“Dis-invited!”
Philippians 4:1–9; Matthew
22:1–14
Isn’t
it great to be a Christian! I claim the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Joseph as my God.
I claim Jesus as my Savior. He’s
done all the hard work. I don’t have
anything to worry about.
Those
original “chosen people” rejected Jesus.
They turned their backs when He arrived and refused to come to His
banquet. So the Lord’s servants – His
prophets and evangelists - found me and
invited me to become part of the family and take my place at the banquet.
I
agree wholeheartedly with Paul:
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I
will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is
near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and
supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And
the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and
your minds in Christ Jesus. [Philippians 4:4-7]”
I’m
not sure I understand that thing about “gentleness.” I don’t always remember to thank God when I’m
praying, but I do ask God for a lot. I
pray a lot. And I try – most of the time
– to do that “true and honorable” stuff that Paul talks about, but I’m so glad
that Paul told me not to worry about anything.
And
I’ve been invited to the celebration, called into the banquet hall. It was so simple. Absolutely:
rejoice always.
That’s
the way a lot of people understand the first ten verses of our Gospel
lesson. God’s chosen one’s rejected
God’s Son and we have been adopted by God as God’s new family. We have been called to the feast. We have been called to all the promises made
by the Lord through the prophets and through John the Baptist and Jesus
Himself. Rejoice!
So
why are those last four verses tagged on to this story. They couldn’t have anything to do with
us. Could they?
Could
they?
If
you took this parable without those last four verses, we would all feel pretty
good about it, but those last four verses seem to throw a big question mark
across our rejoicing.
Let’s
look more closely at the first ten verses since they seem to be easier to deal
with. Jesus was telling this parable
following His triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
He went to the Temple and began to teach. First the Pharisees demanded to know by whose
authority he was teaching. Then He told the
parable of the man with two sons, one of whom said he wouldn’t work in the
fields – but he did – and one who said he would – but didn’t. He followed that with the story we looked at
last week about the owner of the vineyard who sent his servants and finally his
son to collect the debt that was owed him by the tenants, only to have the
servants and the son murdered by the tenants.
He
concluded that story by telling the chief priests and the Pharisees directly:
“Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God
will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of
the kingdom. [Matthew 21:43]”
They
got the point. But he wasn’t finished
with them. He tells the story of the
wedding banquet. Once again, servants
are sent out to invite the guests who had originally been invited. The first time they were called to come they
refused. So like the landlord in the
earlier story, the king patiently sent
out his servants again to call those who had been originally invited, and this
time they killed the servants.
So
finally the king tells his other servants they should go and invite anyone who
wants to come into the banquet.
I
think that traditionally we like to think that this is a story about how we ended up at the banquet
table. It is definitely a story about
how we ended up being called to the banquet.
We have been called by the grace of God and the love of Christ to attend
that great banquet. In fact, we have
been called to live our lives within the context of that banquet.
It
wasn’t – it isn’t – a once and done kind of thing. It’s an always and forever kind of
thing. I fear that for many of us we can
too easily become like those who were originally invited and decide that we
have better things to do today than go to the banquet. You know: been there, done that, bought the
tee shirt. It was a nice celebration,
but I have other things to do. Don’t ask
me to change my way of life, my personality, my stubbornness. I’m saved; now let me go on with my
life.
I’d
like to suggest that when you read the first ten verses of this parable that
you reflect on the question of whether you’re one of those who actually shows
up for God’s celebration every day of your life or whether you’re one of those
who figures that since you have been called by God you can get on with your
life without making any changes in your heart or your soul.
Just
asking!
Now,
those last four verses. I’ve thought
about them quite a lot. I’ve read
several commentaries on them. I haven’t
found any clear answers.
The
story that Jesus is telling brings us not two groups of people but three. First we have the one’s originally invited
who are too busy or too distracted to actually show up when the time
comes. Then you have the ones who are
caught up in this broad dragnet when the king decides that anyone who really
wants to come is welcome at the feast.
But
then there is this one person who showed up but gets thrown out. He seems to have been dis-invited. He wasn’t appropriately attired according to
the story. He wasn’t appropriately
prepared. We might complain that he was
invited – called – to the banquet so what did he need to do besides show
up.
The
only answer I can find is implied rather than clearly stated. If we hear God’s call inviting us into God’s
kingdom, God calls us where we are – our place in life, good and bad as the
Gospel says. The call of God is available
to us all, and God, in grace and mercy, reaches down to everyone wherever they
are.
If
we would answer the call of God then we must move from “where we are” to where
God would have us be. If we would answer
the call of God then we must bear fruit, as Jesus says a little earlier in previous
chapter. If we would answer the call of God when we hear it however we are at
that moment, then we must begin to change.
We
must begin to live lives worthy of God’s chosen people. We must put on the garb of righteousness and
mercy. We must become holy – that is we
must be truly set apart by the lives we choose to live in response to the call
of God.
If
not, we may by self-selection become dis-invited.
Yes,
Paul says to rejoice! We have a great
deal to rejoice about. But Paul also
reminds us:
“whatever is true, whatever is honorable,
whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is
commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of
praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things you have
learned.…[Philippians 4:8-9a]”
It’s
a puzzling and troubling parable, with a great deal more to say to us than we
want to hear. It’s a reminder that faith
in Jesus Christ isn’t about the words we say
- like the son who said “Sure,
I’ll go!” - it’s about the way we actually respond, day
in and day out with the labor of our lives.
It’s a reminder that faith in Jesus Christ is about living our lives as
he would have us live. It’s a reminder
that faith in Jesus Christ demands a change in our lives. It’s a reminder that “Many are called, but
few are chosen. [Matthew 22:14]”
As
Paul said: “Think about these things.
[Philippians 4:8]”
Amen.
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