are not. Many people imagine that because they are good people, or because they are religious that they qualify for acceptance in the after life. However, God makes it clear that only those who are perfect in righteousness are authorized into heaven. But Jesus is the only person to ever be perfect in righteousness. Therefore, the only way for anyone to qualify for heaven is to be covered by the righteousness of Christ; by placing our faith in Him.
Wedding garments = The righteousness of Christ
Therefore, let us realize that as believers, we are on a mission during our time here on earth to share the gospel and invite as many people to receive eternal life in Jesus Christ as possible. Why? Because God the Father wants His banquet hall full.
Takeaways:
