The Importance of Submission – part 2
Matthew 22:1-14 (8-14)
July 1, 2012
When last we met we began looking at this third parable of Jesus.
• Having entered the city on Monday
• Clearing the temple on Tuesday,
• He is now locked in a debate on Wednesday morning.
The chief priests wanted to know where He got the authority
Both to clear the temple and now take over as its chief teacher.
And in answering that question Jesus gave three parables.
The first was of a father who told both sons to go work in the vineyard.
• The first said no, and then went.
• The second said yes, and then didn’t.
• To which Jesus revealed that they did not recognize God’s authority.
Then came a second parable of a vineyard owner who rented his vineyard
• When the harvest was read and the slaves were sent to gather the proceeds
• But the vine growers mocked, stoned, and killed them.
• Eventually the owner sent his son, but the vine growers killed him as well.
• Thus bringing a sure and certain judgment upon their heads.
• With that parable Jesus revealed that chief priests didn’t submit to God’s
authority.
It is bad enough not to recognize God’s authority,
Even worse to recognize it and still fail to submit to it.
And then Jesus gave a third parable.
This one we actually began studying last Sunday morning.
This one, like the previous two
Teaches us the importance of submitting to the King.
This was the parable of the wedding banquet.
Matthew 22:2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son.”
And we talked about what a wedding banquet was.
• It was a week or even two week celebration
• In which the guests also lived at the hosts home and enjoyed his delicacies.
• For this to be the wedding of the king’s son, you could bet the party would be second to none.
This would be the invitation of a lifetime.
But something shocking happened.
Matthew 22:3-6 “And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. “Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.”‘ “But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them.”
Ordinarily when a wedding banquet was being prepared,
Invitations were sent out.
At that point you were supposed to start getting ready to attend,
And then once the banquet was ready the slaves would come say it was time.
But on this day, at this banquet the king was completely ignored.
“they were unwilling to come”
At the very least we find an unsubmissive attitude.
They just didn’t care what the king wanted.
The king said “come”, and they said, “no”
Later we learned why.
(5) “But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business.”
They didn’t come because they had their own plans.
They didn’t care about the King’s plans.
And we talked about how their danger was they were too distracted.
They loved this world, they were enamored with this world
And when their opportunity for something better came
They neglected it.
The writer of Hebrews said:
Hebrews 2:3 “how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?”
But that is what they did.
And it is fair to say they received their just reward.
Matthew 22:7 “But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire.”
These men were destroyed because
They loved their own lives and their own plans and their own agendas
And were not willing to submit to the king.
We called that “A Rejected Invitation”
And the reality is that our world is full of people that do the same.
They reject the invitation to the wedding banquet
Because they don’t care to take the time to get ready.
It is the tragedy of the world.
It was certainly the tragedy of Israel.
They were too busy to submit to the king, it was A Rejected Invitation.
Let’s move in the parable this morning now
A Rejected Invitation
#2 A RECEIVED INVITATION
Matthew 22:8-10
We know that when the invitation first went out
Some of the slaves were mistreated.
And now those slaves have returned to the king,
He has destroyed the murderers
And is now about to send the slaves out again.
(8) “Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.’”
That statement echoes the just nature of the king’s decision.
Remember what Jesus said?
Matthew 10:37-39 “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. “And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. “He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.”
Jesus said those who won’t forsake this life aren’t worthy
And that’s the same thing the king said about those who rejected his offer
And so now the king sets out to find those who are worthy.
And this is really an important thing to grasp.
Worth in the world’s eyes is different than worth in God’s eyes.
The world looks outwardly to determine worth, God looks inwardly
We all remember the story of when David was selected King.
1 Samuel 16:7 “But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
And so worth to God is not measured by our earthly value.
Worth to God is measured by our heart’s commitment to Him.
David was “a man after God’s own heart”
Not because he was perfect,
But because he was committed and humble before God.
Those who are most committed to Him hold the most worth.
And that is what continues on here.
(9-10) ‘Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast.’ “Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests.”
Now this is really interesting.
They went to “the main highways” because that is where the most travelers were, as well as the beggars and what not.
And the slaves went out and notice what it said about all they gathered.
“both evil and good”
WOULD THE KING REALLY ALLOW EVIL PEOPLE TO THE WEDDING?
Yes, because worth to Him isn’t about what they’ve done,
It’s about their level of commitment to Him.
2 Chronicles 16:9 “For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.”
It wasn’t about evil and good it was about willingness to come.
SEE THESE GUESTS SERVE A BIGGER PURPOSE.
WHAT DO YOU THINK WAS MOST IMPORTANT TO THE KING?
It was that “the wedding hall” be “filled with dinner guests”
WHY?
Because it was the wedding of His Son.
I know in our Sunday School class we talked about this recently,
And Amy did her missions devotion on this,
But it is something that is very important for you to understand.
This whole salvation plan is really not about you.
It is about the love that the Father has for the Son.
Titus 1:1-3
“Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began,” (NKJV)
Now notice what Paul said.
• I am a bondservant of God
• For the faith of God’s elect
• And for the knowledge of truth
• And for the hope of eternal life
And all of this “God…promised before time began,”
So God promised to elect (choose) a people for godliness and eternal life.
But He promised all of this “before time began”
So who did He make that promise to?
The answer is to the Son.
He promised the Son a holy and redeemed bride.
It was the ultimate promise from the Father to the Son
To secure for Him a redeemed bride
To love, serve, and worship Him for all eternity.
This is what Jesus referenced in His High Priestly prayer
John 17:24 “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”
There was a love between the Father and the Son before time began,
In which the Father promised the Son a bride.
And we know how it works in Jewish culture.
• The Father selects the bride
• The dowry is paid
• They are engaged and the groom goes to prepare their place to live
• He then returns and the marriage is consummated
That is what is happening here.
• The Father selected a bride
• Her dowry was paid (through the death of the Son)
• He has gone to prepare a place
• He will come again and receiver her unto Himself.
Now I could go more into all of this, but often lost in this salvation story
Is that salvation is really about the Father and the Son.
Somehow we like to pretend it is all about us,
But in reality it is about the Father and the Son.
We are caught up in this divine love triangle.
We are certainly unworthy beneficiaries
Of a promise the Father made to the Son.
Now, that is clearly seen in this parable as well.
The Father didn’t invite all these people to the wedding feast
For the sake of the people.
He invited them for the sake of the Son.
He wanted a full wedding hall in order to glorify the Son.
And so we understand HIS FURY when those first people were unwilling.
And we also understand HIS LACK OF DISCRETION
In letting both the wicked and the good come.
He simply wanted a full hall in order to best honor His Son.
And those who came did not get invited because they were worthy. They were worthy because they answered the invitation.
And we need to understand this about salvation.
God didn’t choose you or call you or save you because you were so valuable
That He just couldn’t bear to have a wedding feast without you there.
No, God was determined to fill the wedding hall with guests to honor His Son,
It was your good fortune that He chose to invite you.
You or I neither one were worthy to be invited.
We were made worthy only because we responded.
Furthermore, we received the opportunity
Because the previous invited guests were unwilling.
• That first unworthy group was Israel, who was unwilling.
• The second group is the Gentiles.
That is what Paul talks about in Romans 11, when Israel was broken off, and the wild olive shoot of the Gentiles was grafted in.
At the very least, those of us who have accepted the invitation
And are preparing ourselves for that great feast
Should spend every day until that feast thanking and praising God
For this tremendous privilege and opportunity.
This was not an opportunity we deserved.
We are peasants going to the ball.
And that also forces us to realize why we are going.
WHY DID THE KING WANT THE HALL FULL?
So the Son would be glorified.
What does that say about someone who is accepting an invitation to the wedding, but who refuses to glorify the Son?
If you attend the wedding banquet, you’d better glorify Him.
And that leads to the third point. (Rejected Invitation, Received Invitation)
#3 A REVOKED INVITATION
Matthew 22:11-14
So we finally have a full wedding hall, but then look what happened.
“the king came in to look over the dinner guests”
NOW WHY WOULD HE DO THAT?
Because this is for the glory of the Son, and He wants it perfect.
This is actually the judgment.
The king may have graciously allowed whosoever to enter,
But that doesn’t mean he has lowered his standard.
He will let them come, but they must still look the part.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE SON!!!
And “when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes,”
Earlier we saw some who were unwilling to get ready
And so they were unwilling to come.
Well, here is a man who didn’t get ready,
But who decided to come to the wedding anyway.
And he “was not dressed in wedding clothes”
He hadn’t cleaned up.
(12) “and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless.”
The king isn’t asking “how” so much as “why” here.
He’s not curious how this man snuck past his guards,
He’s curious why attending this wedding in filth was acceptable.
How is it that you did this?
Who do you think you are to do this?
And you will notice that the man has no answer.
(In the judgment when God declares your guilt there are no excuses)
(13) “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”
The king wasn’t messing around.
• All were welcome, but you were expected to live up to the standard.
• By coming dressed in his rags he was actually an insult to the Son.
• He came, but he didn’t honor the Son.
NOW WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
Well, in Scripture garments always speak of character.
Dirty garments = wicked character
Clean garments = righteous character
Zechariah 3:1-5 “Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. The LORD said to Satan, “The LORD rebuke you, Satan! Indeed, the LORD who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is this not a brand plucked from the fire?” Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments and standing before the angel. He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, saying, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” Again he said to him, “See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes.” Then I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments, while the angel of the LORD was standing by.”
There Joshua was being accused and he really was wicked,
But the Lord justified him by changing his garments.
So this man in the wedding has come, but not in righteousness.
• He’s tried to come without righteousness.
• He’s tried to come in his own wedding clothes, not those supplied by the king.
And the king will not stand for it.
In fact, the king is so upset he instantly has the man bound
And cast out of the wedding hall.
This is the equivalent of a man who tries to enter heaven
Based upon his own goodness.
• He thinks he deserves it.
• He thinks his own righteousness is good enough.
• He thinks his works speak for themselves.
That is why throughout the Revelation those in heaven
Are those who had their garments washed.
Revelation 22:14 “Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.”
Revelation 7:13-17 “Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and where have they come from?” I said to him, “My lord, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. “For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them. “They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore; nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat; for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and will guide them to springs of the water of life; and God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”
You don’t go to the wedding in your own clothes.
And this really just emphasizes what we said a moment ago.
Those who are invited are not worthy, they are made worthy.
Those who enter are given their righteous clean garments.
But this was a man thought he was good enough,
What a startling reality when he learned otherwise.
The King wanted people to come who honored the Son,
This man dishonored him.
So do all who think they are good enough.
Listen to what Paul said the Galatians
Who thought being circumcised would make them worthy.
Galatians 2:21 “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”
In other words, “If you could earn it, what Jesus did was insignificant.”
Paul would say you make light of the sacrifice of Christ.
Throughout Scripture those who think they are good enough fail to enter.
Matthew 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’”
All of their own goodness meant nothing.
That’s what Jesus meant in the beatitudes.
Matthew 5:3-6 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
Those who think they are good enough do not please the king.
When you come in your own righteousness you dishonor the Son
And up being bound and cast outside.
That is why Scripture says:
Psalms 96:9 “Worship the LORD in holy attire; Tremble before Him, all the earth.”
Psalms 29:1-2 “Ascribe to the LORD, O sons of the mighty, Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory due to His name; Worship the LORD in holy array.”
And we obviously aren’t talking about outer clothes here,
We’re talking about a righteous heart.
And so we see that because this man did not come in the king’s perfect righteousness, his invitation was actually revoked.
And then Jesus sums up this whole parable with a sobering statement.
(14) “For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Now in relation to this parable we learn, that the call went out to everyone.
First to the original invited guests, and then to all on the highways.
Everyone was called.
“but few are chosen”
Only the chosen remained at the wedding banquet.
“many are called”
“few are chosen”
I know this is a little tough to swallow, but can we agree here that being called and being chosen is not the same thing?
The first and most obvious difference is in their number.
It brings a memory to our minds of the wide and narrow gates.
Many enter the wide gate, few enter the narrow one.
We also recognize that while all the chosen are called,
Not all the called are chosen.
It was only the chosen who enjoyed the wedding feast.
That is why we don’t just want to be called.
We want to be chosen.
2 Peter 1:10-11 “Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble; for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.”
Now this already takes us to a place
That most of the time we aren’t comfortable to go.
Preacher are you saying that the only people who get to go to heaven are those whom God chooses?
• No, I’m not saying that, Jesus is.
• Jesus, in this parable revealed that truth.
Only the chosen get to go to heaven.
• Some say “that makes God look like a monster.”
• Some say “that’s not fair.”
But let me remind you, it has never been about fair.
In a fair world no one gets invited, because no one is worthy to go.
Have we not called an invitation to this banquet a privilege?
It’s never been about fairness, God can do what He wants.
Romans 9:19-24 “You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.”
God doesn’t have to answer to your standards of fairness.
He is God and He can do what He wants.
This is where our minds have to be transformed.
Some argue that if this is true then it is actually God’s fault
That people go to hell, since He didn’t choose them.
But that is missing the entire point.
• Was everyone called?
• Was everyone invited?
Yes, so how is it God’s fault that they refused to respond?
OUR WORLD SEES THINGS BACKWARD.
They see this massive throng of humanity
All desperately wanting to enter the wedding banquet, but that isn’t true.
The massive throng didn’t want to enter, they were unwilling.
Matthew 22:3 “And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come.”
It was God who continued to call.
It was God who continued to choose.
It was God who provided righteousness.
See, no one will be in hell who doesn’t deserve to be there.
But no one is in heaven who does deserve to be there.
Only those whom God graciously chose.
HEAVEN ISN’T A RIGHT, IT IS A PRIVILEGE!
And the reason God chose them is so that they could glorify His Son.
Ephesians 1:4 “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.”
That is why the man without wedding clothes didn’t get to stay,
He wasn’t “holy and blameless”
Now, let’s bring this all back to the parable.
• Here we had a universal call that went out.
• But only a few actually entered the wedding hall.
Here is Jesus’ point.
These Jews all thought they were God’s people
And they had nothing to worry about, but Jesus reveals otherwise.
• They are not God’s people; because they don’t submit to His authority.
• They are unwilling to do His will,
• And when they do try to come to Him, they come in their own
righteousness not having submitted to His.
They are called, but not chosen to stay, because they are not righteous.
Only those who are washed in the blood of the lamb
And made righteous by His sacrifice get to stay.
And that speaks volumes to us.
There is a great wedding feast,
And the King wants the hall full all for the glory of the Son.
And you are called to come.
But don’t assume being called is all it takes.
You must also respond to that call,
And be made righteous by the sacrifice of the Son,
Or else you will not enjoy the wedding banquet.
• So don’t be like those who were too distracted…
• Don’t be like those who were self-deceived thinking they were good enough…
Instead be like those poor and crippled and lame
Who even though some were wicked,
Saw the golden opportunity and removed their filthy garments
And determined to walk in righteousness,
That they might honor the Son for giving them an opportunity
To enjoy such a lavish feast.
Respond to the Son and submit to His will
Answer His call and submit to His dress code.
And that is really the answer to the dilemma.
You can sit here today and say,
“Well I know I’m called, but what if I’m not chosen?”
Do you want to be chosen?
• Then take off your sinful garments
• Put on the righteousness of Christ.
• And you will prove yourself one of the chosen as well.
John 6:37-40 “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. “This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”
