In the Navy, mealtime is an exercise in class structure. On board my ship, there were four different classes at mealtime. The place where the meals were served was called a “mess.” There was the enlisted mess, which served all enlisted men except Chief Petty Officers. They had their own mess. There was the Officers’ mess, which served everyone but the Captain. He had his own mess. Occasionally, a junior officer would be invited to have dinner with the Captain. This was not something that was open to consideration. If you were invited, it was both an honor and a command. You did not say no to such an invitation. It was a snub you could ill afford to make to a man who had so much power at sea.
And yet, such careless behavior is the subject of the parable we call the Wedding Banquet. A king issues wedding invitations for his son. The custom of the day was to let those invited know of the event well in advance. As much preparation went into this production which would last for days, the final day and hour were left for a second invitation. People were to make ready to respond, but could go on about their business until the second invitation was issued. Then, they were expected to come. Clothing was often supplied by the host, so it was just a matter of showing up clean and prepared. Jesus uses this familiar scene to illustrate yet another aspect of the kingdom of heaven. This third parable in a trilogy delivered at the temple courts appears to have as its audience not only the religious leaders, but also the crowd which had gathered.
In the Parable of the Tenants, we saw Jesus’ indictment of religious leaders for neglect of covenantal duty. Here in the parable of the Wedding Feast, we can almost feel the stinging condemnation of those who would ignore or be casual with God’s grace. We might compare the first invitation to the inauguration of the kingdom of heaven by the Son. Remember the admonition of John the Baptist in Matthew 3? He says that the kingdom of heaven is near. Shortly afterward he baptizes Jesus. It is common to refer to the Messiah as a bridegroom. (Mt 9:15, Jn 3:29, Eph 5: 25-32, Rev 21: 2, 9). Jesus pursues this motif in the parable. “Kingdom of heaven” is a term preferred by Matthew, the most Jewish of the four Gospels. The other Gospel writers often use the term “kingdom of God kingdom of God
The presence of Jesus ushers in the kingdom of heaven. It is a present event. Such is the first invitation to the feast. Subsequent invitations are like notices that the time is now. They are ignored even though they are repeated and described with great embellishment.
In the parable, a king is snubbed. He is snubbed first by refusal, then by going back to the field, and back to the business. He is even rejected by the mistreatment and killing of his own messengers. The result is the same as that in the Parable of the Tenants. Those who reject the invitation of the king will find themselves destroyed. In this way, these two parables have parallel messages.
As in the parable of the Tenants, others are invited. The callous and disobedient behavior of some has opened the door for many more. The Scripture says that people of all kinds, both good and bad, were invited literally from the street corners to join the king at the wedding feast. This is not a story of religious leaders, but rather of people from all walks of life. All are invited. William Barclay compares the invitation to the wedding feast of a king to the invitation to joy that our Heavenly Father has offered us. To reject it is to reject joy itself.
There is a subtlety here which needs to be noted. It is true that there were some who were just plain mean. The Scripture says that they mistreated the messengers…even killed them. This kind of meanness is no stranger to us in our world and we expect it to be punished. But Jesus also talks about others who just did not go to the feast. It is not the pursuit of immorality or even selfish things that seems to keep the people away. Jesus says that they paid no attention to the messengers…that “they went off—one to his field, another to his business.” How often do we do just that! Church business must wait on family business. It’s such a hassle to get the kids ready for Sunday school and its just 45 minutes long. Better we just go to worship service. Wednesday night Bible study is just too much for me. I meant to have devotions today, but life just got ahead of me. And the list goes on. The things we often do in the place of living in the kingdom seem decent, even necessary. The urgencies of our world pull us away from the important things in it. And the kingdom of heaven is like…
Verses 11-14 seem to form a parable within a parable, a story within the story. The king comes in and one of the guests is improperly dressed. Custom would seem to say that he could have been dressed, as the king probably provided the wedding clothes for the guests. Nevertheless, this fellow is not prepared. When confronted by the king, the man is speechless. He knows that he has been caught dead to rights He has been called out for his disobedience. The king addresses him kindly, as if in genuine regret of the man’s decision. But the king also has him thrown into the darkness. The king’s kindness does not stop him from exercising judgment on blatant disobedience. Jesus then reminds his audience that while many are invited, few are chosen. We could make a good argument that indeed all are invited. The very street corners have been used by the messengers of the king to invite all who would hear.
Just because grace is free, do not infer that it is cheap. There is a difference. Accepting the invitation is a first step. It gets you in the door. Will you come dressed and prepared for the occasion? Will you lay down your stubbornness and selfishness and don the new clothes, or must you stay adorned by your own choices? Jesus reminds us that choices…and changes, must be made. Anyone can get invited. Not everyone will stay for the feast. I have had a running debate with a lawyer friend for many years about whether people can change. He maintains that people don’t change…that fundamentally they are who they are and that they really don’t change. I worry sometimes about my friend’s understanding of Sanctification. Of course people change. It they didn’t, our churches would have emptied centuries ago. God changes us when we cannot change ourselves. We have but to allow it. For the kingdom of heaven is like…
Today, we celebrate two events in the life of the church. The first is a marker. Fifty years ago, the congregation of this church moved into this sanctuary. This assembly has survived and thrived from its beginnings in 1848 as a log chapel some twelve miles from here to a frame house in 1883 to the Jefferson Church Jefferson , Rocky Creek has continued to serve God over a century. On October 8, 1961, the then new Sanctuary was used for the Homecoming Service. Recently, the Sanctuary received a facelift and now stands well prepared to serve God and the people of this community for years to come.
We also celebrate Older Adults Sunday today. In so doing, we join with many cultures around the world that honor older adults as those possessing the most wisdom among their tribes and people groups. Paul charges Timothy to bestow a double honor on the elders of the church. He urges that the church be managed by those not new in the faith, those who have been tested, those who “keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience.” It is for such example that we have all learned to look to those among our number who have labored long and stood the winds of change with integrity and faith. Let us always be thankful for the seniors among us. Let us always be respectful to their presence, attentive to their thoughts, responsive to their needs.
And the kingdom of heaven is like… Well, it should be like me. It should be like you. It should be like the cloud of saints whose names are marked in the cemetery beside us; names like Johnson and Clark and Campbell and Sullivan. It should be like all the other faithful seniors of this and every church. It should be like Rocky Creek. It should be an open door and a willing heart. We too have been gathered in from the street corners and the highways and byways of life. We have no more right to be here than the man cast in the darkness from the wedding feast. Unless…unless we accept the invitation and the grace from whom it comes. The kingdom of God
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