The Kingdom Parables #3
1. The main topic of Jesus' preaching was the kingdom - its coming, its nature, its entry.
2. Throughout the Old Testament and New Testament the image of the kingdom developed until Jesus provided a full description of the kingdom as a dimension that existed now in human terms but would eventually be transformed into its complete and final version at the end of the world.
3. His parables (to lay alongside - explain) about the kingdom (of God, of heaven) were given to help us understand the difference between the state of the kingdom now (the church here on earth) and the state of the kingdom in the future (when Jesus will return).
4. The parables also explain what kingdom life is like now, how things work in the kingdom, and how to be prepared for the eventual transformation of the kingdom, which will see the Father, Christ, Holy Spirit, Church, angels and Spiritual world completely integrated forever.
5. In the New Testament Jesus spoke 43 parables and of these 13 were kingdom parables and these 13 used various examples to teach their lessons:
- 5 used agricultural examples
- 4 used examples concerning money
- 2 had situations involving feasts
- 1 was a fishing story
- 1 was a story using food.
v We've already reviewed the parables about fish and food, tonight we'll look at one of the parables using feasts.
I. Parables Of The Wedding Feast - Mt.22: 2 - 14
- Read Mt.22: 2 - 14
- Of course there's the story itself and the true meaning of the story.
A. The Story
- That a king would invite guest to a wedding feast for his son and that the invited guests would refuse to come for such lame excuses is almost unbelievable.
IE. Imagine refusing an invitation to the White House for dinner because you have to have the oil on your car changed.
- That the guests would actually mistreat and kill the king's messengers is beyond belief. It says:
- They didn't respect the king
- They weren't afraid of him or even love him.
- They were very foolish.
- That the king would send his army to destroy these people is justified under the circumstances, no one will argue with this.
- The story gets a little strange when the king invites the common people to fill the place of the invited guests.
- For those listening to this parable in the 1st century, it would have been strange for anyone to treat the king the way the people in this story did.
· It would even be stranger for a king to then invite common people to his table. Kings didn't do this in those times - they stayed away from common people and slaves as much as possible.
- The story has even a surprise and troubling ending as the king ejects one of the guests from the feast because of improper attire.
· The wedding garment (wedding clothes) was a good set of clothing provided by the host to his special guests in order to spare them the expense of purchasing a new set of clothes for the occasion.
· Clothing, especially good clothing, was expensive and hard to come by especially for common people.
· Royal weddings were often made more opulent and grand when the king himself provided new clothing to all of his guests as well as food and drink.
· In this case the poor common people were invited and so it was natural that the king provide them with the proper garments to sit at the royal table. It wouldn't do for them to sit at the royal table in there "common" clothing.
- The story tells us that when the king entered to examine the feast for his son, one person had neglected to put on the garment evidently provided for him.
· The original guests insulted him by not responding to his invitation; now this guest insults him by wearing his old clothes (or his own clothes) rather than the special garment provided by the king.
v And so the story ends with the just punishment of the one who was in the feast but whose heart and spirit was not right for the feast.
B. The Story Behind The Story.
- We said that parables are stories that mirror unseen realities. In this parable the unseen reality is God's relationship with the Jesus.
- Just before this parable was spoken Jesus had made his triumphant entry into Jerusalem but had not been welcomed by any of the Jewish leaders. As a matter of fact the next day He was confronted and rejected by them.
- This parable is largely in response to their (and by extension the nation's) eventual total rejection of Him and the gospel.
- So with this as the key (Jesus as the Messiah is always the key) we can lay this parable alongside Israel's rejection of Jesus and see what God says about the kingdom.
1. The experience of the kingdom of heaven is like a feast with the king. A joyful experience with God.
2. God invited the Jews to be part of this experience but they repeatedly rejected the messengers who invited them (prophets) and ultimately killed some (John the Baptist)
3. The rejection of the son is the rejection of Christ which in real life was carried out by crucifying Him.
4. God sends His army (in the form of the Romans) to destroy the Jews in 70AD with the destruction of Jerusalem.
- This parable goes back and forward in time.
5 The king now invites the common people (Gentiles) to come to the feast - heaven through the Apostles (messengers). All were welcome - evil and good, all could come into the feast.
6 The king provides the wedding garment (the garment is righteousness of Christ obtained through baptism Gal.3: 26-27)
- God "gives" righteousness, He surrounds us with forgiveness - all we have to do is put it on through faith expressed initially through baptism.
7 One guest enters in but on his own terms, without the robe - some want to be followers of Christ on their own terms - without following or obeying the gospel.
8 God will judge all those in the church and remove those who are there under false pretenses. (Explained this in the parable of the fish and net)
9 His final word - Many called few chosen has been troubling and difficult to interpret.
- Always keep it in context of the parable and what the parable is explaining. This refers to who will or will not come into the kingdom.
· Many are called - actually all are called through the gospel of Jesus. Many are given the chance to enter in, many hear the words, know what they must do, but they don't do - they've been called, they don't answer.
· For those who answer, they become the "chosen". The words called and chosen are both adjectives in the Greek, they modify or describe nouns.
IE. - The "called" are many; there are a lot of them.
- The "chosen" are few, not many answer the call.
· If you answer the call (come to the feast, put on the robe / believe in Jesus baptized to put Him on) you become "the chosen", you are considered one of the chosen ones of God.
· If you don't answer the call (don't come to the feast, sneak in without the proper cover) you become the many - many who are on the road to destruction, the lost.
- Calvinists have often used this verse as a proof-text for their version of the doctrine of election - Calvin said:
· Man doesn't have the ability to choose right from wrong, doesn't have the spiritual insight to respond to God's offer of forgiveness - he is just too bad, too morally blind.
· He said that God simply chose some to be saved and others to be damned and if you had a problem with this then it's because you're so blinded by sin that you don't see what God is trying to do.
· This verse proves what they say many are called few are chosen (chosen by God for salvation) just like these common people were chosen to come to the feast.
- The Bible dues teach the doctrine of election but not according to Calvin. The Bible says:
· Although man has been weakened by a sinful nature he still has the ability to exercise his free will. It's just that he doesn't always make the right choices:
- But man can still choose to believe and obey God's directions, and the gospel:
IE. - Abraham chose to follow God to Canaan.
- Moses reluctantly chose to go back to Egypt; Joshua said "choose this day"..
- One thief chose to ask for forgiveness.
- Demas chose to leave Paul and the work.
- Every presentation of the gospel in the New Testament challenges people to decide to obey or not. Some do, some don't some fall away and come back, some fall away and choose to remain unfaithful.
- God also chooses but He doesn't choose which person will be saved or will be lost.
- God only makes one choice regarding salvation - He chooses who will save man and in this regard He chose Jesus Christ. 1Pet.2: 4
- In this way Jesus becomes the chosen one. Luke 23: 35
- Christ only makes one choice concerning salvation - to accept the cup of suffering which He does in the garden by saying to God, "not as I will, but as throw wilt." He chose to die for us. This was the chosen way.
- We make only choice concerning salvation, to believe and obey Jesus or to reject Him - the same choice the Jews and Gentiles had in the first century.
· When we choose Christ then we become the "chosen" of God, this is how it happens.
v Many are called by the gospel, but not many respond to it, only a few become the chosen.
Summary / Invitation.
- So what have we learned from this parable concerning the kingdom?
1. At its ultimate state it will be glorious, royal, enjoyable, happy experience - like a wedding feast.
· Helps us to understand and be patient when at the present time the kingdom in its present form has flaws, requires effort, pressed from many sides.
2. There will be a joining, an integration that will take place, like a wedding.
· Of course the kingdom of heaven on earth will be perfected and glorified by the Holy Spirit and joined to Christ and the kingdom as it exists in heaven - 1 Thes.4: 16-18
3. All are welcomed to enter in (many called).
· Some received a special invite (Jews), some were called in a general way (gospel) but all have been invited to the same feast - the same kingdom is open for all.
4. You must be dressed for the occasion.
· Now God provides the covering for us (Christ) but we must put on the garment if we wish to remain.
· God offers salvation through grace (forgiveness is free we can't buy it, make it, earn it) however we must receive it and the Bible tells us that the way to receive it is to respond to Christ by believing in Him, confessing His name, repenting of sins and being baptized in water.
· This is how you put on the wedding garment - Gal.3: 26
5. Those who refuse the invitation, those who do not accept the invitation in the proper way will not be part of this feast.
- This is the only feast in town!
- There is and will only be one kingdom.
- My last question is, "what have you learned from the parable?"
· Have you been one that's refused the invitation week after week?
· Have you been the one whose tried to enter in without the proper covering? Just sitting in the church building doesn't mean you're in the kingdom. (You need to be baptized for this).
v We've called many but how many of you can say, "I am one of the chosen ones." If you need to choose Christ tonight come now.