Listen here.

Matthew 22:1-14

¹ 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 had been called to the wedding feast, but they would not come. ⁴ Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who have been called, “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 torched their city. ⁸ Then he says to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those who had been called were not worthy. ⁹ Go therefore to the main roads and call 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. 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 says to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here even though you do not have a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. 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.”

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Ladies and gentlemen, please make sure your seat backs and tray tables are in their full upright and locked position and that your seat belt is correctly fastened. As we fly through this parable, we do expect some turbulence. However, as your captain (pastor) I guarantee we will reach our destination safely. Thank you.

Jesus tells us this parable about the kingdom of heaven. The parable is about how God has arranged for us to be together, but it is a bumpy ride. Ready?

A king is giving a wedding feast for his son. An event like this is the talk of the kingdom. Even in the good ol’ US of A, people get excited about Great Brittan’s royal weddings. Think William and Kate, or, if you are older, Charles and Diana. The invitations have been sent, but no one shows. So, the king tells his servants to go out again, “Call those who were invited to the wedding feast. Maybe they forgot to mark their calendars, or maybe their phones are on DND and the notifications haven’t popped up.” Still, the guests would not come.

So the king sends out servants again, “Tell the everyone I’ve invited that the wine is poured, the steaks are done.” (In Jesus’ day weddings were planned by men, and you can tell by the menu of meat and drink – rich food full of marrow, aged wine well refined [Is. 25:6].) The king wants his servants to tell the invitees, “Everything is ready. Come! Come to the party!” But still, even with this third invitation, they paid no attention. Instead, one went off to his farm and another to his business. Seriously, lame excuses.

There is an irony in the things that the invitees chose to give their attention to instead of going to the wedding feast. In Deuteronomy 20:[1-9], God gave Moses a list of several things that a man could use as excuses for not going to war. The farm and the business that the invitees prefer over the feast are two things that would excuse a man from going to war. So, you see, these invitees are treating the king’s invitation to the wedding feast is a call to war and not to a joyful feast. But look what happens – war finds them anyway.

Some people, instead of offering excuses, take the king’s servants and seize them. They treat the servants shamefully. Whatever horrible thing you are imagining is probably accurate. They even kill the servants. Can you imagine it? All these servants were doing was extending the king’s gracious invitation to the feast of a lifetime, and they get killed for it.

The king is, of course, outraged. He is done sending servants. Now, he sends his troops. He musters his tanks, helicopters, and bombs – all his military might. And he torches the city and everything these party-poopers and murderers prefer over the feast.

Let’s stop here for a minute and ponder all of this. Jesus is teaching us about the kingdom of heaven, and there are implications for today. Every Sunday morning, God is inviting you to come to His banquet. Every week, God is here to love on you by giving you His Word. His desire is that you would be here to listen to His Word, to receive His Gospel. He wants to prepare His tale before you in the presence of your enemies, to anoint your head with oil, and to overflow your cup, as Psalm 23:5 says.

What is better than that? And yet, what lame excuses do you offer? Maybe, you aren’t treating the servants shamefully and killing them. But what happens when others do? What will happen to the things that you enjoy more than God’s feast when, on the last day, God sends His troops to destroy you who have treated His invitation as though it wasn’t worth your time?

Now, this isn’t to say that you are saved by coming to church. You aren’t. And this isn’t to say that you are damned by missing church. You aren’t. But every time you chose something else over what God offers here, it gets easier and easier to say, “No,” to His mercy.

Back to the parable. The king’s wrath and anger is spent. The city is torched. But rather than singing a duet with Leslie Gore, “It’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to,” the king still wants to feast. This is, after all, his son’s wedding. The king tells his servants, “We are having this party. Those who didn’t want to be here are going to miss out. Go to the highways and invite anyone you find.” So, they do. The banquet hall is filled with all sorts of people – good and bad.

None of those who show up are worthy to be at this feast. They need to be washed and clothed for such an occasion. No problem. The king is happy to do it. It is his feast of grace and mercy. In this way, finally, the king’s hall is filled with guests. But the parable still is not done, and there is no Hallmark ending.

The king comes in to the hall to look at the guests. And he sees a man with no wedding garment. He held up his hand and scoffed at the Armani suit he was offered at the door. Now, the king walks up to him and says, “Hey, buster, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?” And the man was speechless.

Now, ‘speechless’ implies that the man was surprised that he had been caught. But the word Jesus uses here is actually, ‘silent.’ The implication here is that the man refused to acknowledge the king was even talking to him. Imagine the king walking up to him with his guards, looking him in the eye, and addressing the situation, but this fool turns away from the king and tries to yuck it up with his buddies standing next to him.

A simple, “I’m sorry. Please forgive me,” would have worked with how patient this king has proven himself to be. But this moron ignores his host, and he gets what he deserves. He is bound up, hogtied, and thrown into the eternal, outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

My fellow failures, don’t treat the God’s grace as cheap. Don’t test His patience. Repent. The feast is open to the unworthy and even the bad but not for the unrepentant.

God wants you at His feast. He calls you, unworthy though you are. In your Baptism, He has clothed you in the robe of Christ (Gal. 3:27). Enjoy the feast. Delight in the King’s grace. His table is set, prepared for you. Are you ready to party? Amen.

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.