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Matthew 22:1-14 NIV
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.”
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When disciplining children, parents will always warn them first and give them a chance to correct their behavior. They also give them a time limit and make them aware of the consequences of not correcting their behavior; otherwise, the warning is ineffective. Warnings, time limits, and consequences all come from love. During His three and a half years on earth, the Lord Jesus continually used miracles, the fulfillment of Old Testament promises, and His authoritative teachings to issue warnings. That three and a half-year period was coming to an end. He used three parables to proclaim the punishment awaiting those who refuse to believe that Jesus is the promised Messiah and Redeemer (Matthew 21:28-22:14). The passage we read today is the climax of this declaration, pointing to the most severe outcome. These three parables describe six types of people:
1. The second son: those who say one thing but mean another (Matthew 21:30).
2. The tenants: those who, despite knowing their identity, choose rebellion out of selfish desire (Matthew 21:33-39).
3. Those invited but who chose to abandon the invitation (3).
4. Those who are indifferent and unconcerned (5).
5. Not only do they not believe, but they also choose to harm believers—those who follow other religions (6).
6. Those who shame and despise God (11).
All of these people experience God's exceedingly patient love, receiving far more opportunities than they deserve. They also hear the Lord Jesus' warnings repeatedly, yet they choose not to believe. They choose the wide gate and are rejected by God because they choose to reject the Lord Jesus. Their fate will be as the Lord Jesus declared: eternally separated from God, forever suffering in the lake of fire and brimstone, bearing the consequences of their choice. They must face God's curse, which is eternal death (7, 13). The author of Hebrews warns, "How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?" (Hebrews 3:2). This is also the original state of every person (Romans 3:23, 6:23). But "now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify" (Romans 3:24). Those who confess their sins and believe in the redeeming blood of the Lord Jesus Christ are no longer under a curse (Romans 8:1). They pass from death to life, from darkness to light. These saved people are like the first son (Matthew 21:29), like the tenants who are willing to give the fruit at the proper time (Matthew 21:42), and like those invited along the road who are willing to wear the wedding garment (10). These people enter the kingdom of heaven through the narrow gate. This narrow gate is the Lord Jesus Christ, the only gate. Through this gate, believers are with the Lord Jesus Christ and experience eternal, beautiful life. Do we know which category we belong to? Why? Do we have a heart of gratitude?
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