Responding to the Third Invitation

Matthew 22:1-14 NABRE

Jesus again in reply spoke to them in parables, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. He dispatched his servants to summon the invited guests to the feast, but they refused to come. A second time he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those invited: “Behold, I have prepared my banquet, my calves and fattened cattle are killed, and everything is ready; come to the feast.”’ Some ignored the invitation and went away, one to his farm, another to his business. The rest laid hold of his servants, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged and sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city.
Verses 1-7

It’s obvious that the “invited guests,” (those who were summoned the first and second times) had little respect or fear for their sovereign, and little knowledge of how much disobedience the king would put up with. The range of their responses to the invitation seems fairly representative of how we humans treat authority we have no regard for. Some of us ignore it, some prioritize our business over it, and others actually express extreme contempt through ridicule and violence. And needless to say, those of us who harm others in our reaction to those in power usually face the direst of consequences as these folks did.

Then he said to his servants, ‘The feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy to come. Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever you find.’ The servants went out into the streets and gathered all they found, bad and good alike, and the hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to meet the guests he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment. He said to him, ‘My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?’ But he was reduced to silence. Then the king said to his attendants, ‘Bind his hands and feet, and cast him into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’ Many are invited, but few are chosen.”
Verses 8-14

I am certain that I would not have been on the king’s “A” list for the royal social event of the season. The servants are far more likely to find me milling around with the “bad and good,” though I’d prefer not to say which group would actually have me as a member. At any rate, I would have crowded in with this group, who had no hesitation about partying with the upper crust.

Is my response to an invitation from The Ruler—our Creator King—as enthusiastic? Would I hesitate to answer, or hesitate not to answer?

Here are a few of the reasons we respond to God’s call:

• Fear: To avoid wrath and possibly ingratiate ourselves with the ultimate power.
• Gain: To further our own goals and/or to boost our own ego
• Respect: To show honor and thanksgiving to the One whom we owe everything.

The first and the third reasons imply that we recognize the power and position of Our Lord. Whether from dread or devotion, whether dodging the lightning bolt, or kneeling in the presence of spiritual supremacy, there is an awareness of who God is and what our role is in relationship to Him.

If our reaction to the Lord conceals (or rather attempts to conceal), our own separate agenda, then we are in danger of being like the man without a wedding garment. We have shown up, but because we are more concerned with ourselves, we neglect to prepare for the encounter, and consequently display our unwillingness to give ourselves over to the Source of love and power in the universe.

In the parable the king casts out the ill-clad guest “into the darkness, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth [verse 13].” It is probable that the invitee was already dressed for this new destination, and that he was actually on the road to that location prior to being asked to come to the feast. One might even say that this gentleman, having no rejoinder to the challenge made by the king had cast himself out long before the servants grabbed hold of him.

So let us all learn from our disinvited friend. If we receive a heavenly invitation, let’s overlook our own petty desires and peer deep within ourselves. Let’s be certain that our response is a soulful resonance of our spirit speaking and humbly submitting to the will of our Creator.